It’s pretty clear at this point that traditional IP giants have significantly damaged their reputation over the past decade, sacrificing the legacy of their own creations for profits they will (probably) lose anyway.

Whether it's via remakes, reboots, or live-action adaptations, these newer versions are rarely better than the original. Nowadays, the bar is set so low that all you can hope for is that it’s not hot garbage.

What the hell was even Shrek 3. Toy Story 4 did not need to exist. Do you even remember the sequels to the Disney Princess category? And for the love of God, PLEASE DON’T RUIN INCREDIBLES 3 (if you know me, you know I love that series too much).

These are only a few examples of not-so-hot takes because it’s clear that the audience only cares for more content until they realize they don’t like it, and the cycle repeats.

This topic is so layered, but since this is a Twitter article, I promised I’d niche it down. What I will touch on is where these big franchises are committing an even bigger sin in today’s world — not leveraging social media properly.

These legacy IPs merely adopted the internet. However, the next generation was born in it. Molded by it.

Many of these companies are led by boomers, steeped in traditional advertising and marketing methods that have been performed for a hundred years. Corporations prioritize a proven model. If there is no success story to that formula, then they maintain a risk-averse approach. But for tomorrow’s innovators, the web is a digital playground where these experiments can be performed.

Social media may be new, but in just two decades, it has reshaped the way we connect. Check Instagram or TikTok to see how people engage with content and share it with friends and family. What is required to get people to fall in love with your content?

Understanding your demographic, identifying what captures the attention economy, how to balance evergreen vs trending ideas, and properly integrating storytelling are all different variables that contribute to building a new IP.

So WHY aren’t these powerhouses taking a risk on creating something new via social media?

• They risk legal complications and prefer to avoid them.

• They don’t want to deal with any extra backlash from fans.

• It takes a longer period of time due to unnecessary middlemen.

• It’s costly, and they’d prefer to put their money towards something else.

• Investors and shareholders discourage them from trying, fearing the risk.

• They’re simply afraid to take the first step of trying out fresh short-form content.

• It’s not in their culture, and they lack a team empowered to experiment and fail fast.

So let’s be real for a second. Do we think these boomers that watched on a black & white TV and watched the moon landing know how to appeal to chronically-online-doomscrolling-zoomers?

Absolutely. These media franchises have decades of storytelling expertise and have an audience with levels of brand loyalty that smaller studios can’t begin to fathom! It’s why a Pixar clip paired with a new trend can easily blow up overnight. The problem is… they’re just too afraid to make the jump.

For example, take this photo on Disney’s Instagram account. They turned a clip from Turbo as part of a current trend, and it hit over 10M views & 400K likes. Why? Because it’s nostalgic and funny.

Now compare that with this post about a film of a new IP with no nostalgic bond. Only ~13K likes, but over 40 million followers. It’s clear no one gives a rip about an Elio poster. Since they were aiming at a younger audience, they could have used that slot to share an exclusive yet playful piece of content tied to the Elio film. They could have turned it into a whole mini-series of fun shorts!

It’s not just about posting content; it’s about creating an experience.

By contrast, look at many of the new and community-driven IPs: Claynosaurz, Chimpers, Nobody Sausage, Pudgy Penguins, NubCat, MeetQuack, and so many more. Every single piece of content from these smaller studios is designed to connect with a new audience. No one has ever heard of these brands before, so the top priority is ensuring how they can make YOU care enough to engage.

Chimpers, a fresh brand straight out of the crypto space, uses its cute cartoon chimps to tap into fun, viral trends while developing the story of its main character, Chimpi, and friends. This approach subconsciously builds brand awareness among the audience.

Or how about Claynosaurz, an emerging franchise that uses its cute clay dinosaur characters to build a lot of colorful and vibrant content to appeal to the masses. I mean, who doesn’t like dinosaurs (especially adorable ones)?

The similarity between these two shorts? Both racked up hundreds of thousands of likes and shares, and tens of millions of views by perfectly timing the attention economy, pushing their content to production with haste, willing to take a risk to infiltrate the algorithm and create new fans.

Sometimes, accounts even team up on content to give their audiences a chance to discover new flavors. Take this Pudgy Penguins x Nobody Sausage short, for example! Fun, engaging, and a signal of mutual validation between the two.

If traditional companies take away one lesson, it should be this: evolve with the times, or risk losing relevance with the next generation. Take Pokémon, for example. Why are they the #1 IP in the world, and are expanding now more than ever? Beyond their legacy, they continuously explore new ways to enrich their ecosystem.

And the irony of it all? The industry giants we know today STARTED as small studios that experimented with new technology and built something that cemented their footprint in history. Take Pixar's Toy Story, for instance, the first feature length film created entirely with CGI.

If people have the attention span of a goldfish and prefer to doomscroll TikTok/watch YouTube videos over using streaming services, I give it a decade (maybe even less) before the entire industry is flipped on its head.

There’s a cultural shift happening. Will the biggest entertainment franchises of our time participate in the future of content, or will they cower out? That’s for them to know and for us to find out.

This article reflects my personal views and opinions alone, and does not represent anyone else.

This was originally published on Twitter a few months back, but moving forward, I will be posting on multiple platforms.

