AJ and Gary Vaynerchuk teamed up to start VaynerMedia, a branding agency focused on social media. AJ holds a bachelor’s degree from Boston University in advertising with a concentration in computer science. He has worked with his brother, Gary, in social media for the last five years. At VaynerMedia, AJ is responsible for running day-to-day operations. AJ agreed to participate in a phone interview with me.

Tell everyone about VaynerMedia. Why did you and your brother create this venture?

VaynerMedia is a branding agency with a focus on social media. We work with both consumer and personal brands to help them identify what they are best at, what they can do, what they can’t do, and then how they should leverage social media to reach their fans and consumers. VaynerMedia is something Gary and I have spoken about for quite some time. We started VaynerMedia about seven or eight months ago, the day after I graduated college. We just knew that we had a lot of beliefs, ideas, and a firm grasp on this industry and where it is headed. We thought to ourselves, if we could do all of these wonderful things with our side projects and Gary’s personal brand, imagine what we could do with people that are much more out there in a traditional sense – bigger companies, bigger personal brands, etc.

What part of this entire deal has you the most excited?

The thing that makes this so exciting is the variation in our clients and the ability to work on such different projects. Also, I get to look at business and branding in so many different ways. Going from a former NBA player to a baby products retailer is such an amazing transition. I just love to see different sides of business and social media, and that’s what makes this so exciting.

What’s been most fun so far?

The most fun thing that I have done so far is work with the NY Jets. I am a HUGE Jets fan, so meeting the players, seeing their point of views, and getting the inside scoop has been the most fun!

Has there been one particular lesson early on that you have already learned??

I am in the process of writing a blog post about this question. When you are a consultant, you need to be much more proactive instead of reactive. You have full vested interest in what you’re doing, but when you’re working with a big company you have to be much more proactive. You really need to sit down and think of every single scenario possible. Working with big companies in comparison to a startup company is a whole different ball game. You just have to sit down and let your mind go wild. It’s all about taking yourself outside of your own brain and trying to understand how others would react. All in all, it’s an interesting challenge

What do you think of the standard process of applying for a job (i.e. submitting a resume, interview, etc.)? Is personal branding taking over? Do you think the resume is sitting on its deathbed?

Standard anything is always a bad thing. You always want to be outside the box and think creatively. Especially when you are applying for a job, you need to put your creative mind to work. Just putting in a resume and doing an interview is not going to get you anywhere. Personal branding, being proactive, and content creation is fantastic. For example, say you want to find a job as a web designer. A resume is not going to get you anywhere. A creative approach would be to take a different spin on the “About Us” page on XYZ Company’s website. Show the company that you embrace their brand and their company. Also, show them what they would be getting if they hired you. Show them what a new web page would look in your eyes. This is different. They’ll love the fact that you took the initiative. All in all, personal branding in general is huge! Be active on social networks, network in general, being proactive in content creating is huge. The resume will fade and fade.

How do my readers get started? What if a reader is 20 and another reader is 50?

To get started whether you’re twenty or fifty, you need to create a personal website. Get your name out on the web right away and start producing content. For someone who says “I don’t know how to build a website,” go find someone who does. If you can’t find time to create your own website, you do not deserve it. Nothing is easy; to be successful you must work hard. If you are not willing to speak your mind on your own website, then you do not deserve to get a real job. One thing about a bad economy is that it separates the weak from the deserving people. If you do not have the will or drive to write your thoughts on something that you are passionate about, reevaluate what you are doing.

People have said that I have a great personal brand, but that word seems so narcissistic to me. I say mine was built accidently. How do you modestly (for lack of a better word) build your brand?

Personal branding is never built accidentally. Someone who is young and does something great shows that he or she or her has great initiative, is proactive, and is hard working. Doors do not open up by chance; doors open up because you work hard. I sometimes feel that the phrase “personal branding” is narcissistic, but at the same time it doesn’t embarrass me. At the end of the day, people do things in the world (to an extent) for themselves in some way or another.

How do you measure success in social media?

Social media should not be measured from a numbers standpoint. Someone who has one million Twitter followers with zero engagement is not valuable. Someone who has a couple thousand Twitter followers with quality engagement is so much more valuable than the former. Success should be measured by how much impact is created. The numbers standpoint truly does not matter. Let me give you an example. Oprah has over two million followers, and Chad Ochocinco, the wide receiver for the Cincinnati Bengals has over six-hundred thousand followers. If I were participating in a social media campaign, I would much rather have Chad Ochocinco’s following and support. Why? Because Oprah doesn’t engage with her audience. Ochocinco replies to followers, messages followers, tweets periodically, and posts pictures and videos. Ochocinco has taken some of his Twitter followers to football games! He engages his quality followers.

