How I Turned My Colleagues Into Models For Our E-commerce Website

Every one of us has hidden talents and passions that extend far beyond our daily job descriptions. While these skills aren’t necessarily required of us at work, they do give us the opportunity to express ourselves in our personal lives; and sometimes, they hold immense potential when brought into the workplace.

For me, I’m passionate about videography and photography. And over the years I’ve developed skills in both forms of media through my work at an agency. While these passions are not part of my regular duties at adidas, this is a story of how I was able to leverage these abilities and allow others to benefit from them.

One day, a friend from our Europe e-commerce team reached out to me and asked if I had any ideas about getting images for the user-generated content (UGC) components on our website. These are online shopping experiences where we showcase how our products look on real people and how they can be combined to create different outfits. Meanwhile in the background, I had planned a photoshoot for our team members who needed a profile picture. I thought, why not combine these two goals and use our colleagues as models for the e-com components?

Our teams have amazing and diverse people who are passionate about our products and brand. Plus, we have a photo studio on campus, which we could use for free. I pitched the idea to my friend, Jana Demtschenko, who originally came to me with the request. She is an assistant manager in customer experience optimization, and as it turned out, we were on the same page. We then decided to make it a pilot project for the European market and to run with the idea. In a recent catch-up about the project, she said,

The execution

We started planning the project about six weeks before the shoot. During the prep leading up to our photo shoot, we selected clothing samples, booked the studio space, recruited our models (who also needed their profile pictures), and coordinated all the logistics.

It was important to make sure that the images we would produce would be on brand, compliant, and suitable for the website. There were also many technical aspects to consider, such as the image quality, the format, and the metadata. The laundry list of things to take care of seemed endless, but we also had a lot of support from different people across the organization.

Our open casting call for models 

Then, we got to the first fun part: recruiting our models. We asked everyone who needed an updated profile picture to select their preferred outfits from the samples we had and to indicate if they were comfortable with being on the e-commerce website or just wanted to have a profile picture. We were overwhelmed by the response. Over 50 people signed up for the shoot, and most volunteered to be our e-commerce models. 

During the photoshoot, all participants were excited and enthusiastic about the project. Some even danced around in the background while we were taking pictures. We had amazing music and great vibes in the studio. It was a lot of fun and a great team-building experience. 

I was the one who took the pictures on the first day, along with Lena, a dual student who learned how to do photography in one day. She did an amazing job, and I’m glad she discovered a new passion. When I asked Lena about her experience, she said,  

On the second day, we had another photographer, Andrew, from the adidas Training team. He is also a photographer in his free time, and he helped us a lot with the lighting and the editing. We also had Mike and Philip from the studio team, who were super helpful and supportive. They are legends and I’m very grateful for their assistance.

The outcome

After the shoot, we had to select and edit the images and upload them to the website. This took us about two to three weeks, as we had to ensure that everything was working properly, and the images aligned with the brand guidelines. We also had to make sure everyone was on board with our handmade, entirely internally crafted pictures; that even involved convincing some stakeholders that this was a good idea, and it would benefit the business and the brand.

The project went live on the website about three months after the idea was born. We had more than 40 colleagues featured on our e-commerce page and app. Our team members look amazing in the pictures, representing our brand and products in a very authentic and diverse way. And let’s not forget that they also have awesome profile pictures that they can use for social media. Some of our first-time models even posted on LinkedIn about their experience and they got a lot of likes and positive comments.

So, in the end, the project generated a lot of positive feedback and engagement, both internally and externally. We also expect to see an uptick in our net sales resulting from the images, as they come across as relatable and relevant for our browsing customers.

The takeaway

This project was one of the most rewarding and enjoyable projects I have ever worked on. It was a great opportunity to showcase our creativity, passion, and teamwork. It was also a great way to connect with our colleagues and celebrate our diversity and culture.

I also learned a lot from this project, both professionally and personally. I learned how to manage a complex and ambitious project, collaborate with different people and teams, overcome challenges and obstacles, and deliver a clear and concise outcome. Most importantly, I also learned how to have fun and enjoy the process and how to appreciate the support and help that I received from others.

This is the type of project that makes the 3-Stripes a unique place to work. It’s a testament to the untapped potential we all carry, from being well-versed in multiple languages and sports to art and technology, and so much more. And best of all, this project highlights the incredible possibilities that arise when companies embrace and nurture our hidden talents, creating a culture of innovation and collaboration.