It’s pretty clear at this point that traditional IP giants have significantly damaged their reputation over the past decade, sacrificing the legacy of their own creations for profits they will (probably) lose anyway.

Whether it's via remakes, reboots, or live-action adaptations, these newer versions are rarely better than the original. Nowadays, the bar is set so low that all you can hope for is that it’s not hot garbage.

What the hell was even Shrek 3. Toy Story 4 did not need to exist. Do you even remember the sequels to the Disney Princess category? And for the love of God, PLEASE DON’T RUIN INCREDIBLES 3 (if you know me, you know I love that series too much).

These are only a few examples of not-so-hot takes because it’s clear that the audience only cares for more content until they realize they don’t like it, and the cycle repeats.

This topic is so layered, but since this is a Twitter article, I promised I’d niche it down. What I will touch on is where these big franchises are committing an even bigger sin in today’s world — not leveraging social media properly.

These legacy IPs merely adopted the internet. However, the next generation was born in it. Molded by it.

Many of these companies are led by boomers, steeped in traditional advertising and marketing methods that have been performed for a hundred years. Corporations prioritize a proven model. If there is no success story to that formula, then they maintain a risk-averse approach. But for tomorrow’s innovators, the web is a digital playground where these experiments can be performed.

Social media may be new, but in just two decades, it has reshaped the way we connect. Check Instagram or TikTok to see how people engage with content and share it with friends and family. What is required to get people to fall in love with your content?

Understanding your demographic, identifying what captures the attention economy, how to balance evergreen vs trending ideas, and properly integrating storytelling are all different variables that contribute to building a new IP.

So WHY aren’t these powerhouses taking a risk on creating something new via social media?

• They risk legal complications and prefer to avoid them.

• They don’t want to deal with any extra backlash from fans.

• It takes a longer period of time due to unnecessary middlemen.

• It’s costly, and they’d prefer to put their money towards something else.

• Investors and shareholders discourage them from trying, fearing the risk.

• They’re simply afraid to take the first step of trying out fresh short-form content.

• It’s not in their culture, and they lack a team empowered to experiment and fail fast.

So let’s be real for a second. Do we think these boomers that watched on a black & white TV and watched the moon landing know how to appeal to chronically-online-doomscrolling-zoomers?

Absolutely. These media franchises have decades of storytelling expertise and have an audience with levels of brand loyalty that smaller studios can’t begin to fathom! It’s why a Pixar clip paired with a new trend can easily blow up overnight. The problem is… they’re just too afraid to make the jump.

For example, take this photo on Disney’s Instagram account. They turned a clip from Turbo as part of a current trend, and it hit over 10M views & 400K likes. Why? Because it’s nostalgic and funny.

Now compare that with this post about a film of a new IP with no nostalgic bond. Only ~13K likes, but over 40 million followers. It’s clear no one gives a rip about an Elio poster. Since they were aiming at a younger audience, they could have used that slot to share an exclusive yet playful piece of content tied to the Elio film. They could have turned it into a whole mini-series of fun shorts!

It’s not just about posting content; it’s about creating an experience.

By contrast, look at many of the new and community-driven IPs: Claynosaurz, Chimpers, Nobody Sausage, Pudgy Penguins, NubCat, MeetQuack, and so many more. Every single piece of content from these smaller studios is designed to connect with a new audience. No one has ever heard of these brands before, so the top priority is ensuring how they can make YOU care enough to engage.

Chimpers, a fresh brand straight out of the crypto space, uses its cute cartoon chimps to tap into fun, viral trends while developing the story of its main character, Chimpi, and friends. This approach subconsciously builds brand awareness among the audience.

Or how about Claynosaurz, an emerging franchise that uses its cute clay dinosaur characters to build a lot of colorful and vibrant content to appeal to the masses. I mean, who doesn’t like dinosaurs (especially adorable ones)?

The similarity between these two shorts? Both racked up hundreds of thousands of likes and shares, and tens of millions of views by perfectly timing the attention economy, pushing their content to production with haste, willing to take a risk to infiltrate the algorithm and create new fans.

Sometimes, accounts even team up on content to give their audiences a chance to discover new flavors. Take this Pudgy Penguins x Nobody Sausage short, for example! Fun, engaging, and a signal of mutual validation between the two.

If traditional companies take away one lesson, it should be this: evolve with the times, or risk losing relevance with the next generation. Take Pokémon, for example. Why are they the #1 IP in the world, and are expanding now more than ever? Beyond their legacy, they continuously explore new ways to enrich their ecosystem.

And the irony of it all? The industry giants we know today STARTED as small studios that experimented with new technology and built something that cemented their footprint in history. Take Pixar's Toy Story, for instance, the first feature length film created entirely with CGI.

If people have the attention span of a goldfish and prefer to doomscroll TikTok/watch YouTube videos over using streaming services, I give it a decade (maybe even less) before the entire industry is flipped on its head.

There’s a cultural shift happening. Will the biggest entertainment franchises of our time participate in the future of content, or will they cower out? That’s for them to know and for us to find out.

This article reflects my personal views and opinions alone, and does not represent anyone else.

This was originally published on Twitter a few months back, but moving forward, I will be posting on multiple platforms.