VaynerMedia scales Australia team as social-first demand surges

VaynerMedia Australia is scaling its local team as brands continue to shift marketing investment toward social-first channels.

The agency, now five years into the Australian market, has grown to around 55 staff and is expanding its leadership bench to meet rising demand for always-on content, platform expertise and creator-led marketing.

Joining the team as part of a recent hiring splurge is Elle Batchelor, who joins as director of creator partnerships for the APAC region after more than five years at TikTok, where she most led growth strategy. Batchelor’s appointment reflects increasing demand from brands to move beyond traditional influencer campaigns toward more structured, commerce-driven creator partnerships.

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Other recent hires include Sophie Tschuchnigg, who joins as project director from Akcelo, while Nathan Bramley joins as senior account director, bringing experience across gaming and technology-led campaigns. Former Howatson+Company executive Belle Brown joined the agency in September last year as client partner.

VaynerMedia Australia country manager Karen Coleman said the shift in attention is now being matched by a shift in spend.

“Attention has moved and increasingly, so has investment,” she said. “We’re seeing a clear acceleration in demand from brands who recognise that social is no longer an add-on channel, it’s the starting point.”

The agency has also formalised several recent hires across project delivery and client leadership, strengthening its ability to scale high-volume content production and manage more complex, integrated client relationships.

VaynerMedia works with brands including PepsiCo, HBO Max and SharkNinja and has positioned itself around a social-first model that prioritises speed, cultural relevance and continuous output.

The expansion comes as agencies respond to a broader industry shift, with marketers rebalancing budgets away from traditional channels toward platforms where attention is increasingly concentrated.