MORAL OF THE STORY: CREATING CONTENT FOR WALMART
03/13/23
I got the chance to create content for Walmart for March. Creating content for THEE Walmart wasn’t on my 2023 bingo card, but I’m extremely grateful that it ended up there!
How did you hear about this?
Adolescent Content is a Gen-Z-centered creative community, ad agency, and content studio that highlights young creatives. I came across the agency from scrolling through social media; I followed their page because I loved their content, but I eventually learned that they have a creative network.
I decided to sign up to be added to their Storytellers network—nothing too crazy or extensive. After that, I got added to their slack channel.
The slack channel is a space for creatives across the globe to connect and share their new work. The Adolescent team also sends paid opportunities to individuals in the Storyteller community. I started tuning into the opportunities and at first, there were more options for photographers and videographers.
What opportunities did you have before the Walmart project?
They started to send more content creator-based opportunities.
I applied for a couple of gigs and it didn’t pan out at first.
The first opportunity I got to work on was for the brand, Credit Karma.
I’m not gonna lie, man. Life was life-ing at the time, but overall I psyched myself out. It required me to create a pitch presentation; I had no experience in making one at the time. It made me feel like I wasn’t the right girl for that job.
I just bowed out. Turrible, right? I wasn’t ready nor did I have a strong level of belief in myself at that moment.
I had another project to create content for their Gen-Z @ Work Tik-Tok segment and then I worked on a creative team for a California-based campaign several months after that.
The Cali campaign was my first real-deal Holyfield experience with pitching a concept to a company. I was so nervous, but I leaned into this project more because there was a full team. I learned a lot from that collaboration and it carried over to the next two projects.
Following the end of the project, I got an email about pitching content to Walmart for the month of February. I applied and I ended up being able to pitch for the project.
That pitch wore me OUT! I pulled an all-nighter to make sure I covered every element that they required in my presentation. I had to lay everything out—location, cast, frame-by-frame details, etc.
The Walmart project was different from the previous project because I didn’t have to present to the brand’s team. The only thing I could do is make sure my visuals were good and my descriptions were clear.
Unfortunately, my pitch wasn’t approved to move forward. I was bummed out, but I kept it pushin’. Fast forward, to another email about pitching to Walmart again popped up. I decided to apply and got to continue with the process.
The pitch that I created for last month was good, but I didn’t take into full consideration what the brand was looking for. My approach changed for this round; I chose to stay true to my creativity but incorporate things that reflected their brand more. I came up with two concepts and one got approved, allowing me to go ahead with production.
Did they reach out to you or did you reach out to them?
So it was a little bit of both 😂 When I started applying for projects with them, it would be sent in their Slack or their general email blasts to the members of their Storytellers Network. From that email or slack drop, I’d apply through a link.
The Walmart ones (and some that followed 👀) were personally sent to me by the Adolescent Content Team.
How was this opportunity different from previous opportunities?
One, it was my first time making a pitch deck and handoff deck. I was familiar with pitch decks from working other campaigns, but my role was to only contribute creative ideas. This time, the only thing I didn’t create was the template/layout of the presentation. The entire concept was something I had to develop on my own. I’ve never done a project where I had to pick a location, find a cast, and break down the frames.
Two, I typically create content very FUBU-like——for myself and by myself. Even with brand work, I had a lot of creative control. This project had a bunch of elements that I had to incorporate, mainly with the content’s look (captions, colors, fonts, etc)
Three, I’ve played the role of director/producer/stylist/writer/talent scout before on personal projects. This project put each of those roles into overdrive and it pushed me as a leader.
What was the production process like?
Production was led by a list of deadlines created by the Walmart team, which consisted of several rounds of feedback and content delivery. If you thought or wondered if creating was easy to do? It wasn’t.
You have the option to hire a crew, but the number of people you decide to hire is pulled out of your budget A.K.A. the pay that YOU (the creator) will walk away with. With wardrobe, it’s a similar thing; you’re sent clothes off of a specific list, but extras (accessories, shoes, etc.) come out of pocket and are reimbursed through your budget.
Because of that, I chose to take on the majority of the project on my own. The only outside help I hired (and paid) was the cast, my mom, and my grandmother. My mom helped me with styling, casting, and location scouting. My granny was my backup talent scout and transportation.
How I felt during this project
What obstacles did you come across while creating the content?
Whew…what didn’t become an obstacle?
One of my biggest challenges was getting the casting together. In the beginning, my original cast choice for the pitch wasn’t approved and they wanted AAPI representation. I didn’t know anyone in Houston that would fit the project well and be AAPI, so I had to reach out to my mom for help on that. She ended up connecting me to an old colleague of hers from when she worked retail. It was super cool to reconnect with her and meet her family.
