Trial and Error: Interview with John Vitti, Founder and CEO of VersusGame

I recently went one on one with John Vitti. John is the founder and CEO of the highly popular prediction marketplace VersusGame, with 4.3 million users a year after launching.

Adam: How did you get here? What experiences, failures, setbacks or challenges have been most instrumental to your growth?

John: I’ve never fit in. While I did attend university, in retrospect, for me, it was a waste of time, because nothing beats real world experience. The corporate world never adopted me, which led me to starting my own companies. I’ve had many ups and downs throughout my career of startups. My first two companies failed and my last two, I successfully exited. As a result of combining pure raw trial and error along with listening to successful people, I was able to continue the growth of my business. If you can find a mentor or surround yourself with amazing people, do it.

Adam: How did you come up with your business idea? What advice do you have for others on how to come up with great ideas?

John: I saw a naturally occurring phenomenon that happens every day. It’s human behavior to make predictions and have opinions. We want to be right. Not only is it fun for us, but we are wired to do this. I realized this common occurrence when speaking with friends, family and coworkers, but no one was being rewarded for something they do every day - make predictions. Versus Game was created with the idea that knowledge should be rewarded.

Adam: How did you know your business idea was worth pursuing? What advice do you have on how to best test a business idea?

John: Great question! I saw that people were constantly talking about their opinions and predictions. So much lip service, but not a lot of action that could be taken. My friends wanted to get into Wall Street but couldn’t afford it, and while some could spot trends, they couldn’t make any moves. “Why didn’t I think of Uber” moments happened a lot! Versus Game stemmed from the idea of helping people by creating a fair and fun game for anyone to play and win.

This game is for the people, by the people. The people are playing and creating the games. We are the ones consuming all this media and content, using all these products and services, so now it’s time we get rewarded too!

Adam: What are the key steps you have taken to grow your business? What advice do you have for others on how to take their businesses to the next level?

John: I think it’s important to continue to innovate and create a platform that is interactive for users. As such, Versus Game recently launched its first-ever exclusive gaming economy feature that now gives players the ability to create and host their own games. This innovative user-generated feature allows users to earn money and grow their own social following. Players can create their own custom games using Versus Game’s classic formula (i.e. Will Ariana Grande’s new song be #1 on the charts?) Hosts can choose to keep the games exclusive to their inner circle or open them up for anyone in the world to play, and will earn a portion of the revenue generated from each game they create. For the first time ever, anyone can create games to earn money.

Adam: What are your best sales and marketing tips?

John: Find your audience first – make sure you can retain them, and then expand. This is the only step that matters and sets up everything in the future.

Adam: In your experience, what are the defining qualities of an effective leader? How can leaders and aspiring leaders take their leadership skills to the next level?

John: Extreme ownership...own all the bad stuff, no matter what.

Listen to your team.

Total transparency.

Constantly help people on your team with whatever they need help with.

Adam: What is your best advice on building, leading and managing teams?

John: Go slowly. Each hire is very critical, especially on a small team.  We also have only hired through referrals so we know who these candidates are and they are already proven. I suggest asking your team if they know anyone that might be interested in working at your company.

Adam: What are your three best tips applicable to entrepreneurs, executives and civic leaders?

John: Build it and then get out of your own way.

Invest in the long game… the future.

Surround yourself with the best people who share your vision.

Adam: What is the single best piece of advice you have ever received?

John: It’s never a straight line. You might have done all the planning in the world but you have to have patience, be adaptable, open minded and have a never give up attitude because it’s never a straight line. Things change.


Adam Mendler is the CEO of The Veloz Group, where he co-founded and oversees ventures across a wide variety of industries. Adam is also the creator and host of the business and leadership podcast Thirty Minute Mentors, where he goes one on one with America's most successful people - Fortune 500 CEOs, founders of household name companies, Hall of Fame and Olympic gold medal winning athletes, political and military leaders - for intimate half-hour conversations each week. Adam has written extensively on leadership, management, entrepreneurship, marketing and sales, having authored over 70 articles published in major media outlets including Forbes, Inc. and HuffPost, and has conducted more than 500 one on one interviews with America’s top leaders through his collective media projects. A top leadership speaker, Adam draws upon his insights building and leading businesses and interviewing hundreds of America's top leaders as a top keynote speaker to businesses, universities and non-profit organizations.

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