Foundation & Story: Building Your Marketing Backbone

Join marketing professionals from RP3 Agency, Sandstone Creative Ecosystems, PBJ Marketing, and more for a panel discussion on building marketing strategies for your maker business!

Our goal is to help makers cut through the noise, avoid feeling overwhelmed or pulled in every direction, and learn how to thoughtfully test strategies that actually fit their workflow and values. We'll discuss:

• Story & Voice: Examples of compelling maker storytelling, how to maintain authenticity vs. “overselling,” and why visual storytelling matters for handcrafted goods.

• Marketing Operations: Low-friction setups (Google Business Profile, basic analytics, lightweight content calendars).

• E-commerce: struggling sales conversion, simple steps to address it, testing it and tweaking it.

• Time & Energy: Realistic weekly time expectations, why boundaries matter, and how to protect creative flow.

• Organic Growth: Community-driven, low-cost strategies that align with DC’s maker ecosystem.

Details:

• Thursday, May 28 | 6:00 – 7:30 PM

• Lamond-Riggs Library Events Room, 5401 South Dakota Ave NE, Washington, DC 20011

• Free & Open to all Members & Potential Members of the DC Makers’ Guild!

• RSVP Requested

About the Panelists:

Jono DeCosta, RP3 Agency

• Jono is a performance marketer with 15 years of experience who has developed and executed media strategies for major brands such as Tiffany & Co., KFC, Amtrak, HHS, CDC, Tumi, US Navy, BlueCrossBlueShield, AARP, Frontier Communications, and more. His clients have collectively entrusted him with over $850 million in media spend. He prides himself on delivering media strategy that consistently drives strong measurable business outcomes for his clients. He currently leads the Media & Performance team at RP3 agency in Bethesda, MD. 

Amanda Joy Meyers, Sandstone Creative Ecosystems

• Amanda Joy Meyers is a creative director, brand strategist, and photographer who geeks out over visual storytelling. With nearly two decades of experience — from leading visual communications at the U.S. National Science Foundation to founding Sandstone Creative Ecosystems, a strategic visual communication firm — she turns complex ideas into visuals that resonate. Amanda believes collaboration is where the magic happens, and she thrives on bringing creatives together to make organizations' impact visible. When she's not shaping visual strategy for clients, you'll find her being silly with her family, photographing landscapes, or planning her next road trip to a National Park.

Phillip Reinhardt, PBJ Marketing

• As CEO, Phillip oversees the day-to-day business operations of PBJ Marketing. He loves working with our clients the most, which is why Phillip insists on being involved from pitching to onboarding and throughout the entire engagement to ensure clients are happy and PBJ is exceeding expectations. Prior to starting PBJ, Phillip’s background includes working for large-scale PR and marketing agencies in both New York and DC. During that time he worked with some of the country's largest consumer brands and entertainment networks, delivering results as senior level manager for several years before working with co-founder David Bosley on getting PBJ up and running.