#DopamineDressing
Iteration noteGCL feedback pushed me to bring more of TikTok's brand language and copy into the direction.
Creative Strategist Intern · 2021
TikTok Dynamic Showcase Ads
During my 2021 internship with Global Creative Lab, I designed three static catalog templates for TikTok's Dynamic Showcase Ads. The product slot stayed fixed while the type, color, and supporting graphics changed.
- Role
- Creative Strategist Intern
- Team
- Global Creative Lab
- Timeline
- May – August 2021
- Outcome
- 1 of 3 templates shipped in the launch library
Key moves
- Studied Y2K, Maximalism, Dark Academia, WitchTok, and Cottagecore before choosing the final directions.
- Used one product slot map across Dopamine Dressing, e-Boy/e-Girl, and Light Academia.
- Built the files in parts and tested which elements could mix across directions.
Fashion subcultures on TikTok
Before I moved into mockups, I looked at Y2K, Maximalism, Dark Academia, WitchTok, and Cottagecore. Those references helped me compare how different parts of TikTok's fashion community used type, color, texture, and imagery. I moved forward with Dopamine Dressing, e-Boy/e-Girl, and Light Academia because the differences were obvious at a glance.
The fixed catalog structure
Brands added their product catalog to a pre-made template. I handed off layered Photoshop files with a slot map showing where each asset would go.
#DopamineDressingGCL feedback pushed me to bring more of TikTok's brand language and copy into the direction.
Catalog slot
Brands add product imagery and catalog details to the fixed slot shown here.
Source-aligned region overlayTemplates as modular parts
I built each template in parts so the catalog content could drop into a fixed structure. While working that way, I started to see the individual pieces as a system brands could potentially customize rather than a single locked composition.
I pitched that direction while I was constructing the files, and GCL encouraged me to keep exploring it. Most combinations worked best inside their own visual system. Light Academia and #e-Boy/#e-Girl shared enough structure that I could borrow some parts between them.
From sketches to layered files
I started with loose sketches, then built each direction as a layered Photoshop file. The notes below paraphrase feedback from Global Creative Lab.
#e-Boy/#e-Girl
Iteration noteThe team liked the texture, but felt the direction was drifting too far from TikTok's upbeat visual language. I kept the edge and looked for more dimension.
#LightAcademia
ShippedIteration noteThe simplicity was working. GCL encouraged me to make it feel more upbeat and more deliberate.
What shipped from the launch batch
Critique
The simplicity was working. GCL asked me to make it feel more upbeat and deliberate. Design move
I kept the fixed catalog slot and refined the editorial title and supporting details. Shipped direction
Light Academia entered the launch library.
Light Academia shipped in the launch library. I later learned through Global Creative Lab that American Eagle selected it.
