I was at the Uncorking Gary Vaynerchuk event at Columbus Circle tonight

It was an indepth interview but I decided to just listen to Gary and store away any notes I had in my mind for later.   I heard Gary Vaynerchuk several times before and have briefly spoken to him perhaps 5 or 6 times – but I got more from him today, perhaps, than the other times.

Here’s what I retained – Gary said the internet channel is only 15 years old and hardly anyone understands it yet – and a lot of people just don’t get what it’s actually for and how to use it – they try to treat it as old media, even though it’s not.

Having said that, the Internet, and especially Social Media, is more measurable than traditional media and went on to explain that buying advertising on billboards is based on opportunities to see that are very unscientifically measured.   Gary implied … as Social Media, because it is more measurable (and it’s weird he said “social media” and not “online media”, has low conversion numbers … what does that say about traditional media such as magazines at TV – which he said the measurement for, all suck.

None of that rant was actually new – I’ve heard it from him before – though every time I hear it from him, it seems a little more clear than the time before.

Gary Vaynerchuk was asked a question about analytics and metrics – he said he hates both and runs his businesses on a very “gut” level – because he knows the businesses he’s in he has an intuitive understanding of what will work – and is totally enthused with what he’s doing and what he’s offering to his clients.

But he said metrics and analytics are misunderstood primarily by management – and that change comes from the top down – until those who run businesses can intelligently articulate metrics – there is little hope.      He also pointed out that people in business are often impatient and are not willing to working long and patiently for results – and that’s why they often fail.   Gary said he lived and breathed the wine business from the age of 15 and it took a good 15 years before he anything happened that is connected to his success now.

However, Vaynerchuk said programmable TV, new intelligent TV’s  were going to totally change the entertainment industry/of  and rattled of a few examples  of what that is going to be like.

At the end of the day we’re all storytellers – Gary said; to the extent we’re willing to tell our stories and our content is good  – we can succeed in the new media.

By the way, at the end of the event there was a drawing and I won a signed copy of Crush It! I’ll get it in a month, so I’m told – but that’s OK, I have a signed copy at home now, got it a few months ago at another Gary V. event.