Pod Insights The Prof G Pod with Scott Galloway How We Vet Sponsors, Hollywood’s Decline, and Building Adult Friendships About this episode Scott Galloway answers questions on how Prof G Media vets sponsors and why we avoid crypto and gambling ads. He also gives advice for someone navigating Hollywood’s slowdown, and how to build real friendships as an adult.
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Transcript Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.
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1:27 Scott Galloway? Welcome to Office Hours of Prof G. This is the part of the show where we answer your questions about business, big tech, entrepreneurship, and whatever else is on your mind. If you'd like to submit a question for next time, you can send a voice recording to officehoursofprofgmedia.com. Again, that's officehoursofprofgmedia.com. Or post your question on the Scott Galloway subreddit, and we just might feature it on our next episode. Question number one.
1:50 Scott Galloway? Our first question comes from Intrepid Ad 1285 on Reddit. They say, "How and how much do you guys bet sponsorships? And how much do you think influencers should research sponsorships?" So our primary consideration really comes down to two things: Ka and Cheng. It's not a severe betting process, but it's pretty, it's pretty, it's really strange across the entire Prof G universe. We did some analysis. We only have 38 advertisers. And then, and Prof G is probably, at this point, across all our podcasts, probably a, I don't know, top-line $20 million business. And it's only 38 advertisers. But it's pretty basic. The majority of the brands we recognize, and it's like if it's Range Rover,
2:31 Scott Galloway? or Saks, or LinkedIn, or Microsoft, yeah, we like those companies and they're credible. The immediate red flags, or the no shoes, no service, you're out of here, are one crypto. Don't do crypto ads. And that's not because I don't think there are certain well-lit bright corners at crypto that probably, I do think Bitcoin's a tangible asset class right now. I've made two crypto investments at exactly the right wrong time, I might add. I'm literally the definition of a retail investor that once crypto hits 120,000, I think, oh, I should get in. I think I closed at 85,000 today. But I wanted some exposure to it in case it goes to a million dollars, so I don't hate myself. But in general, I find that crypto, the majority,
3:15 Scott Galloway? 99% of the tokens are shitcoins and just speculation with no underlying cash flow or scarcity value. And I think they prey on young men. And that is, one of the things that I think would really benefit a lot of young men is if they got out of the house and started making their money and connected sacrifice and discipline and showing up and showering and putting on a tie or putting on a uniform and showing up 10 minutes early, connected that to making money, as opposed to believing seeing screenshots on Reddit of someone who made a bunch of money on Ether, Cum Rocket, or some stupid fucking coin. I think in general, gambling may be the next opiate crisis. And these things are consumption. They're fun. If you're having a good time, fine.
3:58 Scott Galloway? But what I hate about them is people under the impression they're investing. Investing is generally the assumption you're going to make more money, they're going to hold on to it for the long term, and you're helping finance a company that will grow in value, and you share in the cash flows of that company after it uses your capital to grow. That is not what crypto is. Unfortunately, that's not what most stock trading is right now. And we're turning into sort of this casino economy. Tyler Scanlon's done really good work on this. And I feel like it especially preys on the young, immature male brain. Six and seven gambling addicts are young men and also, not young men, men. It's also got the highest suicide rate because if you had a meth addiction, people would notice and move in. If you have a gambling addiction, you can spend your kid's college fund,
4:42 Scott Galloway? your inheritance, mortgage your house, and nobody knows. And you feel as if there's no way out. So we don't do crypto. We don't take gaming ads, which would be a substantial increase in our advertising revenues because these guys have a lot of money and are advertising freaking everywhere. We also don't, if a financial services company pitches us, that's when we actually do some vetting. Like if Fidelity or Vanguard or Acorns, companies that I think are helping young people establish economic security, want to advertise, we love those firms. What I don't like is some of these quote unquote funds that take onerous fees and are basically just spinning investors.
5:24 Scott Galloway? And they're going to do really well, but the investor, him or herself, is not going to do well. So we've turned away some of the sketcher or stranger investment products that we can't validate. That's generally our approach to it. And what I do find is that if I talk about a brand a lot, they reach out because it's more fun to speak to something organically that you love. But the thing about host readovers is it's more authentic and we get about $45 CPM. CPM, cost per thousand, get a thousand people listening to your podcast. An advertiser will pay $45 for an ad that reaches a thousand people.
6:08 Scott Galloway? And it's because when you hear my voice, you're less likely to skip the ad and you're more likely to believe I like the product. And I do like the product. I've had an American Express card for 40 years. I've had a Black Card for 20, 30 years because it makes me feel important. It's basically a platinum card sprayed black that I pay $5,000 a year. But I think it signals my worth as an investor and a mate. Isn't that pathetic? Isn't that pathetic? And it works. And it works. Anyways, Amex is a sponsor. But it's pretty easy to make a judgment call. Most of our brands are big brands or tech brands and say yes. Occasionally, something's weird or do a little bit of diligence. But I do think. I don't know if you have a marginal moral obligation. Look, it's a capitalist society.
6:51 Scott Galloway? If people want to spend money on your pod, fine, and it's legal. But I don't want to be seen as spending a ton of time talking about the struggles of young men and then endorsing products and mendacious fucks. I like public.com. They don't pay for order flow. I find them more responsible. And I think Robin Hood are, what's the term? Mendacious fucks, basically spinning young men into trading every day. And 95% of day traders end up with less money. So I do have some like personal peccadilloes or biases. But basically, we, at the end of every show, we run through advertisers who have approached us, new advertisers, and we decide thumbs up, thumbs down. And I would say two thirds thumbs up, but a third are thumbs down.
7:36 Scott Galloway? Thanks so much for the question. Question number two, Justin from LA.
7:42 Speaker 04 Hey, Pratji. My girlfriend has been lucky enough to have worked consistently in Hollywood for the last 10 years. But this past year, many filming jobs in Los Angeles have begun to dry up, and she has found herself out of the job for the longest period of her career. The city and state are trying various incentives to get filming back. But after listening to your insights on the future of Hollywood, I've become more convinced that Hollywood will not return to the level of its former glory. I've been trying my best not to sound too alarmist about her industry, but I've also been hinting that she may need to consider a more steady work arrangement if these gaps become longer and longer. She loves the industry, and leaving it fills her with trepidation. As someone who has rebuilt himself more than once, I'm wondering what advice you have
8:24 Speaker 04 for someone that not only has to rebuild themselves, but also has to reinvent themselves and their career? What suggestions do you have for someone going through the biggest pivot of their life? Love the work you do. Keep on rocking. Justin in LA.
8:40 Scott Galloway? Oh, Justin, this is a tough one. And content production, the spending is actually level. It hasn't gone up. It's level globally. The problem is it's essentially flowing downwards from a big screen to a medium sized screen in TV, but mostly to a mobile screen. So what I tell young people is the return on your investment, financial and human capital, is inversely correlated to the size of the screen. If you're in the business of trying to make content on a big screen, you're fucked. So, look, your industry is in, or her industry is in structural decline or malaise. And then, to add insult to injury, Los Angeles is really struggling.
9:23 Scott Galloway? And Los Angeles has been struggling for about a decade because the cost of production there is just more expensive and they don't have the tax credits. Now, Governor Newsom attempted to supersize it, I think with an additional 750 million. But when you look across the size of the business and the economy in California, he didn't really supersize it. He just added, I don't know, would you like fries with that? But he didn't supersize it. And I'm in the midst of producing a series on big tech, based on my first book, The Four, with Netflix. And if we, most likely, I would imagine, will start shooting or when we get to production in New Jersey, because New Jersey has offered these enormous tax credits where you get about 30% of your top line back.
10:08 Scott Galloway? And California's nowhere near that. Georgia has them, Canada has them, you know, there's big, you know, these nations put in place big tax credits to try and attract the people who will then spend money on catering and costume design and go to the restaurants and stay at the hotels there. So I think that being in your industry in LA, like, I'm outlining all the reasons why she's struggling, which doesn't help in terms of what to do next. So there's a couple of things. Is there a geographic arbitrage? Would she be better being somewhere else if she's already ready to travel? I don't know if you have kids, but she might have to. I'm good friends with an actor who's killing it right now and has been in a bunch of the top movies.
10:49 Scott Galloway? And he's in Budapest, and then he was in LA last week, and then he's doing all sorts of stuff all over the world, and he's geographically flexible. He just kind of goes where the work is, where the money is. The standard for what you do next is one, you look at your skills and think, where would my skills be applicable somewhere else? If she's in charge of, I don't know, if she does scout location, you know, the people who come, I've had my place rented for movies a couple of times and a team shows up and figures out if it's the right place. If you're in charge, if you're a line producer or, or someone, line producer is the wrong term, the person who actually makes this shit happen. They filmed Westworld on my block in Soho and I thought whoever's organizing this would be a great event planner.
11:32 Scott Galloway? Do you have organizational skills, ability to recognize talent, manage a bunch of vendors? Okay. Have you considered saying to your next friend who has a wedding, I would like to plan your wedding, what are you doing? You know, there's, there's going to be more and more money in event planning. I just came up with this and I really like this because people are now recognizing that experiences matter more than things. Rich people have a lot of money and when they throw their kids bat mitzvah, they're not spending 20 grand, they're spending 80 grand. So that's just an example. I'm not suggesting she should be an event planner, but sit down and write down, what are the skills required to do what she does in Hollywood? And then just take the term Hollywood out and say, where might these skills also be, also be applicable?
12:17 Scott Galloway? Also be open to asking for help and that is reach out to a bunch of people in the industry or better yet, people who were in the industry and made the successful transition out if she's looking to get out. The other thing is if she's decided, like a ride or die, I'm staying in LA for whatever reason, you know, maybe you have a good job there, maybe her family's there. It's, I would say that the best way to get a job is to be as social as possible and that is to go out and, and be as social and meet people, tell them you're looking for work. Be aggressive. I think a lot of times people in certain industries are used to people calling them and having a certain amount of demand. Get off your heels, onto your toes, be more social, be out, be networking.
13:01 Scott Galloway? Think about where your skills might be applicable in other industries and just take off all preconceived notions of what's prestige and what isn't. Just what would your skills lend themselves well into another industry? Be incredibly social and tell people you're.
13:18 Scott Galloway? You're looking for work. Also, don't be too hard on yourself. The lowest thing that could happen is you get paralyzed and don't do anything and just kind of like mope around. And then, you know, some basics. Every night, put together a list of the five, three, five things you're going to do every day. Success is a series of small acts of discipline done every day. But we all go through this. When I first moved to New York, I just had no fucking idea what to do with my life. I had thought I was going to be rich because my company had gone public, then it went out of business. And I'm like, oh, wait, I'm not rich. And so every day, though, I tried to say, okay, I'm going to get out of the house. I'm going to meet people. I'm going to, I'm going to, you know, try and make some progress. Don't be a snob. You're not above other industries or doing something else.
14:01 Scott Galloway? And forgive yourself every day, a small series of actions. Where do your skills apply? Somewhere else. And just be very aggressive and realize that this is an economy now that is for, in that industry, that is for hustlers and people out calling people and trying to get meetings. Sorry, can't be more prescriptive and more helpful here. I think that industry is going through a pretty serious shift, pretty serious shift. Anyways, thanks for the question. We'll be right back after a quick break.
