Content Creator & Editor
Job Purpose
At Panera, we create culturally relevant, attention-grabbing content that sparks engagement, builds brand affinity, and amplifies our presence across every consumer touchpoint: social, digital, loyalty, PR, and in-cafe experiences.
As Content Creator & Editor, you’ll be a hands-on creative responsible for concepting, producing, shooting, editing, and publishing engaging content that makes Panera impossible to scroll past. You’ll translate brand priorities, campaign ideas, cultural moments, product stories, and trends into engaging content designed for platforms like TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, email, web, and other digital experiences.
This role is ideal for someone who combines strong creative instincts with real production experience. You know how to take an idea from a concept to finished content, whether that means capturing something on an iPhone in the moment, directing talent at a larger shoot, editing a video overnight, or partnering with agencies and production teams to bring a bigger idea to life.
You’re deeply immersed in what is culturally relevant, understand what makes content perform by channel, and can move quickly without sacrificing craft or brand standards. You’ll work closely with Social, Brand, Creative, PR, and Content Production teams to maximize content opportunities and extend the value of larger productions.
Location: This position is based in Newton, MA and requires in-office presence three days per week, transitioning to four days per week, Monday through Thursday, in Weston, MA beginning in July 2027.
Duties & Responsibilities
The primary responsibilities of this job include, but are not limited to:
1. Content Creation & Production
- Concept, shoot, produce, and edit high-quality, platform-native content across TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, Threads, and emerging channels.
- Own content from idea through execution, translating briefs, brand priorities, cultural moments, and trends into compelling social-first creative.
- Lead hands-on content capture, including food, talent, lifestyle, behind-the-scenes, reactive, and lo-fi social content.
- Plan and execute social content shoots, including shot lists, talent direction, locations, props, production schedules, and post-production.
- Partner with Creative and Content Production leads before shoots to help shape content opportunities, coverage, formats, shot lists, and post-production needs.
- Identify incremental content opportunities across major brand, campaign, photography and video productions.
- Create and edit short-form video using tools such as Adobe Premiere Pro, After Effects, CapCut, Canva, and platform-native editing tools.
- Create content that supports social, PR, loyalty, email, ecommerce, and broader marketing initiatives, adapting assets and storytelling appropriately for each channel.
- Balance highly produced brand storytelling with fast, culturally relevant content that can be created and published in real time.
- Identify trends, formats, sounds, memes, and cultural conversations early and quickly determine how Panera can participate in a way that feels authentic to the brand.
- Develop repeatable social franchises and content series that build recognition, engagement, and fandom.
- Ensure food is captured in a craveable, high-quality way while maintaining a distinct social-first aesthetic.
- Identify opportunities to extend, repurpose, and refresh existing content and assets for new channels, audiences, and marketing needs.
- Partner with external agencies, creators, photographers, videographers, and production partners when additional support is needed.
2. Creative Development & Content Strategy
- Translate larger brand campaigns into content ideas that feel native to each channel and platform, rather than simply adapting traditional marketing assets.
- Bring forward proactive creative concepts that help amplify brand campaigns, product launches, cultural moments, loyalty initiatives and social storytelling.
- Maintain a strong pulse on social culture, creator trends, platform behaviors, and emerging content formats.
- Help evolve Panera’s social creative identity and establish a recognizable visual and verbal presence across platforms.
3. Cross-Functional & Production Collaboration
- Partner closely with Brand, Creative, Culinary, PR, Influencer, Media, and other marketing teams to identify opportunities for social-first storytelling and broader content amplification.
- Collaborate with chefs, café teams, creators, influencers, executives, and talent to capture engaging content.
- Contribute to content planning discussions by bringing forward social, cultural, and creator-led opportunities that can inform broader content capture needs and maximize asset utility across marketing channels.
- Partner closely with Brand Expression and Content Production teams to ensure content reflects Panera’s voice, visual identity and creative standards. Direct agency and production partners as needed.
4. Performance & Optimization:
- Monitor content performance and use insights to continuously improve creative.
- Identify the formats, hooks, talent, topics, and creative approaches driving engagement, reach, and conversation.
- Apply learnings quickly, testing new creative approaches and iterating based on audience response.
- Maintain organized workflows and collaborate with asset management partners to ensure content is properly tagged, archived, and reusable.
- Leverage emerging tools, including AI-enabled workflows, to improve content ideation, editing, adaptation, and production efficiency while maintaining brand standards.
Qualifications (Education & Experience)
Qualifications include:
- 3–5+ years of experience creating social-first content for a brand, agency, publisher, creator, or production environment.
- Strong portfolio demonstrating hands-on experience concepting, shooting, producing, and editing social content.
- Demonstrated production experience across short-form video, photography, talent shoots, and/or branded content.
- Highly proficient in short-form video creation and editing, with experience using tools such as Adobe Premiere Pro, After Effects, CapCut, Canva, or similar platforms.
- Comfortable shooting high-quality content on both mobile devices and professional camera equipment.
- Deep expertise in TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, and emerging social platforms, with a strong understanding of how creative should differ by channel.
- Strong creative instincts and an ability to recognize what will make someone stop scrolling, watch, engage, and share.
- Deeply immersed in internet culture, entertainment, creators, memes, trends, and evolving social behaviors.
- Comfortable appearing behind or in front of the camera when needed and directing talent to get strong social performances.
- Demonstrated ability to identify and maximize content opportunities across larger campaigns, productions, or brand initiatives.
- Experience managing productions from concept through post-production, including timelines, talent, locations, shot lists, budgets, and external partners.
- Agile and able to create high-quality work in a fast-paced, reactive environment.
- Strong understanding of food and lifestyle content creation is preferred.
- Excellent project management and communication skills with strong attention to detail.
- Collaborative, proactive, resourceful, and energized by turning ideas into content.
Working Conditions
Physical Requirements
- While performing this job, the incumbent is regularly required to stand, sit, talk hear & use hands and fingers to operate keyboards
Equal Opportunity Employer: Disabled/Veterans
Competitive Pay $83,685 - $100,423 annually
The actual pay offered will be determined by multiple factors, including but not limited to the candidate’s relevant experience, job-related knowledge, skills, and geographical location. Individual compensation decisions are dependent upon the facts and circumstances of each position and candidate.
Newton Support Center
