The E-commerce Content Creation Podcast

Summary

Kevin Mason has been in photography for a long time working for organizations like Amazon, TopShop TopMan, and most recently consulting in creative production with his company Studio Workflow. Kevin also has a degree in interior architecture, and having consulting on some big studio builds, Daniel sat down to discuss with him his approach to building a new space. 

Key Takeaways

• Identifying the space: Key stakeholders and members of the business unit should be involved as much as possible in choosing a space. The space matters a lot when it comes to physical workflows.
• You need clarity on what you're trying to achieve. Do you need more space to store product? Are you building a flagship studio to attract talent or brands?
• Like many things in business, understand your goals and identify ways to achieve them with your physical space.
• Evaluating your entire workflow to understand output and how it may improved, will have an impact on how many sets you may need in the new space.
• Art direction also plays a role in space needs. How much light control do we need? How high should the ceilings be?
• Do what you can to extend the brand experience into your studio. This helps your talent feel engaged WITH the brand while creating content FOR the brand. 

Links & Resources

Kevin Mason on LinkedIn

Studio Workflow Limited

Forbes Article on Workspace Impact to Employees

Credits
Produced by: Creative Force - creativeforce.io
Edited by: Calvin Lanz Sound - clsound.net
Hosted by: Daniel Jester - danieltjester.com

Summary

Rick Allen of Hogarth Australia joins the show to talk about the current biggest segment of computational assets in use today, the 360 spin, and we explore some other things the future might bring with regards to AR, VR, GAN Generated Imagery, and we talk a bit about Rozy, Korea's virtual influencer. 

Key Takeaways

• 360 rotational assets seem to stop and start as content that brands want to use, but in some segments, like shoes and appliances, there is a clear benefit. 
• AR will develop into technology that allows us to virtual try on items, perhaps even becoming an instore shopping feature, where we can check out items virtually to decide if we want to try them on physically. 
• LED technology that create large backdrops that are actually screens (like The Mandalorian Soundstage) could come down in price enough to be feasible for an e-comm studio, creating a significantly more sustainable way to capture editorial content. 
• Studios today should be preparing their pipelines for the data and processing needs of AR. We have yet to see what this technology can do for e-comm, but it could be a seismic shift in how we create content. 

Links & Resources

Rick Allen on LinkedIn

Hogarth Australia on LinkedIn

Rozy Oh - Korean Virtual Influencer

GAN Imagery

Credits
Produced by: Creative Force - creativeforce.io
Edited by: Calvin Lanz Sound - clsound.net
Hosted by: Daniel Jester - danieltjester.com

This upcoming weekend is Halloween here in the United States, and while some of our listeners won’t celebrate by going door to door with their kids asking for candy, we thought we’d put together this special episode of the e-commerce content creation podcast that we call Studio Nightmares.

While there aren’t too many spooky stories that take place in a photo studio, there are plenty of embarrassing, funny, and otherwise very cringeworthy stories out there. This episode is a collection of some of these stories from friends, colleagues, and past guests of the podcast. 

Story Guide:

Adam Queen: Don't Sail Away

Jen Bakija - Beware of Fans

Elizabeth Seronko - Hannah and Abigale

Kimmy Snow - I ManneCAN'T

Daniel Jester - Shredded

Summary

Doug Wallstrom of Vera Bradley joins Daniel in this episode to share some stories that highlight the unique ability of the in-house editorial team to overcome the unexpected and get the shots they need to move the business forward. 

Key Takeaways

• Agency relationships are quite important to businesses big and small. Similarly, the in-house team  has it's own strengths that can help a business achieve it's content goals
• The ability to pivot creative, try new things,  test an idea to have something to show the C-Suite, are all things the in-house team can help with. 
• Being able to decentralize a production, specifically spreading out key elements of a production to overcome adverse weather, can help institutionalize some of our industry learnings from the pandemic. 
• Doug plead guilty to the studio crime of changing the playlist mid shoot. Since he changed it to The Clash, he was lightly sentenced to time served. 