What’s your advice for young entrepreneurs who are just getting started?

Be patient. Gary and I could have started VaynerMedia three years ago. Many people in the industry just read an article or two on TechCrunch or Mashable and think they understand it all. I would be patient. Read every single day, read every single blog you find relevant constantly until you truly have a grasp. Experiment on a low level. Read, react, learn, and then repeat. The things that Gary and I have learned by experimenting with social networks and Twitter has made us learn so much in terms of social media – this makes us SO much stronger. The value our clients see in Gary and I is not providing information on what we think works but rather learning from our personal experiences what didn’t work and what we learned was wrong.

Where do you see yourself in five years?

Things change so quickly. If you told me five years ago that I would be working on VaynerMedia with my brother, I would say you were crazy. It’s hard to forecast the future but if I had to predict, I would still be running VaynerMedia and growing this business. Also, I can imagine Gary and I launching some sort of side project that we truly believe in.

Thanks AJ for letting me interview you!

One billion people on the planet don’t have access to clean drinking water. That’s one in six of us. charity: water is a non-profit organization bringing clean and safe drinking water to people in developing nations. 100% of public donations directly fund water projects. 

Here’s a quick interview I did with Evan Slusher:

When did you become involved with Charity: Water?  What made you want to do so?


I have been interested in non-profit work for a long time. I was going into medicine, and after deciding it wasn’t for me I tried many jobs after college. I have a friend who worked with charity: water and was swamped with the upcoming charity ball. I talked to him about visiting and seeing the organization, and he offered me an internship. I accepted and have been here ever since.

How did y’all come up with the idea of Charity: Water?  


Our founder, Scott Harrison, was a night club promoter here in NYC. He had a revelation one day about how selfishly he was living his life, and left it. He gave everything away, hopped a mercy ship off the coast of Africa, and started taking pictures. The story hit him hard, and when he came back he used the photos to put on an exhibition, and realized the power of the images. He also realized that one of the largest problems plaguing these nations was a lack of clean water. He used his 32nd birthday to raise money, giving up all the gifts, only asking for a $32 donation. That was the “Born in September” campaign, and the beginning of charity: water. 

How often are you out building wells? 


I’ve only worked here seven months, and haven’t been in the field yet. All staff members are on at least one trip a year, while Scott and Becky Straw (our water projects manager) are in the field quite a bit more.

Where do you see Charity: Water a year from now?  What about five years from now?


Charity: water is growing in leaps and bounds. Even with the tough economy new and exciting things are coming in every day. We have some large plans in the five year scale, but you’re just going to have to wait and see what they are

Please describe your favorite Charity: Water success story. 


There are too many to count. I thought this last years charity ball was a huge success. The biggest success has to be seeing the wells go up in the field, and knowing that what we are doing has a good end result. 

What are your top three favorite books?


I have a lot… I’ll just list three good ones I’ve read lately. 

“Hippocrates’ Shadows: Secrets from the House of Medicine” – Davidy Newman

“Dead Aid” – Dambisa Moyo

“Backgammon for Blood!” – Bruce Becker (currently reading… The guys in our office have a friendly addiction to backgammon, and I’m trying to get better so I can compete) 

Who are some of your mentors today?  Do you have a favorite entrepreneur? 


My mentors continue to be some of my teachers, family, and friends I’ve grown up with for years. I value their opinions more then anyone. As far as entrepreneurs go, I have to say I’m impressed with the people who have started charities, like the ones we work with, out of nothing more then a story. I know how hard it is to turn a small grassroots organization into a much bigger movement, and the people that pull it off are amazing. 

What is Evan Slusher’s definition of success?


Rolex…. Just kidding…. Just being happy with your life. It doesn’t matter what you do, where or how you do it. If you go home at the end of the day and you’re happy, then that’s the key. 

Please describe to me the company you started, Green Soul Shoes.

