Welcome back loverves! Whether you are interested in hiring a content creator or you just have some questions about what it's like and why so many people are jumping on the wedding content creation trend. We are bringing you the answers today with our very special guest! Content creation is one of the biggest wedding trends of 2024, and it's definitely one of the fastest-growing professions in the wedding industry. Today, we're talking with an expert to answer all of your questions!
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EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS:
- What is a wedding content creator? [5:08]
- How does a wedding content creator work with a wedding photographer or videographer? [9:58]
- What moments does a wedding content creator capture? [14:10]
- What's included in wedding content creation? [17:00]
- How much does it cost to hire a wedding content creator? [22:22]
- How can you avoid your wedding feeling like a photoshoot? [27:52]
- Questions to ask before you hire a wedding content creator [35:48]
MEET ARIANNA ARNETT
Arianna or Ari as her friends and clients call her is the owner and founder of Cupid Content Co, a wedding content creation company based in southern California. With a background in fashion and lifestyle content creation, she spent her two-year engagement sharing her wedding planning journey on social media where she fell in love with all things bridal. Ari launched Cupid Content Co in June of 2023 and now alongside her team of content creators, she captures the love stories of couples around the world in raw, authentic, and organic ways.
What is a wedding content creator and why should people consider hiring them for their wedding day?
A wedding content creator is a professional vendor who really captures the behind-the-scenes of your wedding day on an iPhone and delivers everything pretty immediately. Most wedding content creators deliver (at least the raw content) within 24 hours or sooner. For you to relive and post about, do whatever you want with the content. As you said, it is a very new service. I feel like a lot of people are starting to find out about it right now, it's definitely a big trend for 2024. But, I think it's going to stick around for a long time. To answer your question in terms of why it's such an amazing service for couples to have, it's like a third angle that you really wouldn't have of your wedding day otherwise. It's a very candid, raw, unfiltered lens of your wedding day. You will have your professional photos and videos from your photographer and videographer.
However, I feel like no one really tells you that you are actually going to have to wait for many weeks or months to get your final gallery and/or video back from them. Which we want your photographer and videographer to have that time to edit their work thoughtfully and beautifully. So, we definitely don't want to rush them on that. Our service is a way to look back on the behind-the-scenes of your day in a very organic, unfiltered way. It is also a kind of instant gratification of being able to look back on everything the next day (or within 24 hours).
How do you work with the photo and video team?
I always tell clients, we are not a replacement for your professional photographer and videographer. We are a third angle that otherwise wouldn't be captured on the day. I never recommend us being a replacement for any other vendor. We're really there capturing everything on an iPhone. It's a little bit more candid, casual and tailored to this modern social media world that we live in. With that said, I know there are definitely some concerns from other wedding vendors, specifically photographers and videographers, who are worried about content creators maybe getting in the way or turning it into this whole production that's all about social media. I think that the reality is any experienced professional wedding vendor (including content creators), will know how to work together on a wedding day to make it an amazing experience for their clients, for each other, for everyone.
I think that being really transparent, proactive and educating other vendors is key. I start the process for every wedding by sending out an intro email to the photographer and videographer that I'm going to be working with. I explain what wedding content creation is in case they haven't worked with one before because it's such a new service. Then, I kind of explain what my approach and my process is for me and my team and how we'll work together with them on the wedding day. I explained that our approach is very fly on the wall, very candid and organic. We're not there to get in their way with posing the couple. I explain that we'll communicate with them throughout the day to figure out where we're going to stand so that we're not in their way.
So I think that going into the wedding day already, having that kind of mutual understanding between each other is really important. This is such a new service and there's vendors who maybe have heard bad things on social media or they have a friend who maybe had a bad experience or whatever the case may be. So, I like going into the day just already having communicated with the vendor team and then throughout the day I'm always communicating where I'm going to stand. Making sure that we're all able to execute on our jobs in a way that is positive for the couple and positive for each other. I think that wedding content creators really can be and are such a value add for other vendors. We really all can work together and just make it an amazing experience for the couples. So I think it's really all about being professional, communicative and proactive.
When the photographer or videographer are capturing things, where are you standing? Do you talk to the couple about the kind of content they want? How do you decide what you're actually shooting?
Like I said, my approach is very fly on the wall. So I'm really not posing the couple, I'm capturing the day as it unfolds. As the photographer is posing the couple, I'm capturing that. Sometimes my shots might even have the photographer in it. It's a very organic as opposed to the kind of curated posed photos or videos. I always tell couples I don't necessarily have a formal shot list for a wedding day. Although I do like to go into the day knowing the details they have planned or what is most important to them. All of that is important to know and frame their content. Maybe I'm shooting next to the photographer or videographer or if it's a tight space, maybe I'm shooting over their shoulder or above them. It's kind of just a very candid organic lens. It's not that I'm just shooting over the photographer's shoulder all day. It's more a bird's eye view of the wedding day of everything going on so that couples can really look back on everything from what they were experiencing to also what their loved ones were experiencing.
What is typically included in the service of content creation for a wedding?
Every wedding content creator is going to offer different packages. In general, every package from a wedding content creator is likely going to include, the amount of hours of coverage and what we call raw content. Raw content is all the iPhone photos and videos that we're taking throughout the day. Raw, unfiltered, everything for you to look back on. It's hard to put a number on because every event, package and content creator is different, but I would say expect to receive hundreds and hundreds of pieces of raw content. Then, each package will likely include a certain amount of edited content. This can maybe be a recap video of your wedding day, maybe a ceremony highlight. Or, maybe it is a TikTok with a trending audio transition (if that's important to the couple). That really is going to depend on what kind of vibe they are wanting out of their wedding content.
For that edited content, is something for them to look at in terms of their style? Are they looking for that recap style storytelling approach? Are they looking for the trending TikTok audios? And then each package will very likely include a pre-wedding planning call. For us, that's a really important part of our process. We send out a questionnaire to our couples, asking what details are planned, what moments are most important to them? It's super comprehensive. Then, that is something that we will chat through on a pre-planning call before the wedding. To frame their content and really understand what are priorities for them. We chat through the timeline so that we can go into the day knowing what needs to be captured, how to frame their edited content so that it feels authentic to them and what they want to remember out of their day.
You take a lot of photos and videos, do you go through them and give the best ones?
This is going to vary based on which content creator you are working with. But for me, I do go through the raw content before sending it out. I really do deliver the candid and raw stuff so I don't delete a lot, but if there is a really obviously bad photo or a ton of duplicates, I will remove them.
How do you deliver the raw footage to your clients?
I deliver everything via Google Drive. I have found that shared albums do interfere with the quality of the content. So regardless of if you're an iPhone or Android user, you can look back on the content and download it via Google Drive. It's all super organized into folders of raw content and edited content and super user-friendly.
How is pricing structured? Is it by the hour, by the package?
It really does depend on your location, the type of coverage, how many hours, the type of edits. All of that really goes into factoring into how much the service will costs. I think it's safe to assume that for a professional experienced wedding content creator, starting prices are probably going to be around $800-$1000 for a full package of raw edited content. Then you're going to go upwards from there as you're getting more into the luxury market. Adding on events, multi-day events, how many edits you want, all of that. So it's a little bit all over the place, but I would say starting around a thousand and then going up from there, $2000-$3000 plus as you add on,
How long is your day typically when working a wedding?
Our most popular packages are 8-10 hours plus. In terms of starting time, we're typically starting around the same time that the photographer and videographer are or before. I have a lot of couples who want some of the morning with their girls documented in that more candid way behind the scenes. So they'll have me arrive a couple hours before their photographer or videographer. I always tell my couples, we can really prioritize the coverage however they want. So, if they want more getting ready content, late night dancing content after the photographer has left, we can that.
How do you help ensure couples are able to be present and you're not interfering with the natural flow of the day?
I'm the last person who wants your wedding to feel like a content day for social media. Like I said, it's very fly on the wall, it's very in the moment organic. My content tends to lean a little bit away from the TikTok trends. I do have couples where it's really important to them to have TikTok trends. Amazing. I am here to make their wildest dreams come true. But that is something that is really important to build into the timeline to make sure we actually have the time for it, otherwise we're interfering with the flow of the day. So if there is a TikTok trend that a couple wants, that's something I communicate with the planner prior to the wedding and build it into the timeline so that we can get it all done. It can be a lot of pre-planning. I think most wedding content creators style is really that in-the-moment content. So we're really not interfering with the day. We're really just a fly-on-the-wall approach and not interfering in that way.
Are there any favorite moments you like to capture BTS that might be missed by the photo and video team?
I would say that the in-between moments are really my favorite part of wedding content creation. The little things that I know might not make it into a couple's final video, but that are so important. There's so many things that are happening that you really want to remember. I always love capturing reactions of the couple, watching each other, taking photos or their friends' reactions. One example from a wedding I did over the weekend that was just one of the most special moments I've captured. After the ceremony, they were all in the room with the family celebrating and chatting, and the bride's father went up to the groom and he said, “make sure you take care of my little girl”. And they shook hands and the groom said, “I will, I promise”. It was just this little fleeting moment for five seconds, but that was just so, so special. And now that bride is going to have that to look back on from having the behind the scenes footage. So it's just these little fleeting moments and the little in-between moments, I think that really make up the day that can easily just go by so fast.
Do you do both photo and video? How is that decided?
My content is very heavily focused on video. Probably about 90% of my content is video. I do take some photos because I know couples have to wait for their professional photos. I have found from doing content creation over almost the past year now, that video content is really what captures the essense of the day, so that's really where I focus now.
What advice would you give to people who are nervous about having another camera on their wedding day following them around?
