Cult Classics: Timeless Lessons from The Cult Gathering

Together is ‘To Gather’ 

Co-Founder of The Gathering, Ryan Gill, opened this year’s conference by grounding us all in his speech on the purpose of gathering—not to simply network and generate new business—but to find genuine connection, create a sense of belonging, and build community. I think Ryan put it most eloquently when he said, “Community type shit.”

But in all seriousness, Ryan’s message is the exact strategy that iconic brands use to build loyal, cult-like followings. By focusing on authenticity and shared purpose, you can nurture long-lasting relationships with your clients built on a foundation of genuine connection.

For us in the technology space, it’s an important reminder that trust and relationship building isn’t predicated on selling the perfect digital solution, it’s about creating a shared sense of purpose and ensuring your goals and values are in alignment with your client. It’s that type of connection, and that type of connection alone that ultimately builds a successful ecosystem of collaboration, growth, and value.

Play in the Dirt

I’ll preface this by saying I’ve never actually been a fan of Gary Vaynerchuk.

To me, he has always felt like the embodiment of a toxic hustle culture and this predatory promise that if you simply post on social media every day, you’ll all reap the rewards of success in the digital age. In other words, his schtick has always felt like a bit of a scam to me.

And while none of the above may actually be true, I’m pleasantly surprised to say that Gary Vee (as he’s known as in social media) earned a new fan out of me after listening to his keynote address at this year’s conference.

In his patented shrill voice and infectious amount of high energy, Gary brought an unexpected perspective to the conference with his insights on day trading attention.

Despite the accolades and tremendous amount of success Gary has enjoyed over the past 20 years using digital marketing and social media to scale his family’s wine business and his ventures including restaurant reservation service Resy and communications agency VaynerX/VaynerMedia, he is surprisingly humble.

“If you love the game, playing in the penthouse is boring. Most people at my level are playing in the penthouse. I’m still playing in the dirt.” – Gary Vaynerchuk.

And it’s that notion of ‘playing in the dirt’ that resonated with me so much. Gary has always been known for being ahead of his time when it comes to social media marketing platforms like Instagram and TikTok. But the truth of the matter is, he’s never actually been ahead of his time on anything, he’s just simply been paying attention. Watching the scale, waiting for the tipping point, and putting in the daily grind of hard, honest work that has led to him being an early adopter of rising technology trends including things like the Metaverse, artificial intelligence influencers, etc.

“A lot of people in marketing sell shit they don’t believe in.” – Gary Vaynerchuk.

It’s his message about grit that’s a powerful reminder of one of our own core values at Punchcard—levelling up and mastering our craft—that will always remain true in our industry. This idea that regardless of any recent short-term success or growth you may have achieved that it’s important to always remain humble and stay nimble in response to the everchanging technological landscape that will be the ultimate key to long-term success. By staying in the dirt, you’ll leave others in the dust, and, eventually, you’ll get to the clouds.

Permanence is an illusion. Change is constant.

For anybody that knows me, you will know the first thing about me is that I am a massive hockey fan. I started skating at 4 years old, grew up living, breathing, and playing the sport any time I could, and have genuinely met all of my closest friends to this day through the sport of hockey.

But the truth of the matter is, I am actually only a fan of the Edmonton Oilers. And in fact, I am a passionate detractor of the National Hockey League (NHL). I disagree with a majority of the decisions the league makes regarding its one-ice product that often seem counterintuitive to growing the game of hockey, improving the fan experience, and marketing what I feel like is the best sport on the planet. But I digress. Needless to say, I am not a fan of the NHL and its marketing.

However, I was genuinely curious (and slightly fired up) to attend Brian Jennings’ session on the Evolving Playbook for Modern Marketers. As the Executive Vice President of Marketing at the National Hockey League, Brian has worked at the league for almost 35 years and no doubt has been involved with every single marketing campaign put out by the NHL since I was born.

While I was less interested in Brian’s showcase of recent successful and upcoming marketing campaigns, I did thoroughly enjoy his thoughts on innovation.

“Permanence is an illusion. Change is constant.” – Brian Jennings

This thought from Brian echoed a lot of what Gary Vaynerchuk was talking about and underscored a powerful insight on the importance of adaptability in our rapidly evolving digital world. At Punchcard, we’re no strangers to change. We recognize that innovation isn’t a one-time achievement but a perpetual journey. By staying adaptable and forward-thinking, we can guide our clients through technological change and help them remain at the forefront of emerging technology that evolves as much as they do.

Human Creativity + Artificial Intelligence Tools = Brand Differentiation

“If you don’t know how to use AI, you won’t have a job in a few years.” – Brett Marchand, CEO, PlusCo. How many times have you heard a statement like this in the past year or so?

Regardless, my final insight came from a combination of different sessions: one on the End of the Advertising Age from Brett Marchand, CEO of PlusCo, and the other on How to Build a Brand that Demands Attention from Melissa Rosenthal, Co-Founder of OutLever.

In his session on the rise of artificial intelligence, Brett posed the question whether the transformative power of artificial intelligence signalled the end of traditional advertising. While in her session on how to infuse creativity and take risks in brand building, Melissa reinforced the idea that genuine human creativity is now more essential than it ever has been in the age of artificial intelligence.

Both sessions drove home the importance of embracing unconventional ideas and utilizing artificial intelligence tools to supplement and amplify our creativity. In a world where technology offerings have become homogenous, brands and businesses can distinguish themselves by delivering solutions with creative problem-solving at their core – something that artificial intelligence cannot, and hopefully, will not be able to do.

CULTivating Innovation

While attending a marketing and advertising conference may seem like an unusual move for a technology company, the insights we took away were anything but out of place.

The lessons learned at The Gathering don’t only apply to advertisers and are inherently vital to our work in the technology space. I left my first experience at The Cult Gathering with a clear mandate in mind: investment in relationship-building, creativity, and adaptability are the keys to building both a sustainable business and an iconic, enduring brand.

The Gathering gave me a renewed sense of purpose and vision for what’s possible as we continue to push boundaries and cultivate innovation at Punchcard.