Links & Resources

Vera Bradley on LinkedIn

The Clash - London Calling

Credits
Produced by: Creative Force - creativeforce.io
Edited by: Calvin Lanz Sound - clsound.net
Hosted by: Daniel Jester - danieltjester.com

Summary

In this episode Daniel discusses some take-aways and ideas following the Henry Stewart Photo Studio Ops Forum event that took place on October 5, 2021.

Key Takeaways

•  Put more focus on hiring the right team, then focus on retention.
• The idea that creative full time roles only stick around for 1-2 years doesn't HAVE to be reality, find ways to keep your team onboard. 
• Employee turnover is waste, and training to backfill doesn't add value
• When it comes to process and workflow, our physical space has an impact. Use something like a spaghetti map to review this. 
• Unnecessary movements are also waste, and physical studio layouts should also employ lean ideas to improve workflow. 
• We need to institutionalize our learnings from COVID. Business interruptions will happen again, whether its another pandemic or increasingly adverse weather due to climate change. 

Links & Resources

Henry Stewart on the web - Many upcoming events, both virtual and live

Credits
Produced by: Creative Force - creativeforce.io
Edited by: Calvin Lanz Sound - clsound.net
Hosted by: Daniel Jester - danieltjester.com

Summary

Danny Rickard of Cella pulls from his experience in video production to discuss video strategy with Chief Moneybags of Brand X.  In past episode of this podcast we've discussed standing up video, and the need to have a plan behind it. In this episode Danny helps us understand that strategy doesn't have to be scary, and can leave room for flexibility and experimentation. 

Key Takeaways

• You can think of your video strategy as a tool for not getting lost. It doesn't have to be a map, but a way to get back from a dead end
• Don't be afraid of testing and iterating. Build in a way to learn from the work you're doing
• Identify your audiences, then identify what you want to show them
• Use your  strategy to understand who to hire and when. Not only full time team members, but working with agencies or freelance teams as well
• Honesty about this type of strategy can help ensure you're hiring the right team members

Links & Resources

Danny Rickard on LinkedIn

Cella's Website

Cella on Linkedin

In-House Agency Video’s Transformative Moment by Danny Rickard on the Cella Blog

Credits
Produced by: Creative Force - creativeforce.io
Edited by: Calvin Lanz Sound - clsound.net
Hosted by: Daniel Jester - danieltjester.com

Summary

In this "Deep Cuts" episode of the E-commerce Content Creation Podcast, we're rounding up all of the past guests of this show who will be speaking a the upcoming Henry Stewart Events Photo Studio Ops Forum 2021, on October 5th. No less than 7 past guests of this podcast will be speakers at the event and you can hear from them in this episode where we compiled a selection of clips.

Key Takeaways

• Clip 1 is Clair Carter-Ginn from Episode 8, Casting in the New Age of E-commerce
• Clips 2 and 3 are Carrie Crow from Episode 10, Guiding a Studio Through Hyper Growth
• Clips 4, 5, and 6 are Curren Calhoun from Episode 15, a Lean Approach to Technology in your Studio
• Clips 7 and 8 are Colleen Moore from Episode 12, the Adaptable and Agile Studio
• Clips 9 and 10 are Ali McLeod from Episode 13, Trust, Transparency, and Fluency
• Clip 11 is Brian Guidry from Episode 2, Successful Outsourcing for your Lean Creative Studio

Links & Resources

Photo Studio Ops Forum 2021 - See the agenda and register here. 

Credits
Produced by: Creative Force - creativeforce.io
Edited by: Calvin Lanz Sound - clsound.net
Hosted by: Daniel Jester - danieltjester.com

Summary

This week Daniel is joined by Todd Schweikert, VP of Studio Production for Rue Gilt Groupe to discuss metrics and how to use them to support your team in day-to-day operations. Granular category level data in production can help you plan more accurately, but give you the ability to load balance when bottlenecks arise. 

