VCCP creator and Dykes Who Hike founder Lucy Cooper on harnessing the power of social
Meet Lucy Cooper, a social creative and creator making internet-famous work with millions of likes and shares under her belt. Currently working as a creator at creative media and production agency VCCP, Lucy thinks up concepts, writes scripts, films, directs and edits content for a variety of brands. She runs the LGBTQ+ collective at VCCP and also co-founded Dykes Who Hike, a 14,000 strong online community for queer women, trans and non-binary people who meet regularly as a walking group. We asked Lucy what it really means to have a 'creator’ job title and her tips for succeeding in social.
Lucy Cooper
Job Title
Creator at VCCP (August 2024–present)
Based
London
Place of Study
History and Politics BA, University of York (2019-2022)
Website
Socials
What I do
Could you tell us a bit about VCCP and your role as a Creator?
VCCP is a creative agency. We're based in London, but have offices all around the world. To be a creator is essentially being like a social expert for agency. I like to say it's about making brands look fun and cool on social media.
What does a typical day look like?
It's a lot of different things. Typically, you get briefed in by a strategist – they'll tell you a little bit about the problems the brand is facing and how they want to solve it. Then I go away, have a bit of a think and do a lot of scrolling on social media, seeing what people are talking about and what kind of visuals they're using.
Then, I'll start to gather some ideas of my own for the brands. I typically have a meeting where I'm presenting these back to a creative director, getting some feedback, which I'll then work on. Sometimes I'll go out there and film the content myself, edit it and then get it out into the world.
What's great about your job?
The best part about my job is that I love social media anyway, so it feels like I'm getting paid to do my hobby. I love making videos. I love going on TikTok, seeing what everyone's talking about and finding new creative ways to get involved in that conversation.
I also love working at VCCP. There's always so many different events going on, and different ways to meet people. I also work across a few different departments, so I get to meet loads of really cool, very talented people and make loads of friends.
What three qualities help you do your job as a creator?
I'd say being a social native. This means knowing exactly what's going on with platforms, knowing when there are any updates and being adaptable.
Then, being able to wear lots of different hats. You're always having to manage working on different accounts.
Also, being really persuasive. A lot of the time, people might not know about social. You have to tell them exactly what's going on and why your idea should be made.
My advice
Are there any resources you’d recommend to young creatives or do you have any wider wisdom to share?
I would recommend Outvertising, which is a really good platform for LGBTQ+ advertisers. They've got loads of really great mentor schemes, and loads of really interesting research.
Also, I recently started a group called Dykes Who Hike with my friend. A lot of it was wanting to build a bit more of a community. I was able to use my social skills to grow that desire into the group that it is now. We have over 200 people that come on the hikes every time, and we get to explore different parts of the country. It's a great way to get outside and connect with people.
What's the best piece of career advice you've received?
The best advice I ever got was from a strategist, who told me that by being myself I'm bringing something new to the table. I think this is so true, but it's easy to feel like you might not have an opinion that's worth sharing when you're experiencing imposter syndrome. Advertising is just about representing people, so just living your life also means that you'll have something interesting to say.
VCCP is a Creative Lives in Progress brand partner. Every year, we partner with like-minded brands and agencies to support our initiative and keep Creative Lives a free resource for emerging creatives. To find out more about how you can work with us, email [email protected]
Find a video version of Lucy's interview on our TikTok here.
Mention Lucy Cooper