I would have them try to remember that we are not going to be directing or posing them in anyway. Like I said, It's going to be much more of a fly on the wall approach. So it sshouldn't feel overwhelming in that sense. It should feel very natural and integrated into the wedding day. I know this is easier said than done, but really try to relax, have fun with it. We can feel the tension through the photos and the video. I find that just focusing on the moment, focusing on your day rather than thinking about all these cameras pointed at your face.
But I also think a really important thing is hiring wedding vendors who you feel super comfortable around. We are there with you all day on your wedding day. So, I think finding vendors who you feel comfortable with taking those photos and those videos, I think is a really great way to kind of alleviate some of that stress.
I always recommend doing an engagement shoot with your photographer beforehand, just kind of getting a feel for that person and making sure you feel comfortable and you can envision spending the whole wedding day with them because I think that your team makes a really big difference in your level of comfort on a wedding day.
What would you advise couple look for when hiring a potential content creator?
When couples are interviewing wedding content creators and trying to find a good fit for their day, a couple things to look out for. One, definitely see what their style is and their vibe of content. Like any wedding vendor, wedding content creators are going to have different styles and different approaches. If you're really looking for more in the moment, organic content, that's a certain style. If you're looking for more of the TikTok trends and the transitions, things like that, that's another style. I think that finding someone who is a really good fit for the kind of content that you're looking for is really important. Looking at their Instagram, TikTok, portfolio, website, and making sure that it aligns with what you're looking for and what feels authentic to you as a couple.
Check what their experience is, how long they've been doing wedding content creation, do they have a background in content creation or newer in the field. Another thing to look out for is what kind of equipment do they use? What iPhone are they shooting on? Do they have a stabilizer that they use? Do they come prepared with a backup phone in case of emergencies? I think a lot of people think we just show up with an iPhone and do our thing. But there definitely is a lot that goes into it on the backend. Preparing, having charging blocks and backup plans and all of that. So I think these are really good questions to ask a wedding content creator.
How do they work with your media team? I think that's a really good question to ask a potential wedding content creator, especially if your photographer or your videographer have concerns. Is it a breach of contract if you are hiring a wedding content creator? I think that's a whole other conversation, but really just making sure that everything aligns with your media team that you already have hired. And then the last thing I would say is asking, what are their deliverables? What's included in the packages? Are you getting all the raw content? What kind of edits are you getting? And what are they really receiving after the wedding?
What equipment do you bring with you on the wedding day?
I obviously have my iPhone, and then I also have a backup iPhone in case of emergency. I bring so many charging blocks you would not believe I have 10 plus in my bag at all times. Plus, I have a ring light that I use for nighttime content. And then in terms of a stabilizer or a gimbal, I do bring one on wedding days. I think that the gear is sometimes very overlooked with this job because people think I just show up with my iPhone and do my thing.
What would you say to wedding vendors who are unsure how they feel about someone having a content creator on their wedding day?
I would say that wedding content creators, like we've said, it's a trend right now, but I don't think it's going anywhere. I think that this is the direction that the wedding industry is headed in and just the world in general. We are so focused on capturing our lives and having all of this documentation to look back on. If you are a wedding vendor who still has concerns about wedding content creation, I think that's totally normal. I think that it's important and it's healthy for us all to have these conversations and talk about how we can work together and make it an amazing day for our couples. I think it's a question of remembering whose day is it really about? And if it's important to a couple to have a wedding content creator, then it's important something we should all work together to really prioritize and make it a great day for them.
I think that wedding content creators really can be such an asset to all the vendors on a wedding day. It's so hard for vendors to get behind the scenes footage of their work on a wedding day. I think that those who are fighting it are going to continue to struggle over the next few years as it just continues to gain popularity. So I think it's the kind of thing to really just embrace and realize that we can all work together. We can capture behind the scenes footage for other vendors, and it can be a really symbiotic relationship.
Is there one last piece of advice you want to make sure couples walk away with about content creation?
I would say that if I could debunk one thing or really just kind of drive one point home about wedding content creation, would be that a lot of people have this idea that maybe you have to be an influencer to have a wedding content creator. Or super into social media or that on the other side of it, maybe there's some vendors who feel like having a wedding content creator turns your whole day into a content day. I think in reality, that really couldn't be further from the truth. In my experience, my brides are actually able to be so present on their wedding days because they don't have to have their phone in their hand, their bridesmaids are present, their family and friends are so present. It's a way for them to live in the moment of their wedding day and know that that content is still going to be captured for them and they don't have to worry about it rather than making it into this big social media content day.
It doesn't have to be making it into this whole TikTok day. I think that is such a misconception about wedding content creation. That's one of my favorite things as a wedding content creator is capturing the in-between little organic things that happen. I think it's one of the best cures for the post wedding blues. When you have a wedding content creator, you're able to just relive everything and show your friends and your family and reminisce on it. It's such a great way to kind of prolong that experience and just remember it right away.
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