It's Curtains on 2022: Here's What Downstage Media Did for Its Clients

Dec 23

You don't really know where a company's strengths lie until you see what they regularly get hired to do. This can help you understand if you want to work with this company to solve your marketing issues. So as the curtain draws on 2022, here's a look back on the kind of work that Annie Schiffmann did with Downstage Media, and how it helped clients get the social media marketing, email marketing, or overall branding results they were looking for.

Sometimes words on a website are just words on a website. They don’t necessarily translate to what a company actually does, day in and day out. So by perusing a company’s website you may be a little unsure of what they spend the most time working on. If you could know that, then you’d know where their strengths truly are. But without that information, the stuff they put out there could be a whole bunch of marketing speak without real numbers behind them.

Basically, it’s easier to know if a company is the right fit for you if you know what they do well.

Totally get it. In the past year especially, I changed the direction of Downstage Media quite a bit. It took a little over a year to truly find my footing and figure out in a post-pandemic world how best to help people building their brands.

Here you’ll learn how Downstage Media served its clients in email marketing, social media marketing, and the StoryBrand Framework so you can get a clear picture of what Downstage Media can do for you.

Social Media Marketing Solutions

Do It Yourself

In 2022 I created the PAGER Method for Social Media and used that as the social media strategy that I taught clients. Clients got individual training to help them identify what area of their social media was costing them the most time and making it difficult for them to publish content. Through this Marketing Mentorship:

a local photographer was able to fill up nine out of ten of her mini-sessions in two weeks
a social media manager learned how to make lots of content without being the subject matter expert
a financial tech company was able to establish regular posting cadence on LinkedIn to build brand awareness

“I have learned more about social media marketing from Annie Schiffmann than from anyone else – ever. Annie has also shown me how to use Facebook to help sell my play. She has taught me and inspired me, and I recommend her highly!”

— Sydney Blake, Playwright and Producer

The Do It Yourself option is a great one for individuals and organizations with a smaller budget or a lean social media team. One company who just signed on is going to have their social media manager learn the PAGER Method to implement this strategy and keeping their social media content creation in house.

Live Workshops

Facilitation and keynote presentation came centerstage for Downstage Media this year. My Simplify Your Social keynotes brought down the house at the Business of Creating Health Conference and the Marketing Made Simple Summit. A number of companies both in and out of the arts also asked for a private workshop about social media, including Player’s Workshop, Norwest Venture Partners, and the Goalpost Group.

I partnered with Banker Creative and created a Social Media Mastermind specifically for accountants. Those participants learned what kind of content to create, how often to publish it, and tips for making a month’s worth of post in a three hour session.

Schedule a Workshop

Annie Schiffmann delivering the Simplify Your Social workshop at the Made Simple Summit. She shared the bill with marketing mavens Amy Porterfield and Donald Miller.

Email Marketing Solutions

Done For You

Four companies in the marketing field tapped Downstage Media to lead their own email marketing efforts. I have to say, it is humbling to be in charge of an area of marketing for marketing companies. Many companies need help organizing their Mailchimp audiences. They’re not sure how best to use lists, segments, and tags. My Mailchimp certification comes in handy when I can separate the names of the people on their lists so that subscribers get emails that are best suited to them.

Clients also came to me with help implementing a nurturing sequence. They knew that they wanted emails to go out automatically ever week - two companies even had 50 emails already written! - they just needed them plugged into Mailchimp. I also made sure to spruce them up according to best practices so they’d be more likely to get opened and get people clicking.

Now, both of those companies have a way to nurture their audiences and get themselves to the top of their inboxes once a week. Without any more for them to think about. Imagine how great that would be for you!

Do It Yourself

Besides those big undertakings, several small companies reached out to me for targeted email marketing solutions. One company needed help understanding why their emails were often winding up in spam. While another was having a heck of a time dealing with one of Mailchimp’s templates and needed to get their email sent out right away.

A couple of one-on-one sessions and we were able to solve both issues for both clients.

Becoming a Mailchimp Partner

Also, this year I was upgraded from being not just Mailchimp Certified, but becoming a Mailchimp Partner. Which means that in the eyes of the Mailchimp people, I now qualify as an expert. It’s fun to think that when I was first fumbling my way through this platform that I’d learn all of the ins and outs of it ten years later.

Have any any email marketing knots that need untying? Schedule an Intro Call.

StoryBrand and Messaging

StoryBrand played a key role in the work that I was able to do with clients. Many people have approached me wanting to understand how this framework could help them. Especially those in the arts.

Playwrights, arts-based business coaches, and painters all took advantage of the Live Q&As with Donald Miller and JJ Peterson that I facilitated so that they could have the information filtered through the lens of the arts.

Clients, like members of Exact Communication, were able to solidify their messaging during the StoryBrand Marketing Livestream. In those two-day sessions, attendees created the seven marketing messages every brand needs to build an audience and increase revenue. Plus, they were able to get private coaching sessions to work on their five step marketing plans.

And nearly a dozen brand builders worked with me in the Marketing Mentorship to learn how to implement StoryBrand into their own marketing and build a sales funnel.

Annie Schiffmann facilitates with JJ Peterson, bestselling author of *Marketing Made Simple.*

What Downstage Media Can Do For You

By reading this, I hope that you start to see the possibilities that are available to you and your business by working with Downstage Media. Whether you want to iron out email issues, solidify social media strategy, or overhaul your messaging with StoryBrand, I look forward to partnering with you so your work gets shared with the world.

Schedule an Intro Call

A simple first step to take together is to schedule an Intro Call. There we can discuss the issues that you’re having and if I don’t have the solution for you, I’ll do my best to point you in the right direction.

Here’s to a 2023 that’s just as full of exciting collaborations as 2022.

Schedule an Intro Call

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