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18:01 Scott Galloway? Welcome back. Our final question is from Jeff, who emailed us. Jeff writes, "Hey Scott, in your new book, you suggest we periodically audit our health, nutrition, money, and friendships. On most fronts, I'm doing great. I'm a mid-30s male who exercises daily, eats clean, and can comfortably pay for the rent of my Brooklyn apartment. That said, I'm struggling to build new relationships with people who really challenge and inspire me. I've tried volunteer groups, sports leagues, and creative communities here in New York City. These endeavors are all meaningful, but haven't led to those uniquely stimulating relationships. Any suggestions on how to expand your network of friends in an authentic, non-transactional way, especially in a city? Thank you for all of your work." So the first thought I had, the fact you're even thinking this way
18:44 Scott Galloway? means you're gonna be fine. It's the kid or the person who just always makes excuse, has an immediate autoimmune reaction to stay at home and not be aggressive. I went out and met friends last night. This guy who's this magnificently successful guy and his lovely wife. And I have to force myself to do that because I'd rather just stay at home at this point in my life. I'd rather just sit around and wait for the ask answer. Also, give some friendships a chance to marinate. Sometimes people and I feel that inspiring upfront, but maybe they have a different friend network. But like, what is the key to friendships? It's sort of ubiquity and getting out and being open?
19:24 Scott Galloway? Also, I met this guy. I'm getting these PRP shots in my shoulders. And the orthopedic surgeon's been doing it. I said to him, I said, "Hey," I actually asked him, I said, "Are you single?" He's literally like this handsome doctor, right? And I think he said yes. And I thought, "Oh, my God, I know so many women that I would like to set you up with. Let's get together sometime and I'll, maybe I'll, you know, if you're up to it, I'd like to set you up because I'm constantly hearing from women, 'Do you know any guys?' And/or economically and emotionally viable guys, I should say. And he's reached out to me a couple of times and said, "Hey, do you want to go to a hockey game or something?" And I so much respect that because he's about, I think he's about 20 years younger than me. He's like this young doctor who's just killing it. And he wants to hang out. And when I was his age, I didn't have
20:09 Scott Galloway? the confidence to just text people and say, "Let's hang out." And I can't, I really like want to hang out with this guy. He lives in New York. I live in London, but I'm looking forward to seeing him and hanging out. My friend was in town last night. We're very good about staying in touch, or we're new friends. But I wouldn't be afraid to just be like, hey, man. Like, a couple of times I've said to people, guys, after dinner, I'm like, I feel a really great vibe with you. I'd love to hang. And most men aren't comfortable saying that. And so I would be willing to express like, hey, let's get together. I do a lot of mandates. I go with men a lot. And that is, I'll just say, hey, let's grab dinner and go out. But the fact you're getting out, the fact you're even thinking about this,
20:52 Scott Galloway? I get the feeling you're just tracking. The fact that you don't find these relationships that inspiring or that interesting. What I would say is to anybody who meets somebody and there's not sparks right away is like, give it a second coffee and never know how it might develop. And but just the fact you're thinking this way means you're going to be fine. And also, just the key to all of this is touching grass. What I mean by that, getting out of your house, getting in the presence of strangers, being open, being friendly. And at least twice a week, whether it's a church group, writing class, nonprofit, sports league, whatever it is, and just being very open to meeting people and follow up and express interest and friendship. But I don't know, boss, I get the sense like you should
21:37 Scott Galloway? be mentoring me. I think you're going to be just fine. Thanks for the question. That's all for this episode. If you'd like to submit a question, please email a voice recording to [email protected] . Again, that's [email protected] . Or if you prefer to ask on Reddit, just post your question on the Scott Galloway subreddit and we just might feature it in an upcoming episode. This episode was produced by Jennifer Sanchez. Our assistant producer is Laura Janer. Drew Burrows is our technical director. And thank you for listening to the Prop G Pod from Prop G Media.
22:19 Speaker 05 This podcast is supported by Anthropic, the public benefit corporation behind Claude. Everyone's got a hard question about AI. Anthropic was built to surface those questions and share what it finds along the way, because there's hope in hard questions. Ask yours at claude.ai/spotify and keep thinking. That's claude.ai/spotify.
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