Build a Mini-Agency: Student Workshop on Discoverability + Transmedia Pitches

Hook: Fix fragmented learning — build a mini-agency that gets real attention

Students and teachers tell us the same problem: great ideas and research sit scattered across forums, slides, and inboxes while authentic discoverability and credit remain out of reach. This multi-session project turns that pain into a solution: student teams form mini-agencies, apply modern digital PR and social search tactics to lift discoverability, and craft transmedia pitches for adaptation — modeled on real-world studios like The Orangery (now represented by WME in 2026).

The one-paragraph executive summary (the inverted pyramid)

In 6–8 sessions, student teams will discover, package, promote, and pitch a piece of intellectual property (IP) across platforms using a combined PESO + social search workflow. They’ll produce a press kit, a digital PR campaign, social-first assets, a transmedia one-sheet and pitch deck, and conduct an AMA/interview with a subject-matter expert. Outcomes: measurable discoverability gains (mentions, backlinks, social signals, AI answer presence), a polished transmedia pitch, and a graded portfolio entry suitable for festivals or agency internships.

Why this matters now (2026 trends)

In 2026 discoverability is not just SEO — it’s a network effect across social platforms, AI-powered answers, and earned media. Search Engine Land’s 2026 analysis shows audiences form preferences before they search; they find creators on TikTok, Reddit, YouTube, and increasingly in AI summaries and chat assistants. At the same time, transmedia IP studios like The Orangery are proving that packaged IP — strong characters, world-building, and cross-platform assets — can accelerate representation deals (WME, 2026). For educators, this is an opportunity: teach students how to be discovery-first and adaptation-ready.

Project overview: What student teams will build

• Mini-agency identity — name, role sheet (creative director, digital PR lead, producer, analyst).
• IP audit & selection — choose a story, comic, short film script, podcast episode, or community-created IP to adapt.
• Transmedia one-sheet — concise adaptation roadmap (TV, film, podcast, game, graphic novel).
• Digital PR campaign — PESO strategy tying owned, earned, shared, and paid tactics to discoverability KPIs.
• Social-first asset suite — vertical video, micro-excerpts, quote cards, sizzle reels.
• AMA / expert interview — live or asynchronous Q&A with an industry expert or community leader.
• Metrics dashboard & postmortem — impressions, mentions, backlinks, referral traffic, and AI visibility.

Session-by-session plan (6–8 sessions)

Pre-work (1 week): brief + templates

Distribute a project brief, role descriptions, a scoring rubric, and templates for the one-sheet, press release, and pitch deck. Provide short primers on PESO, social search, and transmedia adaptation best practices — link to the Search Engine Land piece for context.

Session 1 — Team formation & IP selection (90 mins)

1. Teams form and declare roles (assign a project manager).
2. Conduct a 30-minute rapid IP audit: uniqueness, audience fit, rights status, and adaptation potential.
3. Deliverable: 1-paragraph IP pitch and hypothesis on audience discovery channels.

Session 2 — Audience & discoverability audit (90 mins)

Map where audiences currently form preferences: platforms, subreddits, hashtags, active communities, and relevant search queries. Use tools like Google Trends, TikTok Creative Center, Reddit search, and YouTube topic reports.

Deliverable: Audience map and 3 prioritized discoverability touchpoints.

Session 3 — Transmedia roadmap & one-sheet (90 mins)

Create a one-sheet that outlines the core IP, tone, adaptation targets, key assets (character bibles, story arcs), and three format hooks (e.g., limited series, graphic novel spin, interactive game). Use The Orangery-style thinking: think rights, modular assets, and brevity that agents like WME can scan in 10–30 seconds.

Deliverable: Transmedia one-sheet + visual moodboard.

Session 4 — Digital PR & PESO plan (90 mins)

Design a 4-week launch plan mixing owned content (blog, newsletter), earned outreach (press release, targeted pitches), shared/social (TikTok series, community AMAs), and paid amplification (boosts, influencer partnerships). Include brief templates and subject lines.

Deliverable: PR calendar and 5 outreach email templates.

Session 5 — Asset production sprint (2–3 hours or split across week)

Produce assets: 30–60 sec vertical video, 3 social posts, a 1-page press kit, and a 5-slide pitch deck. Emphasize repurposing: 1 interview = clips, quotes, transcript snippets, shorts.

Deliverable: Asset pack uploaded to shared drive.

Session 6 — AMA / Expert interview (90 mins)

Host a live AMA with an industry guest (agent, producer, transmedia creative) or run pre-recorded interviews. Prep students on question design and consent for use of quotes in PR.

“Authentic, community-sourced case studies and AMAs were the turning point for our discoverability,” — template quote students can adapt after permission.

Deliverable: Edited 8–10 minute AMA clip + transcript highlights.

Session 7 — Pitch rehearsal & metrics setup (90 mins)

Practice pitch delivery, set up Google Search Console, social analytics, and a simple mentions tracker (Awario, Talkwalker, or saved Twitter/TikTok streams). Define KPIs: domain mentions, backlinks, social share rate, average watch time, and presence in AI answers (tracked via sample prompts).

Deliverable: Live pitch rehearsal and analytics dashboard baseline.

Session 8 — Final pitch day + postmortem (2–3 hours)

Teams present to a panel (peers, faculty, invited industry mentor). Panel gives feedback and ratings across discovery strategy, creative quality, and pitch viability. Finish with a postmortem: what moved metrics, what didn’t, and next steps.

Deliverable: Final graded package and a short postmortem report.

Digital PR tactics that actually raise discoverability in 2026

Apply these tactics to get noticed where decisions are made — not just where people type queries.

• Social-first press hooks: Create shareable short-form hooks (15–30s) that surface in TikTok/YouTube feeds and are repackaged into press pitches with metrics.
• AI answer hygiene: Publish concise, authoritative Q&A pages and structured data so AI assistants can surface your IP summaries. Use clear headings and schema where appropriate.
• Community case studies: Gather micro-case studies from communities (fan art, mods, forum threads) and use them as earned content in pitches.
• Micro-influencer coalitions: Partner with niche creators whose audiences match your IP — offer co-created content, early access, or revenue shares for paid placements.
• Cross-platform canonicalization: Ensure your story’s canonical page (a landing page or wiki) links to all derivative assets; this reduces fragmentation and helps AI summarize correctly.
• Press + social bundles: Send press kits that include social clips, suggested headlines, and embeddable assets so journalists and creators can repurpose instantly.

Sample outreach email (earn media)

Use this as a template; personalize every line:

Subject: Exclusive: [IP Title] — short-form sci-fi with a built-in TikTok audience

Hi [Name],

I’m [Student Name] from [Mini-Agency]. We recently tested a short-form launch that reached [metric] impressions in 72 hours and spurred a community art thread of 120 posts. We think [IP Title] would interest your readers because [one-line hook].

I can share a 30-second clip, a one-sheet for adaptation potential, and exclusive access to our AMA with [expert]. Would you be open to a quick look?

Best,
[Name] • [Role] • [Agency]

Measuring discoverability — what to track

Set clear KPIs before launch. Here are metrics that matter in 2026:

• Top-of-funnel visibility: impressions, reach, views across platforms.
• Engagement signals: watch time, comments, saves, community creation (fanart, remixes).
• Earned media & backlinks: article mentions, podcast features, authoritative backlinks.
• Search & AI presence: organic clicks, featured snippets, presence in chatbot summaries (benchmarked with sample prompts).
• Conversion signals: mailing list sign-ups, pitch requests, agent interest or festival submissions.

Expert interviews, AMAs, and community case studies — how to source and verify

These components lend experience and authority to student work.

