The Pop Profile series is a peek into the creative process of some of the most talented people making content on social media. It’s a chance for them to step out from behind the camera, into the spotlight, and let us pick their brains. This week, we’re talking with Dalit and Adam from “Creative studio and Influencer Collective” kvell.
Photo courtesy of kvell’s Pop Pays collab with LIFEWTR.
You’ve heard it from us before: brands need content, and lots of it. With more and more brands focusing their efforts on advertising on social media, unique custom creative is more important than ever. While high follower counts and the coveted ‘Like’ remains beneficial for the influencer space, there is a clear shift toward studio-quality original content for brands to post across social networks. As social media platforms roll out new content formats, brands need access to creators who can adapt, and quickly.
We chatted with the minds behind kvell, a full-service creative studio and influencer collective that helps brands build this highly sought after custom content. They take us behind the curtain on their creative process, what it takes to cultivate a creative culture, and some advice for producing the kickass custom content behind @meetkvell, @kvelllife, and @whitenweird.
So, what exactly is kvell?
We’re a collective of innovative thinkers, designers, photographers, and content makers who build movements, create shareable content, design brand identities, collaborate with influencers, and turn audiences into fans and fans into fanatics, all while having fun.
Kvell has a unique agency model; we curate teams of top notch talent based on client needs and project specifics. This allows us to offer our clients a bespoke experience and maximize results. It also provides an ability for us to work in a variety of spaces. Our approach and creative process results in fresh and distinct work. As a leading creative influencer agency, we’d like to think we’ve created a new type of space for brands to play in. Here, it’s not about making ads, but creating art and sharing it in a natural way.
Photo courtesy of Dalit & Adam, co-foudners of kvell.
On moving beyond the agency grind:
We are a husband and wife team that met in New York City during the early years of our advertising careers. We’ve worked at all the big shops, and over the years have learned from the best in the business. After 8 years of the agency grind, we left our full-time jobs, got married, and decided it was time to start our own business. We saw an enormous opportunity to help brands and agencies thrive on social media and knew that this was where our industry was headed, that’s when kvell was born.
Our mission is to bring to life the meaning of kvell, which means to be extraordinarily delighted. Through the work we create for our clients and the beautiful, bizarre art we curate for accounts, we continue to strive to do just that.
Cultivating kvell culture:
It’s truly inspiring to be surrounded by creative people all day, everyday. It is a lifetime goal to have the opportunity and continues to push our own creative boundaries. To show our appreciation to the creative community, we hold our annual Artist of the Year awards, where we celebrate and feature the top Instagram artists throughout the year. This has been such a success that we’ve taken it offline in an exhibition-style awards show, partnering with Neuhouse and Cadillac in years past.
Photo courtesy of kvell for Allbirds.
How they keep branded content creative and collaborative:
We kick off the project by working with our clients to develop their strategy. Once we have an understanding of the brand messaging, positioning, objectives, target audience, and goals, we distill the information into a key insight. The key insight is the foundation that will inspire the creative work. From there we have the groundwork to develop the creative concepts for the content. We explore truthful human insights to create content that evokes a specific feeling which makes the work shareable. We strive to create beautiful content that entertains or inspires while delivering the brand message and story. We’ve learned that people appreciate the authenticity of an artful approach versus a direct advertisement. This type of content is most successful.
Here’s our advice [for creators]:
- Stay true to your brand, not the clients.
- Make art not ads, they are more engaging and shareable.
- Be selective with the brands you work with, otherwise you might sell yourself short.
Photo courtesy of kvell for Fruit By The Foot.
Big thank you to Dalit and Adam for sharing their creative journey with us. We can’t wait to see what stand-out content kvell will come out with next. Want to know how Pop Pays can speed up your custom content production? Learn how to get started, and check back here for more inspiration from our creator community.