My New Cartoon, How I’ve Been Building This IP, and Why it Matters to Everybody on LinkedIn

Hey everybody,?

Thank you so much for reading this newsletter. First and foremost, to not bury the lead, if you have a three to ten-year-old child in your world – a kid, grandkid, niece or nephew, neighbor, or if you’re a teacher and you have a classroom full of kids – please go subscribe right now to the new VeeFriends Cartoons at this YouTube channel link, and watch our first three episodes!?

The reason I’m sending out this newsletter today is because ironically, even though we’ve been doing an enormous amount of brand-building for my intellectual property called VeeFriends, for a lot of you, we’ve been doing all of this quietly. Today, the announcement of the new cartoon in partnership with Moonbug, the creators of Cocomelon, is another significant announcement, if not one of the most significant announcements, in my 50-year journey to build a meaningful intellectual property with the ambitions to sit, one day, on the shelf along with the Pokémons, the Marvels, the Sesame Streets and the Disneys.?

Even though I know this is a massive ambition, I ask all of you on LinkedIn, why wouldn’t you try to be at the upper echelons of anything you’re trying to achieve? If you’re a lawyer who’s reading this right now, why wouldn’t you want to be one of the best practicing lawyers in the world? If you’re a middle-tier executive in a Fortune 5000 company, why wouldn’t you want to ascend into the C-suite of that organization??

For the last three-plus years, I’ve been, at times, loud and, at times, very quiet in my operational execution, brand-building, and program-creation while developing this VeeFriends brand. What you’re about to see in the video below will blow so many of you away because of how many different things I’ve been doing with this intellectual property.

Today kickstarts an exciting new chapter in the world of VeeFriends, and what better opportunity to take a look back at some of the most important milestones of the IP thus far??

2021

2021 was the year where it all started! VeeFriends Series 1 Collection launched via dutch-auction on May 11th, 2021. From selling five original VeeFriends drawings at Christie’s for $1.2M to hosting our first community experiences with access token holders, we hit the ground running. We had our first collaboration with Jeff Staple’s brand, creating the Staple x VeeFriends Perspective Pigeon T-shirts, hats, and hoodies. Next was a collaboration with Empathy Wines for the Empathy Elephant 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon. We then teamed up with LA streetwear designer, Anwar Carrots, for the Self-Aware Hare Winter ‘21 Collaboration Capsule and, of course, we had the pleasure of working with Mattel Creations to present VeeFriends UNO, the same game we all know and love but with a VeeFriends twist!??

To relive all the magic of VeeFriends’ first year, read this blog.

2022

From the announcement of BOOK GAMES to new VeeFriends characters, our first apparel collection, limited edition trading cards, an epic trading card game, the first ever VeeCon and so much more, 2022 was a year of evolution. For a full play-by-play on what VeeFriends was up to in 2022, check out this blog.

2023

2023 was a monumental year with 10 brand partnerships, 14 in-person events, 13 physical product drops, eight tech launches and more! To count a few milestones, we had a major collaboration with Snoop Dogg, the introduction of VeeFriends pins, and the official launch of VeeFriends Vending, a unique business development opportunity and interactive way for the community to engage with the VeeFriends brand and its offerings. Of course, we also had the second VeeCon!?

To learn more about our growth in 2023, read here.?

2024

It isn’t over yet, but 2024 has been another year of insane expansion for the VeeFriends universe. We hosted the third and best VeeCon yet in Los Angeles, partnered with cutting-edge food restaurant and delivery service, Wonder, for the new Bellies by Wonder meals, and of course, launched our VeeFriends Cartoons in partnership with Moonbug, industry-leaders and creators of Cocomelon.?

My mission for the next 50 years is to continue to build this IP and make the world fall in love with these characters. I hope this inspires you in a couple of ways: One, to please check out VeeFriends Cartoons because both kids and parents will learn, and I know there are a lot of parents reading this. Two, for you to keep pushing and striving higher in your own ambitions. I am not naive that it is obnoxious to say that you want to sit alongside intellectual properties that are valued at $50 billion and above and are some of the greatest creative executions of our time. However, I’d also be lying to you if I said that was not exactly what I’m trying to do. I would like a little bit of that for all of you in your journeys.?

Good luck! I hope you enjoyed this. Please leave a comment of what you think of VeeFriends Cartoons. Watch the debut episode, “Rap Battle,” below!?

P.S. Listen to the audio below for some fun behind-the-scenes on how I wrote this newsletter. I think a few of you can learn from this strategy!?

• Watch the first three episodes of VeeFriends Cartoons in collaboration with Moonbug on YouTube! Subscribe to the channel!
• Shop the VeeFriends Apparel Collection featuring some of your favorite characters.
• Purchase a copy of my new book, Day Trading Attention: How to Actually Build Brand and Sales in the New Social Media World. Out right now!
• My first children’s book is out now! Grab a copy of Meet Me in the Middle for the youngsters in your life!
• Watch my VeeCon 2024 Closing Keynote here: These 5 Traits Are The Secret To Success In Business & Life.

Unfortunately, I have been alerted to some phishing scams attempting to take advantage of my communities. Please, don’t fall for it! I do not have a Telegram and will never message you there. For more information on avoiding scams, read here.