The Four People Every Startup Needs

A lot of people look at how much content I’m putting out and say “I don’t have the time to do all of that” or “I can’t afford that big of a team.” 

Today, I’ve got 30+ people on Team GaryVee helping me create and distribute content across social media. 

But it doesn’t have to start out that way. People overthink their businesses - who they hire, how they market, and what they spend their time on. 

If you’re at the point where you’re ready to scale a business or a brand, I believe you really only need 3-4 people: 

1. A “math” person 

A “math” person is someone who knows how to run ads. 

It’s someone who understands things like CAC, LTV, cost per follower, and the concepts that allow you to really take advantage of different ad platforms. 

The math person should also be able to communicate with the videographer or the people who are producing the content to tell them the kind of footage they need to run ads that get results. 

2. An “art” person 

You need someone who’s good at designing - someone who can take the video content and turn it into images on Instagram. 

My designers take quotes from my video content and create “quotes” from them like the one below: 

Depending on your business or band, an image like that may or may not be authentic to you. Your designer should be able to take the concepts or images from a video and create an image you can distribute across social. 

3. A “video” person 

When it comes to a video person, you need to have someone who can both film and post-produce. 

Not all video people are able to do that. Some are only good behind the camera. Others are editors who can take raw footage and make a great video. You’ll need someone who can do both. 

Videographers on my team are able to film and edit the videos that go up on my social channels. That includes “micro-clips” (like the ones you see on my LinkedIn or Instagram feed) and longer form videos on YouTube. 

4. A “written word” person 

I believe that copywriting is one of the most underrated skills today. 

It’s unbelievably important and a lot of people overlook it - especially on platforms like Instagram that are very visual. It’s easy to get caught up in the video and design elements and ignore the words you’re putting in the headline and in the copy below. 

When I don’t write long, descriptive, good copy on my Instagram pictures, I feel the impact on reach and engagement. Same thing applies to other platforms too. 

For more on this, check out DailyVee 541 where I talk more about it: