Which video editing software are you most proficient in, and what features do you find most valuable in your workflow?

My main editing tool is Adobe Premiere Pro. That’s where I do the bulk of my work. I rely heavily on keyboard shortcuts, Lumetri for colour, Essential Graphics for captions and titles, and plugins like Mister Horse for quick text animations and transitions. I also love Premiere’s Enhanced Speech for quick audio cleanup and have been enjoying experimenting with Generative Extend for lengthening shots. Basically, anything that speeds up the workflow and keeps things efficient!

If I need heavier animation or more complex graphics, I’ll use After Effects, but I try to keep most work inside Premiere to stay fast.

I’ve also been using CapCut (Desktop) more often, especially for social ads. It’s super easy to auto-generate a transcript and create quick, animated captions. Their large library of templates is a major plus, and I can honestly see it becoming my one-stop editing tool in the future.

Beyond editing software, I also use:

• Photoshop: for graphics and design elements, Generative Expand, and Generative Fill.

• ChatGPT Plus: for brainstorming/ ideation, ad copy, spell check, script ideas, alt versions, troubleshooting, and beyond (Chat has become my personal assistant).

• MidJourney + ChatGPT images: for visual concepts, design elements, and backgrounds.

• ElevenLabs + Artlist: for sound fx generation and voice generation ( both text-to-voice and voice-to-voice).

• Runway, Higgsfield, and other AI video gen: I’ve experimented with them for things like animating still images into motion, adding creative camera movements, and building quick motion mockups.

Can you walk us through your experience creating video ads for paid marketing campaigns? (Please share specific examples.)

At Tag Canada, I edited short-form ads for national food and retail clients, many with paid placements in mind. For example, with Sobeys, I cut down a long-form branded piece into short 1-minute promos tailored for Facebook and Instagram. The focus was on building a strong hook in the first three seconds and using captions to make the message clear without audio, so it could perform better on social.

With E11even, the original request was purely for social content. When I pulled everything together, I also cut a full-length version using the same social footage. The client hadn’t planned on it, but they loved it and ended up running it on Facebook and YouTube as a longer paid ad. It showed me how small tweaks in format and pacing can open up new opportunities for distribution.

Another example is Parkland. I worked on event-based ads tied to their sponsorships. We produced fast-moving cutdowns from event footage - highlight reels and branded recaps that doubled as paid social ads. For each activation, we built several different versions to test different hooks and formats, balancing storytelling with clear CTAs to promote their consumer brands like. Unfortunately, I don’t have access to all the variations we produced, but it was a great example of iteration and tailoring edits for performance.

How do you approach iterating an ad after receiving performance feedback (e.g., CTR drop, weak hook, etc.)?

As an editor at Tag, I wasn’t privy to client performance data. Our videos were fully completed before clients would launch and test them. But I was constantly going through multiple rounds of detailed client feedback, so revising, recreating, and iterating has always been a big part of my process. I see iteration as creative problem-solving and collaboration - it’s all part of the editing process.

With my freelance business, Hi·Lo, I’ve had the chance to actually test some of my own ads, which gave me more hands-on experience with performance-based iteration. But in both cases, the workflow is similar. I’ll typically:

• Recut the opener with new hooks or by reordering shots.

• Adjust the pacing, often tightening sequences or cutting down the edit. Sometime you just need to bang out the info, rapid-fire.

• Swap captions, text overlays, or CTA phrasing to test different messaging.

• Change fonts or colors. Sometimes something as small as a brighter text color can pull more attention.

• Swap music tracks. This one completely shifts the mood. Changing from upbeat pop to cinematic can make a product ad feel premium instead of casual.

• Use ChatGPT to brainstorm alternate headlines, captions, and copy. This has been extremely useful for my own business. Chat can pull phrasing and structures that are trending or proven to perform, which saves hours of research.

What’s your process for collaborating with creative and media buying teams to ensure the ads align with both brand voice and performance goals?

My process starts with listening first. At Tag, collaboration was constant. I worked closely with producers, videographers, stylists, props department, account managers, and clients (indirectly through project managers). At any given time I might be juggling 8-10 different client projects (over my 10 years I worked with more than 400 brands). Each one had its own brand voice and style guidelines, so I learned how important it is to follow those closely while still adding creative variations. Because I didn’t have direct client contact (everything went through a project manager) it was even more important to get it right on the first cut and minimize unnecessary back-and-forth. That’s where pre-production and clear communication really mattered.

Being an editor is a lot like being a chameleon. My job is to create what the client wants, adapt to their brand voice and guidelines, and add creative input where it makes sense. But sometimes when clients are unsure, feedback can stretch over many rounds (I don’t take revisions personally). Often they know what they don’t like but not exactly what they want. In these cases, I’ll step in with suggestions or cut two or three different versions so they could see the options instead of trying to picture them from a script. Showing options usually helps them clarify what they actually want, and gives a better sense of which version might perform best.

Have you used motion graphics, text animations, or AI-driven editing tools in past projects? If so, please share how.

Yes, I’ve created a lot of motion graphics and text animations for things like captions, callouts, and kinetic text. Almost every example in my portfolio includes some form of this. Lately I’ve been leaning on CapCut (Desktop) for fast captions and social templates since it streamlines that part of the workflow. I also like to experiment with AI tools: ChatGPT and MidJourney for visual concepts, and Runway and Higgsfield for animations and creative camera movements.

Social GIFs I created for Coop Wicked Chicken using still photographs. Brought to life with Runway and Higgsfield

What motivates you to pursue a career in direct-response video editing, and why does Fièra Cosmetics feel like the right fit for you?

What excites me about direct-response editing is that it blends creativity with real results. At Tag, I didn’t always get to see how ads performed once they went live, so the idea of being part of a team that tests, learns, and keeps iterating feels fresh. When I started at Tag, they were a scrappy start-up and it was a really exciting time to be there. That’s exactly where Fièra feels right now - feisty, growing, and full of energy - and I’d love to be part of that. Freelancing has been great, but a lot of it is solo, and I’d love to get back to collaborating with a team.

What stands out to me about Fièra is your clear audience, women over 40, and the strength of your brand voice and look. You know exactly what you’re after, and I’d like to bring my editing experience to help strengthen and grow that message.