Key Takeaways

• Understanding what comes through your studio and how long it takes is invaluable data to run.
• Touch bases that rely on this data help keep teams on the same page and prevent silos from developing.
• Many of the ways the studio uses data come from the bottom up, ensuring that studio teams understand the information and how it impacts the operation of the studio.
• It's not enough to understand the data, but also what goes into it and how it's collected. Context is vital.
• Remember that your perspective is limited, and you need to include other perspectives to ensure across-the-board accountability.
• Performance metrics are a reflection of employee satisfaction.

Links & Resources

Todd Schweikert on LinkedIn

Rue Gilt Groupe

Rue Gilt Groupe on Linkedin

Open Roles at Rue Gilt Groupe

Credits
Produced by: Creative Force - creativeforce.io
Edited by: Calvin Lanz Sound - clsound.net
Hosted by: Daniel Jester - danieltjester.com

Summary

David Iscove, Creative Technology Practice Lead at Cella, joins Daniel to take a high level look at how editorial content production fits into the marketing landscape. From our bird's-eye view of editorial content production and it's interface with marketing at large, we talk about the current state of marketing. We touch on how our creative production specific technology should interface with our stakeholders, and what we can unlock when effective communication and technology are in place. 

Key Takeaways

• Cella is a creative production industry consultation firm, specializing in large scale brands and retailers.
• Cella surveys the industry regularly to learn about what challenges large scale brands are encountering with creative production and marketing at large.
• With the increase in need for content across the ever expanding landscape of marketing channels, the need for insight into any one specific content request is greater than ever. Technology to support this for the production teams is an absolute necessity.
• Typical project management tools are generally too broad to be very effective as a studio production management tool. The data objects that go into a studio request explode in several different directions and require very specific tools to ensure effective management.
• To better support our marketing stakeholders, we need to aggregate data from a studio specific management tool to give visibility outside of the studio.
• Using the right tools and building the right communication lines can make it much easier to connect goals from the top level of the org down to individual departments and teams.
• We need to learn to think about the true asset lifecycle. The asset does not begin when the camera clicks or the designer saves the file. The asset begins at the request and ends after analytics around performance are captured and reviewed.
• David will be speaking as part of the Photo Studio Operations Forum 2021. Check the links below for more information. 

Links & Resources

David Iscove on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidiscove/

Cella’s Website: Creative Staffing and Consulting | Cella

Cella on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cella-inc/

Photo Studio Operations Forum by Henry Stewart Events: Events Photo Studio Operations Forum

Glossary
Marcom: Short hand for Marketing Communications

Credits
Produced by: Creative Force - creativeforce.io
Edited by: Calvin Lanz Sound - clsound.net
Hosted by: Daniel Jester - danieltjester.com

Summary

Return guest Clair Carter-Ginn joins Daniel to have an open ended conversation about content strategy in 2021 and beyond. In a post-pandemic world, after many organizations were pushed toward remote and hybrid work environments, a given business or C-level leadership group is primed to explore new ways of doing business. 

Key Takeaways

• COVID has given businesses and leadership a new perspective on what it means to be agile. 
• We are seeing a new openness at the C-suite level to a new and bold future of how work gets done. 
• The keys are communication, breaking down silos, and complete organizational alignment on goals. 
• Adopting a clear scope of work can also drive alignment and  help facilitate remote and hybrid work. 
• Clair is conference chair for the upcoming Photo Studio Ops 2021 web conference, put on by Henry Stewart Events. See link below for info and to register. 

Links & Resources

Photo Studio Ops Forum 2021

Clair Carter-Ginn on LInkedin

Forecast Agency on Linkedin

Credits
Produced by: Creative Force - creativeforce.io
Edited by: Calvin Lanz Sound - clsound.net
Hosted by: Daniel Jester - danieltjester.com