Gary Vaynerchuk on Winning Attention in an Interest Driven Retail World

Retail success today is no longer defined by store count or brand awareness alone. It is defined by attention.

In a wide ranging conversation with journalist Christopher Zara, entrepreneur and VaynerMedia CEO Gary Vaynerchuk shared a candid view on how retailers must rethink marketing, measurement, social platforms, live shopping, and artificial intelligence in an attention driven economy.

From Barnes and Noble's physical retail resurgence to the rise of TikTok Shop and AI powered creators, Vaynerchuk argued that relevance, not reach, is now the most important currency in commerce.

Why Attention Is the New Retail Currency

Vaynerchuk framed the discussion around a simple truth. Retailers are no longer competing just with other stores or brands. They are competing with everything that captures consumer attention.

He pointed to Barnes and Noble as a rare bright spot in physical retail, noting that the bookseller opened 67 stores last year while many legacy chains struggled or filed for bankruptcy. A key factor in that turnaround was the company's ability to tap into TikTok culture, particularly the BookTok community, which reignited demand among younger consumers.

For Vaynerchuk, the lesson is clear. Demand creation through contemporary marketing makes physical retail viable.

Lessons from Barnes and Noble's Comeback

According to Vaynerchuk, retailers that succeed combine smart operational fundamentals with modern attention strategies.

That includes securing strong lease deals, operating stores with disciplined profit and loss management, and using marketing that reflects how consumers actually discover products today.

Retailers that fail often ignore attention dynamics and rely on outdated marketing playbooks that no longer influence consumer behavior.

What Retailers Are Measuring Wrong

One of Vaynerchuk's strongest critiques was aimed at how large organizations measure success.

He argued that many Fortune 500 companies obsess over reporting metrics that exist for the sake of reporting, rather than focusing on outcomes that matter. As a former retailer himself, Vaynerchuk emphasized that retail has a built in advantage. Performance shows up at the cash register.

Instead of separating media and creative and relying on brand lift studies or subjective surveys, retailers should focus on a small number of meaningful metrics. These include short term sales impact, repeat purchases, and lifetime customer value.

In his view, repeat sales are the most honest indicator of brand health.

Brand Loyalty in the Age of Algorithms and AI

Despite claims that brand loyalty no longer exists, Vaynerchuk strongly disagreed.

He argued that brand loyalty will become even more important as artificial intelligence driven agents begin reordering products automatically on behalf of consumers. In that future, loyalty will determine default purchasing behavior.

The challenge, he said, is that executives often try to measure brand loyalty through flawed and overly abstract methods. Instead, loyalty should be understood through behavior, especially repeat buying and long term customer relationships.

From Social Media to Interest Media

Vaynerchuk described a fundamental shift from social media to what he calls interest media.

In the past, reach was driven largely by who you followed. Today, algorithms prioritize what you are interested in. Individual pieces of creative now earn distribution based on relevance, not follower count.

This shift, popularized by TikTok and earlier experiments like Tumblr, has reduced the importance of building massive followings and increased the importance of producing relevant, engaging content.

For brands, this means that a single strong post can outperform years of audience building if it resonates with the right interests.

Why Creative Is Finally Measurable

For the first time, Vaynerchuk believes creative effectiveness can be measured at scale.

Social platforms now provide real time feedback through views achieved, engagement, and distribution patterns. He urged retailers to track views per post across platforms as a foundational metric for understanding creative performance.

High performing organic content should then be adapted for paid media, rather than relying on traditional performance advertising alone. According to Vaynerchuk, organic validated creative consistently outperforms standard A B testing when used in paid campaigns.

Live Social Shopping Is Already Here

Live social shopping was another major focus of the conversation.

While adoption in the United States is still early, Vaynerchuk emphasized that the category is already massive. Platforms like Whatnot, TikTok Shop, Twitch, and emerging tools such as District are driving billions in gross merchandise value.

He compared skepticism around live shopping today to early doubts about social media commerce a decade ago. In his view, every product category can succeed in live shopping, from collectibles to apparel to high value items.

Retailers that are not actively developing a live shopping strategy, particularly on TikTok Shop, risk falling behind in the next two to three years.

How AI Will Reshape Influencers and Commerce

Vaynerchuk addressed concerns about artificial intelligence and the future of influencers directly.

He does not believe AI will destroy the creator economy, but he does believe it will disrupt it. Virtual influencers and AI generated content will compete for brand budgets, especially at the mid and lower tiers of influence.

Rather than resisting this shift, Vaynerchuk sees it as a natural evolution of technology. He emphasized that AI will also unlock enormous benefits, particularly in healthcare and productivity, that far outweigh short term disruptions in marketing.

The Takeaway for Retail Leaders

The core message from Gary Vaynerchuk is both simple and challenging.

Retailers must stop hiding bad creative behind large media budgets. They must prioritize relevance, speed, and humility in content creation. Attention is earned one post at a time, and loyalty is built through consistent value, not surveys or slogans.

For brands willing to adapt, today's interest driven media landscape offers an unprecedented opportunity. A single piece of content can spark demand, build loyalty, and drive commerce faster than ever before.

For those who do not, the cost of ignoring attention will only grow.