My mistake was not clearly voicing how important the project was to me from the jump. My elevator speech was just “Hey girl, I need you and your daughter to be in this Walmart content for me”, which led to a lot of scheduling conflicts and miscommunication. I didn’t fully express those things to her until I had two days left to film and was drained. Once I did, that’s when things started to align better and we ended up having a very successful filming day. I literally just had to lay it all out there instead of trying to be a concept gatekeeper.
Another thing I had to tussle with was the wardrobe styling. Now, I used to want to be a stylist, but I was not trying to put too much energy into it myself for this project. I originally wanted my mom to style on-site, but she had spine surgery a few days before filming. She couldn’t show up physically, but she helped me out with advice and putting looks together via screenshots.
Back to that Walmart wardrobe list——they sent a specific list of pieces for whatever content they need from you and you’re able to pick what you need for filming. They’ll send the items free of charge, but if you need props or accessories?? It comes out of your pocket until you get that full budget paid to you. Your budget counts as reimbursement.
One layer to that the list for my content type didn’t have enough clothing listed for my vision, so I had to pull from a separate list that was more fashion-based. Then, there was an issue with the delivery date for the clothes; The package almost came after the scheduled filming + editing due dates. The pieces ended up arriving at a decent time, but I didn’t have any clothes for the little girl or shoes/accessories.
Baby, I was runnin’ through my local Walmart like a mad woman! I had to style and coordinate the daughter’s looks with the mother’s looks on the spot.
My last big struggle was the fact that I had to create a handoff deck. The handoff deck consists of the cover photos, captions, music choices, and the copy (the text) on the reel. I had to put the color and duration of each text. Sometimes, I’d have to change the text over and over again based on the feedback. The captions gave me the blues out of everything in my final deck because it had to fit Walmart’s tone.
Aside from technical things, I had to help take care of my mom and still make sure I met my deadlines. I was dealing with imposter syndrome real real bad. I was drained. I pulled all-nighters for it. I put all of my energy and brain power into making it come to life. I’m just a person that puts her all into her work and it burns me out sometimes.
I almost gave up multiple time, not gonna cap.
Pros and Cons?
Hmm…I don’t have a lineup of pros and cons. I feel like each part had a give and take moment. It was less about weighing things out and more about the process as a whole.
If you come across an opportunity like this, your determining factor should be about you and where you see yourself going as a creative.
Do you want to branch into making brand content or do you want to stick to personal passion projects? Do you feel like what this project requires will help you grow? Do you align with the brand? Is it just for the money + recognition or for you?
At the time, I wanted to get into the marketing space. I wanted to work on my content development skills. I also wanted to prove to myself that I was worthy and capable of doing something in this magnitude.
At the end, I was just proud of myself for creating something that I was deeply connected to and proud of——every element became a pro to me.
No answer is wrong or right. It’s just gotta fit you.
What were the lessons you learned from this? Any words of advice?
#1: Be vocal about your passion/Let your people in.
I wish that I was more transparent to my cast about my passion behind the project. We’re in a culture where we’ve gotta be low-key and movin’ in silence. Yes, sometimes you gotta be hush-hush about your plans until they come into fruition. We also gotta know when it’s time to share our plans with the people we trust. If I would’ve been more vocal about why the project was important to me, we might’ve been on the same page sooner.
Not only that but I felt so much lighter after sharing, it reminded me of why I chose to move forward in the first place.
If you’re building a team, you have to be willing to let them in. You can’t leave people in the dark and expect them to follow your lead.
If they don’t know how important your project is to you, how will they know how to support you?
#2: You have more power than you think.
When you’re moving up, you might get lost in the sauce. Maybe you feel like the brand you’re working for is so “up-there” that you feel intimidated and don't feel confident enough to ask questions or advocate for your ideas.
First off, they chose YOU! They need YOUR content! YOU are the creative! Don’t feel like you’ve got no control over your work, no matter how big the name is or how many requirements they need from you. Stick beside your work! Ask all the questions! If you gotta be the obnoxious, email-a-question-every-two-seconds creator? OWN IT!
Put everything in that email thread too and reply ALL. CC whoever gotta be CC’ed! They might be a big brand, but you’re bigger than that brand. Don’t settle.
#3: Your community has so much to offer you.
Don’t sleep on your hometown and your community! They will pull through every single time. There is so much supply right in your own backyard. You just gotta be open and tap in.
You can excel in your career.
You can grow as a person.
You can build a network.
Home is NEVER a hinderance. Home is the energy source. It’s the reason and reminder why you are who you are.
#4: Exhaust every option till there ain’t no more.
Use every resource you’ve got under your sleeve. Comb through every backup plan. Don’t stop till your vision comes to life!
CONCLUSION
I’m extremely happy with how the final product turned out! I have no regrets. I would do it again.
Thank you to Adolescent Content and Walmart for the opportunity! S/o to my amazing cast for their patience and taking the time out to help me and my mom out.
Thank you to my mother and grandmother for being my crew and support system through this.
If you’d like to see the reels, you can check it out on Walmart’s Instagram and Facebook page:
Share, like, and comment!
Best,
Janaya
