How Mike Melnotte Built an Authentic Brand for Reuben the Bulldog

Entrepreneur: Mike Melnotte

Business: Reuben the Bulldog

Tilt: Authentic, feel-good dog video content

Primary Channels: Instagram (44K), YouTube (197K)

Other Channel: Facebook (40K)

Time to First Dollar: 1 year

Revenue Streams: YouTube monetization, merch, personalized videos through Cameo

Our Favorite Actionable Advice: 

• Know what makes your brand resonate with your fans: “I’m an almost 55-year-old man with a YouTube channel for his dog, but it brings enough joy to people. We’re obviously filling a niche somewhere,” Mike says.
• Find the balance: Mike says he enjoys creating content, but it is still work. “I think if this was a full-time job, that would drive me insane,” he says.
• Disregard the hate: Trolls appeared in the comments after the videos gained popularity. Mike says he’s learned not to feed them. Ignore or kill them with kindness, then block them.
• Embrace your brand and audience: Reuben the Bulldog isn’t on TikTok or X because those platforms didn’t fit the authenticity that Mike and the audience seek.

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The Story of Mike Melnotte

Reuben the Bulldog – the brand, not the dog – wasn’t meant to be a business. And Mike Melnotte, the creator behind Reuben’s channels, never meant to be a content entrepreneur. 

That may seem like an odd fit for a feature in a newsletter dedicated to content entrepreneurs, but bear with me. Because while Mike describes his almost decade-old YouTube channel as “kind of a fun thing that has evolved a little bit,” he has all the makings of a content entrepreneur.  

His unintentional virality has led him on a nine-year journey, building a following of over 280K followers across platforms. He’s honed his craft of video content creation, explored sponsorship and partnership opportunities, built genuine connections with his audience, and added multiple merchandising and revenue streams.

And he’s done it all while, and maybe even because of, committing to authenticity in every aspect of his content and brand.  

Bullying into the social media scene

Reuben the Bulldog – the dog, not the brand – wasn’t meant to be a YouTube star. 

“It was all by accident,” Mike tells me. In 2016, he uploaded videos of their new dog to YouTube, mostly as a convenient way to share Reuben with family and friends. He didn’t expect Rumble, the Canadian alternative to YouTube, to ask to use some of his videos in ads to promote its app. 

Mike, who hadn’t even considered monetizing the videos, agreed. When Rumble encouraged him to post more videos (and sign the rights over to Rumble, of course), he initially agreed. But, as Mike saw audience numbers and engagements grow on those videos, including one with over 8.5M views, he would lose his potential audience and monetization opportunities if he assigned the rights to Rumble. Mike knew he needed to reclaim full control of his content and channel. 

Building intentional, organic growth based on authenticity

As Mike did that, he also doubled down on creating a brand identity that felt authentic. 

“Once you do start getting feedback from the comments and people getting to know you, know your life a little bit, then you want to provide more for them,” he says, noting most of the channel growth has been primarily organic. 

Mike and his wife Carol read all of the comments on their videos and respond to many of them. People are often surprised, but he sees it as important to his brand. “There’s got to be some engagement,” he says. “We can’t just be completely like, ‘I’m doing these videos, throw them out, then leave it there.’ That’s how you’re developing your relationship with some of these people …  and we have some very loyal people that have been around for a long time.”

Mike focuses on the three channels suited to his audience: YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook. He maintains consistent branding and cross-posts across channels, partly for brand recognition and partly due to his distaste for inauthentic, clickbait aesthetics. 

“I can’t stand the thumbnails with the huge graphics and the overlays of pictures on top of pictures and the gotcha kind of,” Mike says. Instead, he keeps it simple – a screenshot, a couple of words and a consistent font and color.

He also recognizes when a platform doesn’t fit. He abandoned TikTok and Twitter once he realized they didn’t suit the level of sincerity Reuben the brand wants to deliver. He doesn’t chase trends or try to hack the ever-changing algorithms. Instead, he stays focused on consistently delivering relatable, joyful content.

Mike’s efforts have paid off over the years. Reuben the Bulldog has hit the 100K YouTube subscribers milestone and earned the coveted silver plaque, which inspired the brand to keep growing and committing to authenticity. 

