Not Your Typical Speakers Bureau: VaynerSpeakers is a Platform for the Unnoticed with
Stories Worthy to be Heard
Not Your Typical Speakers Bureau: VaynerSpeakers is a Platform for the Unnoticed with Stories Worthy to be Heard
By Jim James, Founder EASTWEST PR and Host of the SPEAK|pr Podcast
Zachary Nadler, CEO of VaynerSpeakers, shares the same mission as The UnNoticed Show: to find something that is underexposed and help it get the exposure it deserves. For their case, in
particular, that something is a someone — a speaker, to be exact. A speaker who has an
amazing message to share, that, only if people would have a chance to listen, they’d give it a
shot and hear the whole story. Here he shares what they’re looking for in a speaker and how
their group helps the unnoticed speakers, well, get noticed by the right audience.
Reinforcing the Power of Purpose
Zach admits that they currently represent a small group of speakers. But despite their humble
roster, they are here to inspire others and give the best tactics and strategies. While they can’t
help every single person in the world through representation, they aim to set an example on
how to get a particularly positive message out there; to give an idea of what they do and the
effective way that they’ve done it.
Image from VaynerSpeakers
So how do they do it? As Zach has mentioned in one of his other podcast engagements, it’s all
about focusing on the purpose and sort of removing the “transaction” aspect from the
engagement.
The founders of VaynerSpeakers started the business with the idea that they want to be
different. They don’t want to be just another speakers bureau because, really, there’s enough of
that out there already. For every event that they provide a speaker for, they consider it different
and unique. They see past the business and the money-making side of it. Because for them,
focusing on those won’t give much chance for success and won’t be able to build long-term
relationships. “Transaction” is perceived only as a small piece of what actually goes down.
Breaking into a New Market
Trying to break out into a new market, according to Zach, is about creating awareness. So if
yourself. And that will entail marketing yourself in other languages.
But what’s more crucial is targeting a smaller market. It brings forth a more beneficial
relationship, something that is more advantageous. By establishing yourself in that kind of
market — a market wherein there are fewer speakers — you can create lasting relationships
with groups and audiences that will want to bring you back.
Another trend is finding more territorial topics. Now, themes about resilience and grit are going
global because, with the pandemic that’s happening, everyone is dealing with the same
situation. The key is to delve into certain topics that are more exclusive to an area.
But if you really want to build a market for yourself anywhere, you have to have a message that
is useful to anyone. With the internet democratizing information, anyone could build a
marketplace for anything, in any part of the world. In this case, you have to put more time and
effort to do that and impart a message that people would actually want to hear about.
Why VaynerSpeakers Remain Tech-Agnostic
At a time when more and more virtual events are taking place, VaynerSpeakers remain pretty
tech-agnostic when it comes to sharing their speakers’ messages worldwide.
Screengrab from VaynerSpeakers’s website
Zach points out that technology is fast-changing. Ten years ago, people are all on Skype. But
now, no one is using the platform anymore. Zoom, which is a video conferencing app that
gained skyrocketing traction because of the pandemic, as I mentioned, has already reached its
threshold when it comes to interactivity and connectivity.
According to him, there still isn’t a technology that comes even close to replacing the
the after-parties.
And with that, they opt not to stick with one particular platform to get their speakers’ stories
across. In fact, last year, the group utilized 10 to 15 different platforms. That’s how malleable
they are — they use whichever is most preferred by their customers.
It All Boils Down to Authenticity
VaynerSpeakers recognize that they have a platform to offer for the unnoticed. With it, they can
help broadcast and amplify those unnoticed people’s messages. So it all boils down to finding
who they are going to offer that avenue to.
Zach emphasizes he is proud of the people they currently represent. They are all very individual
in their way and they all have varying messages to tell — the kind of messages that they’re
excited to broadcast with the megaphone. This is why they do their best to overexpose those
underexposed.