GreenSoul Shoes (GSS) is unique positioned as a 100% recycled, waste reducing, shoe company. We are a company that reinvests in the environment by upcycling waste into something of greater use and value. We work with Third World artisans to hand-make shoes from truck tires and for every pair of shoes that we sell, we also give a pair away to a barefoot child in the same community. In doing so, we will provide opportunities for Third World economic development while empowering their communities to provide resources for themselves. GSS will provide shoes for 1 million unprivileged, shoeless children in 5 years with our “buy one, give one” policy.

How did you come up with the idea / what made you want to pursue it?

My partner Alastair Ong had been visiting Southeast Asia during a previous business venture when he came across a village living on a landfill. Given the destitute conditions, Alastair was heartbroken and wanted to help so he came back and worked with friends and family to come up with a holistic business model that would allow for multiple stakeholders. Today, Alastair, Iris (Alastair’s wife), and I, work to shoe underserved children around the world!

How / Why is this better than what you did for a living previously?

I worked at Bear Stearns for 2 years and had the incredible opportunity to work for an international investment bank. During that time I helped started a successful software company called BearXplorer that helped institutional investors better allocate their portfolio holdings.

The similarities are that in both cases, I have been afforded the opportunity to work with a team of dedicated professionals to build an innovative company that seeks to develop outsized value.

How do you see our market changing over the next few years?
Supporting additional companies who invest in the triple bottom line. Consumers and businesses will look for new ways to reduce the environmental impact of daily life—not just because it is the right thing to do—but rather because it will make the most amount of economic sense. Governments will create additional incentives to enter these markets are we continue our transition away from shrinking job markets.

Who are your favorite entrepreneurs?
Richard Branson, Dave Novak, and Tony Hsieh

Recently, I spoke with David Cohen to ask a few questions about TechStars and more… 

Where do you see TechStars five years from now? Have your original goals for TechStars changed since the launch in 2007?  

DC: Honestly, I have no clue. We tend not to plan ahead too much. Each year after the program we get together and discuss what, if anything, should change.  Our goals haven’t changed since inception – it’s just that we’re now doing it in two cities (Boulder and Boston). The current goals were to enhance the entrepreneurial community itself, while hopefully finding some interesting investment opportunities. This is the same today, it’s just that we’re now a part of two communities.

How did you come up with the name?  When did you have your ‘calling’ to start TechStars?  Or has this been something you have wanted to do since the beginning?  

DC: I’m not very good and naming stuff, so I’ve always just sort of gone with the first name that made sense to me and that people could easily understand. It’s simple, we’re in Tech, and we’re looking for new Stars. As far as the “calling”, I had been doing angel investing for a while and had found parts of it to be amazingly fun and other parts to be unsatisfying. TechStars was my attempt to fix that was unsatisfying – namely, to a) have an early impact on the companies, b) help surround the entrepreneurs I was working with with amazing people and other resources, and c) to be able to get to know entrepreneurs better before investing larger amounts of money. It was not something I envisioned a long time ago – rather, it was a response to my direct experiences with angel investing.

Has TechStars passed on any companies that have become really successful?  Do you plan on creating a TechStars ‘Anti-Portfolio’ similar to what Bessemer has done?

DC: I’d be surprised if we haven’t passed on some companies that have or will become very successful. In fact, I’d be shocked. I sincerely hope that it has or is happening now. While I am not aware of any specific examples, I’m sure some exist. I probably will keep an “anti-portfolio” as a simple list once I become aware of these. I wouldn’t go out of my way to research it though.  I have certainly passed on non-TechStars companies in my angel investing career that are very successful today.  Sometimes you just pick stuff that you want to work on – people forget that angel investors are motivated by much more than just money.

What are your top three favorite books? 

DC: 1) Blueprint to a Billion – I loved this book because it is so data oriented.

2) The Art of the Start - simple, straightforward advice that is timeless.  

3) Pale Blue Dot - reminds you that none of this really matters all that much and that you only live once – so you had better make the most of it.

Who are some of your mentors today?  Do you have a favorite entrepreneur? 

DC: Brad Feld, Jason Mendelson, Howard Diamond. I learn an amazing amount being around all of them. They’ve really invested in me personally, and I am so thankful. My dad died some time ago, but he is still a mentor to me. I regularly reflect on how he was as a person, and it still informs me today. I don’t have a favorite entrepreneur – there are too many to name. Mostly they’re the ones I’ve invested in.  

What is David Cohen’s definition of success?

DC: Success is enjoying life, maximizing the chances you get in life, and being content with who you are.