Ever wonder what goes into creating a Breaktime campaign? Then it’s your lucky day, because we sat down with our award-winning creative team—Abbie Henry (Visual Designer), Emma Seraichick (Senior Visual Design Lead), Heaven Robinson (Visual Design Associate), Madyn Godfrey (Content Producer), Chloe Chow (Senior Content Lead), and Jordyn Cummings (Contractor, Content Production)—to get a behind-the-scenes look at how they bring campaigns to life.
From expressing a brand’s unique story to adding that extra “wow” factor with personalization and gamification, this team knows how to make a campaign stand out from the crowd. Here’s what they had to say about their favorite parts of the creative process, how they keep campaigns fresh, and the features they think brands should use more often.
What’s your favorite part of the creative process when designing campaigns?
Madyn (Content Producer):
I really enjoy getting to know a brand’s specific and unique voice. When starting to create content for a campaign, I typically spend about 20 minutes browsing through their website and social media accounts to get a sense of their tone and style. It’s fun seeing their unique branding and trying on all of these different voices with my writing!
Chloe (Senior Content Lead):
I think the most exciting part of the creative process is discovering each brand on a deeper level and understanding their tone of voice—what drives them, who their audience is, and the problem they're trying to solve. Every brand has a unique story, and it's my job to uncover that and bring it to life on our platform. I love weaving in all those aspects while still retaining their identity in a way that feels authentic and fun.
Jordyn (Contractor, Content Production)
I love the research component of going through a brand's website and getting a feel for its unique brand voice. There's something really exciting about getting to try on different voices so to speak and curating copy for various demographics. It's fun that there is always a new challenge, a new creative lens to look through, and a new audience to consider whenever we work on our campaigns.
Heaven (Visual Design Associate):
My favorite part of designing campaigns is seeing the final version live on the site. It’s the moment when all the work becomes real and all the different elements of copy, design and animation come together to make a dynamic experience for the consumer.
Abbie (Visual Designer):
I thoroughly enjoy going through the assets we’ve received and seeing each brand's guidelines (if they are able to provide them). This is personally how the tone is set for visuals and how ideas are initiated. Also when the inclusion of other team members and their thoughts are brought to perspective during internal reviews, which enhances our result for round one of creative decks being sent to clients.
Emma (Senior Visual Design Lead):
My favorite part of the creative process is our initial internal review where we first share things with the creative team. I love when someone has an out-of-the-box idea that I didn't think of that helps design and copy collaborate. We always see a lot of cool ideas from all the other people on the team.
How do you keep campaigns fresh and engaging for clients and consumers?
Madyn:
Thinking of how to use campaign steps in new and exciting ways is a really good way of ensuring that campaigns stay fresh, even for returning clients already familiar with our structure. For example, using our personality quiz as more of a “choose your own adventure” quiz was a unique approach we have taken before that connected well with the client and the consumers and got them both excited about the campaign and product!
Chloe:
It's definitely a challenge, especially because we work with so many clients in the same categories. We even run repeat campaigns year after year! But rethinking the content is the fun part. We always look for new angles to keep it fresh, whether that's within a step (there are so many different ways to approach a personality quiz, for example) or utilizing a completely different step to get the message across (like using a product finder to showcase the breadth of products instead of a list).
Jordyn:
In order to keep things fresh I think two things are really critical: maintaining a pulse of what's been popular online and taking a peek at what competitors may be doing. It's important to stay ahead of the curve and have that creative edge which is why I am always looking for new ways to expand my craft — in and outside of work.
Heaven:
Adding animation to images has been a fun and effective way to elevate content. Incorporating GIFs brings the design to another level, adding energy and visual interest that static images just can’t capture. These subtle movements help guide the audience's attention, highlight key imagery and create a memorable experience that keeps consumers engaged.
Abbie:
Animations have been a big addition recently. We also try to sprinkle in some elements throughout the navigation bar and incorporate similar brand fonts. We also constantly change the composition of the type or placement of imagery.
