In this episode we look at the catalysing NFT project, VeeFriends and how you too can embed utility in your NFT projects to unlock experiences, benefits and offers to engage your community and elevate your brand.

Episode Six - VeeFriends and using utility tokens to build a community experience. Welcome back. In the last episode I started to introduce the different types of NFTs. In this episode, I want to cover utility tokens. The definition of utility is something that has function. An NFT with utility built into it means that by owning this NFT, you will get more than just the artwork of the token. A utility NFT is the door to experiences, benefits and offers.

One of the more catalyzing NFT projects from my perspective is Gary Vaynerchuk VeeFriends. For those who don't know him, he is an American entrepreneur and foremost authority on digital marketing. He has been speaking for years to small businesses and encouraging them to get online. Gary Vee took his community on this NFT journey with him. He taught his community how to buy crypto for the first time, set up a wallet, and then by his NFTs. He hand drew 23 fifferent cartoon style animals and gave them unique characteristics. He sold 10,000 of them in May of 2021.

What is particularly interesting about this project is that it comes with an inbuilt community experience which is very much in line with everything Gary Vee has done to date. VeeFriends tokens have utility. They aren't just artworks. Each NFT is embedded with a specific set of experiences and benefits according to the type of animal you own. A VeeFriends NFT gives you access to VeeCon, his member only conference for the next three years. He gathers his community on the community chat app, Discord, and showers them with education, motivation and benefits. Since launching the value of a VeeFriends has continued to climb and is now in the 10s to hundreds of 1000s of dollars.

The lesson from all this is not that anyone can get rich with their own NFT collection. The critical takeaway from this lesson is that NFTs represent a whole new way for you to engage with your fans, followers and members and elevate your brand. You too can create your own community NFTs that have built-in perks and experiences and access to things that you might normally associate with a membership - but offered as an NFT. Almost like a golden ticket, where anyone who owns that token gets access to your offering. And without that NFT they cannot.

The NFT you create for your community is only limited by your imagination. If you view this as a new dawn, a new way for you to raise awareness and reignite engagement with your community build a whole new member experience. Take your community on this new journey with your business and your brand. Then you can start to look at it from a marketing perspective. So bringing it right back to something that's practical. You raise awareness of your brand in a whole new way. NFTs allow you to innovate and create offerings that are compelling to your existing customers. They enable you to attract a new group of followers. NFTs are here and ready for you to use them to take your company and brand to a whole new level. So start brainstorming.