Feeling privileged to work with such a roster, Zach and the rest of his team at VaynerSpeakers
take their responsibility seriously. They make sure that their customers know what their options
are, and connect the dots between a speaker and an event. They figure out who the audience
is, who the company is, why they’re being brought in, in the first place. They do their best to
create a custom message, something that you don’t get to see every day.
If a speaker has an understanding of his or her cultural relevancy and can turn that to his or her
audience, VaynerSpeakers will give a platform for that speaker to be heard. For instance, this
summer, they have an American-born client who’s supposed to go to Singapore in person. But
because of the pandemic, it will only be virtual. But the idea is there: to bring a speaker to an
international crowd. To overcome language barriers, they are working on being able to
simultaneously translate it into about 20 different languages.
Image from VaynerSpeakers
This is why, right from the start, they make sure that the speakers they represent have a
message to share, not just a mere speech. The speakers they’re looking for must have a way to
connect with a crowd. For instance, if the speaker will talk about working with business owners
and entrepreneurs and he or she comes in as if they’re all employees, they’re going to have a
very difficult time having a conversation like that. He or she should have that ability to connect
and be authentic — be able to speak to the audience in a way that’s going to be powerful and
meaningful for them.
While they provide information that speakers need to perfect their craft and make sure that
every presentation is custom, they don’t necessarily coach or write speeches for them. Again, it
all goes back to authenticity.
If you know your message, then you should be able to understand how to connect it to a
different audience. And that demands more research than otherwise. For example, if you’re
sharing your message to teachers, a very special audience, you have to know how to be able to
speak to them. There has to be that value of adaptability. You have to know your audience, be
able to craft your message, and own the content. Zach says that if you can’t stand on a soapbox
and talk about the thing that you’re most passionate about, then you shouldn’t have been out
there in the first place. You’re like a musician who has his style and own form of composition but
has to think of something new to stay relevant.
Leveraging the Internet
In the process of being a successful speaker, a lot of work goes on. It’s not an overnight
success. So how do VaynerSpeakers help their clients move from one stage or level to another?
It’s leveraging how the internet democratizes information. The internet can be a platform that
can expedite success. In this age, for instance, anyone can be a Kim Kardashian quickly.
Somebody can release a song on TikTok and two weeks later, that somebody could be playing
at the Grammys already.
Image from ![]()
Pexels
Zach advises that if you have a great story, tell it — and find people to hear it. Remember when
Justin Bieber became a phenomenon and to think that he just played a song on YouTube and
someone saw it? Well, the rest, as they say, is history. But that was 10 years ago already.
Today, things are a lot easier than they were during that time. The good news is, it just keeps
getting better. Take advantage of the technology available and grab the opportunity to share
your message.
Just don’t lose that self-awareness, he shares. Know what message people would want to hear.
Don’t just tell stories; share information in a way that can benefit someone else. Just like how a
client of Zach told him all sorts of crazy experiences he encountered and was able to impart
lessons in the process — even if Zach did not necessarily find the experiences fun for him on a
personal level.
Indeed, great stories become even more effective when they’re told the best way to tell them.
It’s Not About Fame, But the Ability to Share
At VaynerSpeakers, Zach and company try to be as open-minded as possible.
They are looking for people who are different. It’s not exactly fame or following that they’re
looking for — it’s the ability to serve and to share. And, of course, good people. They don’t want
to bring anyone too much to handle.
Their prospective client need not be this successful or should have this many followers on social
media — any sort of periphery numbers and things that don’t really quantify success in the
world of speaking engagements. They need authentic speakers who can put the whole package
together and simply be themselves.
He knows that a lot of people out there fit the bill. This is why they’re doing their best to
eventually grow from a fairly small two-and-a-half-year-old company into an organization that
can represent the world — the unnoticed, the underexposed.
To learn more about them, visit ![]()
www.vaynerspeakers.com. Zach is eminently available to help
with any event, opportunity, or query.
This article is based on a transcript from my Podcast SPEAK|pr, ![]()
you can listen here.