1. Recruitment: Ask alumni, local creatives, or use professional networks like LinkedIn and Stage32. Offer small honoraria or class credit.
2. Prep: Students submit 5 pre-questions; comp the guest a brief and a one-paragraph summary they can approve for publication.
3. Consent & IP: Use release forms permitting clips and quotes to be used in portfolios and press kits.
4. Verification: For community case studies, capture screenshots, timestamps, and archival links; ask creators for permission to republish.
5. Publishing: Turn AMAs into multiple assets: an edited clip for social, a long-form transcript for owned content, and a press-friendly quote sheet.

Grading rubric & real-world deliverables

Sample weighted rubric (100 points):

• IP selection & one-sheet clarity — 20
• Discoverability strategy & metrics design — 25
• Asset quality & repurposability — 20
• Pitch delivery & transmedia vision — 20
• Postmortem insights & next steps — 15

Real-world deliverables are what students will show employers and festivals: one-sheet, 5-slide pitch deck, press kit (PDF), social asset zip, analytics baseline and 30-day follow-up report, and a short showreel of the AMA.

Case study template: community-sourced evidence

Encourage teams to collect and present community-driven validation. Use this template:

1. Context: Describe the IP and the community (platform, approximate size).
2. Action: What did the team do? (e.g., hosted an art challenge, released a 30s clip.)
3. Outcome: Metrics (impressions, UGC created, backlinks) and qualitative feedback.
4. Lessons: What worked, what didn’t, and how this informs a pitch to agents or producers.

How to get an agent’s attention (WME-style thinking)

Agents and agencies see hundreds of one-sheets. To cut through in 2026, follow this checklist:

• Clear, scalable IP: One-sentence logline + three adaptation formats.
• Proof of discovery: Social metrics, press mentions, community actions, and a short proof-of-concept clip.
• Rights clarity: Who owns what? Be explicit about optioned/available rights.
• Professional package: One-sheet, 5-slide deck, and a 60–90 sec sizzle reel tailored for a fast scan.
• Personalized outreach: Reference a recent deal or interest (e.g., agents working with transmedia studios like The Orangery).

Common pitfalls and how to avoid them

• Fragmented assets: Keep a canonical landing page and link every asset to it.
• Vanity metrics: Prioritize meaningful engagement over raw views.
• No consent: Always secure release forms for expert quotes and UGC.
• No measurement plan: Define KPIs before launch and log baselines.

Tools & templates (practical list)

• Discovery & trends: Google Trends, TikTok Creative Center, Reddit search, YouTube Topics
• Monitoring & mentions: Awario, Brandwatch, CrowdTangle
• Publishing & assets: Canva, CapCut, Adobe Express, Descript
• Analytics: Google Search Console, YouTube Studio, TikTok Analytics, Buffer or Hootsuite
• Collaboration: Notion templates, Google Drive, Airtable for PR calendars

Future predictions — what students should prepare for in 2027

Expect the next phase of discoverability to be dominated by personalized AI assistants that summarize cross-platform signals and rank creators by credibility and community. That means the students who win are the ones who build verifiable authority now: documented community engagement, structured data, and modular IP that’s easy to adapt into multiple formats.

Final actionable checklist (do this this week)

1. Form teams and declare roles.
2. Choose one IP and write a 1-sentence logline + 1-paragraph pitch.
3. Make a 30–60 second vertical demo and post it to one platform as a test.
4. Book one industry AMA — alumni or local professional — and prepare 5 vetted questions.
5. Set up a simple mentions tracker and record baseline metrics.

Closing: why educators should run this workshop

This project teaches the practical marriage of storytelling, discoverability, and professional pitching. Students learn to think like mini-agencies: building measurable authority, documenting community proof, and packaging IP for adaptation. The approach mirrors how transmedia studios operate in 2026 — from audience-first discovery to representation deals, as shown by The Orangery’s recent rise — and gives students portfolio-ready outcomes that matter to agents, festivals, and employers.

Call to action

Ready to run this workshop in your class or community? Download the free instructor toolkit (one-sheet, PR templates, grading rubric, and analytics checklist) and join our educator AMA series to connect with industry mentors. Let’s turn classroom projects into discoverable, adaptable IP that gets noticed.

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