You've seen him on WEG banners. You've chatted with him on
JBM. Now its time to find out what makes Gabe tick.
JBM:
Most of us already know you but for those who don't can you
tell us how you got in this industry, what are some things
you have done and what do you currently do?
WEG GABE:
I have to thank Zimm (jason), for the opportunity. I actually
worked for him
before coming onboard with Web Entertainment Group. I started
doing site
updates and descriptions, moved onto fraud, and found my way
to webmaster
support. I currently do support, some traffic trades and whatever
manual
labor needs to be done at the office. WEG has some cool new
sites in the
works and I am excited to be included in the development and
marketing of
them from the ground up.
JBM:
How did you meet TondaB? How is married life? Has the fact
that you
married within the industry affected your overall performance
in this
industry? Positively or Negatively?
WEG GABE:
T and I met in Vegas during Cybernet November of 2001, at
an industry dinner
at Circo in the Bellagio. At that time she was still with
S.I.C.. T
introduced me to many people, she is a social butterfly, whereas
I usually
just sit back and observe people and happenings. As far as
affecting my
performance within the industry I'm still learning to balance
the time I
spend on work related projects, time with her, and time for
myself. So I
guess its affected me positively because I like to think I
learn from my
mistakes.
JBM:
Do you have any plans on branching out and opening
your own affiliate
program?
WEG GABE:
Not in adult... ;)
JBM:
Can you tell us about the early days of WEG, back when Shok
and RRed
were in charge of join for free. When did WEG really start
growing? How
much have things changed since the beginning?
WEG GABE:
Shok and RRREd ran Join4Free, Shok did the mailers RRRed was
in charge of
affiliates. They came up with great advertising methods, including
outing me
in a banner, this lead to more and more ads with my mug in
em. After
launching join4free, W.E.G. came out with join4freegold, eventually
W.E.G.
put all their sites under one affiliate program and called
it WEGCash. At
first it took people a while to know WEG more than join4free.
Even though
WEGCash has grown and is one of todays leading affiliate programs,
my guess
is we will always be known as the "join4free" people
at least to the
veterans.
JBM:
How did you meet Jason from WEG?
WEG GABE:
I actually met him in school, he went to the high school across
the tracks
on the other side of town. He would cruise his 4x4 truck on
my campus
trolling for chicks. He had already dated and pissed off most
of the chicks
at his school.
JBM:
I heard you were a tow truck driver before you got in this
industry.
How was that? Did it pay well (i heard they get paid good).
Do you have
any interesting stories from those days? Did you carry a shotgun
with you?
WEG GABE:
Yeah I used to drive full time. It was like anything else,
it had its
moments. The $$$ was good when you busted ass. At times I
was living solely
off tips and kickbacks. The companies I worked for were mainly
contracted by
AAA so we were usually the "good guys". Although
I have done impounds and
repos. Those are fun. Following someone for a couple days
to establish their
routine then nabbing their car when they least expect it.
California law
does not allow us to carry, although if you looked under the
seat of the tow
unit you may have found a fire arm of some sort. Shot guns
were to big.
Usually wielding a 4ft steel jack handle did the trick.
JBM:
Back in high school you were a "hardrock" type of
guy with mullet
hair. Is there any pictures? How much has your style changed
since those
days?
WEG GABE:
Actually I had a shaved head in high school as well. It wasn't
till after,
that I let the fro bloom. I went 4 years with long hair and
ear piercings
before I found out both long hair and earrings are natural
grab points
during a scuffle, so I lost the look. PICTURES
JBM:
Where do you see yourself working in about 10 years? Still
with WEG?
Still in the industry?
WEG GABE:
I'm positive WEG will be around in 10 years, whether I'm still
there is
another question. I doubt I'd stay in the industry if I didn't
work for WEG.
It would be hard to find another company that is as family/team
oriented as
WEG.
JBM:
What do you tell people you do for a living? Have you told
your parents and family about where you work? Do you ever
feel that you are treated unfairly because of the nature of
your company's business?
WEG GABE:
Like others I say internet marketing. My parents are fully
aware of what I
do, I can talk to my old man about it but my religious mother
would rather
not hear the details. Unfairly, by whom? I keep business and
personal pretty
segregated.
JBM:
If you inherited $10 million dollars would you invest
in this
industry? Why?
WEG GABE:
No, it's not something I am really passionate about.
Feelings of despair or
joy are multiplied when you are passionate about what you
are working
towards. $10 mil is a grip load of cash and I'd damn well
better be
passionate about anything I dump it into.
JBM:
Last but not least, according to Ruth you do all the work
in the
office, is this true?
WEG GABE:
Yep this is absolutely true. The women in the office are here
primarily to
make coffee, fetch lunch, keep the refrigerator stocked, clean
the kitchen,
and purchase patio furniture. J/K everyone knows Errand Boy
does all this.
JBM:
Thanks for taking your time to answer these questions.
Its been a pleasure.
WEG GABE:
YW Nick, good luck to you.
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