Emma:
Staying up to date on trends—specifically, paying attention to the audience of each campaign, and then thinking of the trends specific to that audience. Also, understanding the client's wants versus their needs is helpful to make each campaign unique.
How do you exercise creativity and make sure each campaign feels unique while staying true to brand guidelines in your work?
Madyn:
For me, exercising creativity while remaining true to a brand’s guidelines comes down to understanding the voice and tone deeply enough to play around with it. Once you truly immerse yourself in the brand’s language and style, you can add in fresh ideas such as witty phrasing, a touch of relatable humor or a unique storytelling angle specific to that campaign theme. This way, each campaign is distinct and creative, but unmistakably on-brand for the client.
Chloe:
It's a balance! I do my best to ensure that the brand's voice shines in our experiences and that the content is on brand, but that's where we also collaborate with the client and get their feedback. I know our design team does an incredible job of making the look and feel of each campaign unique. I'm just grateful to work alongside creatives who think outside of the box and bring their fresh perspectives to every project.
Jordyn:
The first thing I do is get very clear on the brand guidelines which allows me to take agency and make informed creative decisions. At the end of the day though, it's more dependent on the brand than anything—some have a very by-the-book way of doing things, which is nice in terms of having clarity, and other brands allow us to really explore our own voices in which I will draw upon popular cultural references or a little bit of humor.
Heaven:
Having multiple creative rounds is valuable, as it allows me to experiment with new visuals, receive client feedback and clarify the brand’s direction early on. When guidelines aren’t provided, I turn to the brand’s packaging, website and social media to understand their unique identity and what sets them apart in the market. By using their fonts, colors and shapes, I ensure the campaign feels cohesive, authentic and fresh.
Abbie:
With our platforms of Dailybreak and BestDailyRecipes, there are always nuances. A brand may have one key visual they are able to provide but the step flow enlists multiple areas that need visuals. That’s where our creativity thrives. When we place ourselves in the brand's shoes and provide visuals we can source from stock photos or mimic how the key visual would look spread out amongst the experience. We also reference any of the brand's socials and how their posts or websites are in current time.
Emma:
This is one of my favorite parts of the job; I really like pushing the creativity as much as I can and problem-solving within a designated area. It's like, we're not given a tiny canvas, we're not given a giant wall mural, but we're given a large canvas—and understanding those parameters actually helps with the creative process because we know what the boundaries are.
What’s one interactive feature that you think brands should be leveraging more in their digital campaigns?
Madyn:
I think the poll step is a fun one that is often overlooked. If a campaign is focused on multiple flavors or versions of a product, it can be a fun way to have consumers weigh in on their favorites, and the brand can gain insight into which products are preferred over others. It’s an easy, engaging addition that adds a layer of interaction to the experience for consumers!
Chloe:
For me, it's the little touches of personality in a digital experience—a playful transition in content, a distinctive tone of voice, cute animation, well-thought-out formatting, etc. That feels personalized, and personalization can be everything to a consumer. Those touches can add up to a big impact, and if done well, they can add value to an experience that delights and resonates with the audience.
Jordyn:
Generative AI steps! We have been using a Generative AI recipe builder which has been a really exciting, new feature in our campaigns. It enhances the shopper experience when they can get recommendations either in the form of recipes or otherwise and allows them to visualize how a product can either be a solution for them or something they'll want to include in their daily routine.
Heaven:
One interactive feature I think brands should be leveraging more in their campaigns is video content, especially vertical videos optimized for mobile. Videos encourage consumers to actively engage by clicking to play or pausing to watch, making the experience more immersive. This format is particularly effective in reaching younger audiences, who are more likely to connect with mobile-first, short-form and visually engaging content.
Abbie:
A Spot the Difference game is always a fun break in the experience for the user. Depending on the exact criteria of the campaign it can be another section to feature their product.
Emma:
Gamification as a means of communicating the reasons to believe rather than just listing out the reasons to believe. For example, maybe doing a memory match game where each memory card lists reasons to believe; for example, cards to match that say “nine grams of protein,” “organic-certified, “gluten-free.” So, rather than writing a list that explains it all, integrating those reasons to buy and believe into the games.