MARKETING
TROYLABS
Making startup culture impossible to ignore on campus.
ROLE
Head of Creative
TEAM
TL Studio
TIMELINE
Feb 2025 - Ongoing
SKILLS
Marketing
Film Production
Content Strategy
THE CONTEXT
What is TroyLabs?
TroyLabs is USC's flagship, student-run startup accelerator. It runs on team of 45 members across five internal divisions—design, product management, engineering, marketing, and finance—each working directly with 6 startup clients each semester to build and grow their products.
Since 2016, TroyLabs has helped build over 70 companies, raised $3M+, and successfully run two core programs: BUILD, where those five divisions work directly with startup clients; and DEMO, SoCal's largest student-run entrepreneurship conference with 1,000+ attendees and 50+ tabling startups.
THE PROBLEM
A brand without a creative voice.
TroyLabs had the programs, the talent, and the numbers to back it up—but no dedicated team to tell our story. Content was an afterthought.
So I helped found TL Studio, TroyLabs' first in-house content team, to give the brand the identity it deserved.
From recruitment to event marketing, every piece of TL Studio content was built to serve a specific TroyLabs initiative.
THE ASSETS
"Says Who?" Campaign
A hyped recruitment reel spotlighting every TroyLabs team in our BUILD initiative—daring USC students to prove what they could build in 10 weeks.
The reel helped draw in 300+ applications for the Spring '26 cohort.
"Andy's Lemonade" Campaign
A narrative short film inspired by the visual language of Laufey's Madwoman music video—tapping into the soft, nostalgic storytelling Gen Z can't stop consuming. The wholesome flair was intentional: DEMO is for everyone and all founders starting somewhere.
The reel helped draw in 1,000+ attendees for the startup conference.
"Swipe-Bait" Post Series
A collection of funny and eye-catching fake news designed to make people swipe. The first slide contains the funny news and as the viewer swipes… Got you! Viewers are invited to come to TroyLabs' DEMO instead. Who doesn't love some lighthearted fun?
The posts collectively received 200,000+ impressions.
Social Media Statics
Promotional content for TroyLabs' events and initiatives.