Overcoming challenges and staying true to form

Despite viral and monetary success, Mike primarily describes his platform as his creative outlet. And like so many other content creators, even when thriving on that creativity, Mike sometimes struggles with content ideation. He jokes that if someone asked when he started if he could do 20 videos about your dog, he would have said he couldn’t do three. Now, he boasts almost 1K.

One of the biggest challenges he’s faced over the years has been production. It’s not the physical creation of the content – Mike has a photography background and now years of experience with video content. He keeps his tech stack simple to support his creation efforts. The challenge is avoiding “production for production’s sake.” 

Mike recognizes the importance of maintaining a consistent and productive content schedule and delivering valuable content. “I want there to be some idea behind what I’m trying to film,” he explains. “Having meaning behind what you’re shooting and doing to make it worthwhile for people to tune in is key.”

And then, of course, he encounters the haters. I asked Mike what one of the most surprising challenges they’ve faced as YouTube creators, especially as the audience and reach expanded. “The trolls,” he says. “People got really mean, and I remember being like ‘I can’t believe people say this stuff.’” But Mike and Carol quickly developed a thick skin for those types of comments, especially “once we started realizing don’t feed the trolls or kill them with kindness, and then block them as you go.” 

These days, troll comments are few and far between and overwhelmingly drowned in positivity. It’s hard to imagine anyone hating on Reuben or Reuben’s cheerfully funny and charming videos. In fact, Reuben’s loyal fans often relay stories about finding joy in the videos, sharing special moments, bonding with family over a mutual love of Reuben, and people finding comfort in Reuben’s videos after losing their pets. 

Early on, Mike and Carol were surprised and touched by how much simple videos like Mike taking Reuben for a walk overlaid with some gentle music resonated with audiences. They now realize it “highlights how much people are needing that and how much anxiety and depression and loneliness are out there.” 

Giving back to bulldogs

Mike and Reuben support their community in big and small ways beyond the video content. The Reuben the Bulldog annual calendar, published through Lulu since 2018, is a favorite for Reuben’s loyal followers. It’s also a massive fundraising tool. 

Each year, hundreds of fans buy Reuben the Bulldog calendars, and all proceeds from the sales go directly to Bullies 2 the Rescue, a local rescue and rehabilitation center dedicated to English Bulldogs like Reuben that relies exclusively on volunteers and donations.  

Mike emphasizes the importance of transparency when it comes to fundraising. “I don’t touch the money. I think that helps the integrity of the whole process,” he says. Instead, the revenue from Mike’s Lulu account goes directly to Bullies 2 the Rescue. 

To date, Mike, Carol, and Reuben have donated over $48.8K to Bullies 2 the Rescue. The Reuben the Bulldog 2026 calendar is coming soon and will undoubtedly continue to raise even more support. 

Finding the balance between income and intention

Mike has experimented with income sources and revenue streams over the years, independent of the annual calendar. He’s introduced other merch like branded T-shirts and plushes, with mixed success. He also sells personalized videos on Cameo and maintains steady income streams from Google’s AdSense and YouTube’s partner program. 

But as with everything else Mike does for the channel, integrity is important for any brand monetization. He had discomfort selling a product like Reuben the Bulldog soft plushes because he had to put a lot of faith in a third party to deliver a quality product. “Putting your name onto something and having someone else deliver for you is a little nerve-wracking,” he admits. 

Similarly, Mike emphasizes the need for creative and quality control in any sponsorship deals. He also must genuinely believe in the promotion, which is why he’s done only a few. “We have turned down a significant amount of stuff over the last couple years,” Mike explains, “I don’t put my name behind any of this stuff [that I don’t believe in].”

On the rare occasion he agrees to a partnership, Mike makes sure to deliver content that feels appropriate for his channel and audience. “I feel bad, if someone’s watching a commercial or two commercials before they even start watching one of my videos, I feel a little guilty going into a 90-second video ad,” he says. 

Creating a lasting legacy for a loyal dog

Ultimately, the heart and soul of Mike’s content is Reuben, the dog. “There is a true personality to Reuben that comes through. Everyone’s got their one pet, like, ‘This is the dog that we’re going to remember forever,’” he explains.

As a 9-year-old bulldog, Mike and Carol know Reuben’s time is limited, but they and their dedicated fans don’t dwell on it. Instead, they embrace the time they have and continue their commitment to sharing Reuben with authenticity and care.