Brand Storytelling
Whether it’s through internal or external campaigns, video explainers, or branded content articles, I’ve helped brands tell their stories. A positive reputation directly impacts audience/consumer behaviour, which is why well-told stories are so important. Below are select projects.
Click here for examples of my editorial work and here for video examples.
Holiday Memoir | President's Choice
For their 2021 Holiday Insider's Report, President's Choice published a handful of authentic family stories focused on food-related traditions. The idea was to reflect Canada's diversity and share traditions that bring comfort and normalcy to the holidays after another year of the pandemic.
I spoke with Stephanie Park who shared that Tteokguk (or rice cake soup) is one of the most meaningful holiday traditions in her family. This traditional Korean dish is eaten to celebrate the new year because it's believed to bring good luck.
The story was written in a first-person, "as told to" style. Read the full story here.
Amika Cooper
Black History Month (External) | Starbucks Canada
Starbucks Canada had a number of activations for Black History Month in 2021, which included a special curated playlist to celebrate Black excellence. I led the external component of this campaign by not only writing the public-facing announcement, but also by amplifying the voices of Starbucks Black employees on the company’s newsroom site, Starbucks Stories. I worked directly with employees to craft their personal stories to reflect their unique experiences as Black Canadians and as Starbucks partners (employees). The goal of these stories was the celebrate and educate.
I worked with cross-functional teams to ensure these stories got promotion on Starbucks Stories, the Starbucks app, and Starbucks Canada’s social media platforms. They were also shared internally.
Select stories I helped write, edit and inspire for Black History Month include:
Safety Campaign (External) | Starbucks Canada
Starbucks Canada had to quickly modify and adapt its operations to help mitigate the spread of COVID-19. As a result, I helped craft a number of external announcements to keep the public informed of the company’s operational changes and precautionary measures put in place to prioritize employee and customer safety.
In addition to the announcements, I produced a series of animated videos for Starbucks Canada to illustrate the safe and convenient ways customers could still get their favourite Starbucks menu items amid COVID-19 (video screenshots on the left). I created the concepts, wrote the copy, and briefed our media agency on the videos, which showcased how to use the Starbucks app and what the customer experience looks like for grab-and-go, dine in, and curbside pickup.
Select stories and videos I wrote and produced include:
LifeWorks Visual Campaign (Internal) | Starbucks Canada
In August 2020, Starbucks Canada invested in a comprehensive wellness platform called LifeWorks to replace its traditional Employee Assistance Program (EAP). In order to drive employee engagement, maximize participation and usage of LifeWorks and expand wellness culture within the company, I developed a cohesive visual campaign that demonstrated LifeWorks vast offerings in relation to what employees said they wanted and needed.
The campaign included:
Internal and external communications
Posters (printed in stores and shared via email)
One-page explainers on various LifeWorks offerings
Infographics
Social media images
Videos
I not only created the visual concepts, but also wrote the copy for the creative materials and briefed our media agency on the look and feel of the campaign. I also wrote the external communications (found here and here) and helped draft the internal communications.
Since this was an internal campaign, I’m unable to publicly share the company’s internal creative materials. Please email me if you’d like to learn more about what this visual campaign looked like.
Branded Content Articles | HuffPost Canada
I’ve written freelance branded content for HuffPost Canada’s e-commerce initiative, HuffPost Canada Finds. Below are select pieces: