Marketing Communications Manager

Job Title: Marketing Communications Manager

Division: Communications/Marketing
Status: Regular, Full Time, Exempt 
Pay:  $50,000 - $60,000 Annual Salary (DOQ)
Reports to: Director of Marketing & Communications
Benefits: Full Benefits eligible including health insurance, flex benefits, 10 paid holidays, vacation and sick leave accrual, access to JIA amenities and parking pass.
Retirement: State Employee Retirement System - GSEPS (Pension plus matching 401k)
Closing Date: 4 pm Thursday October 3, 2024,  *Note: This position is subject to close at any time once a satisfactory applicant pool has been identified.  Incomplete applications or applications without accompanying documents when required will not be considered.​
 

To Apply:  Fill out the application completely and attach your resume AND a cover letter.  Incomplete applications or applications without accompanying documents when required will not be considered.  Applicants are highly encouraged to include and communicate their relevant skills and experiences for this role. 

Jekyll Island is dedicated to maintaining the delicate balance between nature and humankind through conservation, education, and preservation. Surrounded by salt marshes, expansive oceanfront, and ancient maritime forests, it is situated within the chain of the Golden Isles, and just a few miles from St. Simons Island, Sea Island, and Brunswick. As a State Park, Jekyll Island is a coastal haven where nature and humans peacefully co-exist. 

Job Summary:
Under the supervision of the Director of Marketing & Communications, and in collaboration with the Jekyll Island Authority (JIA) leadership, the Marketing Communications Manager is responsible for building and maintaining a positive image for Jekyll Island by managing public relations and social media strategies and tactics that support overall brand positioning and messaging. The ideal candidate must be a team player, a solid communicator, able to formulate and recognize good ideas, and able to manage all aspects of implementation.  This role is not entry level, nor executive level and would likely be perfect for someone with experience in the industry but who is still looking to grow in their career. 

Duties/Responsibilities:

• Ensure consistent branding and on-target messaging throughout all external and internal communications.
• Craft and deliver targeted messages: research, write, and edit content to distribute via press releases, fact sheets, pitch letters, blog posts, and social media posts – choosing the best channel to reach the audience.
• Build strong, proactive relationships with local, regional, national, and trade media to help generate positive coverage and mitigate potentially negative coverage. Ensure follow-through with media for guaranteed placement.
• Collaborate with the Digital Content Manager to manage JIA social media communities including posting new, original content on a regular basis and cultivating community conversations.
• Oversee JIA influencer and media familiarization program, including identifying potential collaborators, managing relationships, content strategy, posts, as well as reporting and measurement.
• Serve as writer/editor for internal and external communications materials.
• Manage media monitoring, tracking, and distribution of relevant industry and company news coverage; generate internal reports and activities, as needed.
• Collaborate with internal teams to execute PR and social strategies to promote Jekyll Island amenities and events, including the Georgia Sea Turtle Center, Summer Waves Water Park, Shrimp & Grits Festival, Holly Jolly Jekyll, and more.
• Serve as part of the crisis communications team, including responsibility for the creation and distribution of community messages and emergency alerts.
• Perform regular analytics and analysis on social activity to provide reports on metrics and to ensure appropriate optimization tactics for successful performance. Experience with social media analytics and optimization
• Effectively manage customer relations by responding to consumers, managing online feedback and dialogues, and as needed escalating customer service issues, threats, patterns, and opportunities.
• Develop an editorial calendar based on strategic goals for Jekyll Island, with the ability to establish metrics, glean insights, and report results that achieve these marketing goals.
• Monitor trends (best practices, tools, applications, channels, design, and strategy) to continually recommend optimization and improvements.
• Work closely with outside agencies and vendors to ensure the completion of projects and services.
• Participate in the execution of major Jekyll Island events, such as Turtle Crawl and the Shrimp & Grits Festival.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in journalism, communications, or public relations required.
• Minimum of 4 years of work experience in both public relations and social media; experience in an agency and/or corporate marketing preferred.
• Strong experience in social analytics and paid social advertising as Facebook Business Manager required.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills and experience writing media materials and social posts are required.
• Exceptional collaboration and interpersonal skills.
• Ability to effectively manage multiple projects simultaneously and work well under tight deadlines.
• Experience organizing and managing media contacts.
• Strong organizational skills, detail-oriented.
• Self-starter who drives for results.
• Experience communicating in high-pressure and crisis situations.
• Possess a desire to tell stories in fresh, interesting, relevant ways.
• Ability to communicate with all levels and personalities of staff, vendors, media, and community members.
• Working knowledge of MS Office, WordPress, social platforms and management tools, and Google Analytics.
• This is an on-site position, must be able to work on Jekyll Island.
• Valid driver's license.
• Successful completion of background check required.

Physical Requirements/Working Conditions:

• Exert up to 35 pounds of force occasionally and a negligible amount of force constantly to move objects.
• More than 50% of the typical workday will be spent sitting, however, certain periods will require more than 50% of the day spent walking and standing.
• Less than 25% of the day is generally spent stooping; bending the body downward and forward at the waist, and crouching; bending the body downward and forward by bending the leg and spine. Certain periods will require more than 25% of the day stooping and crouching.
• Must have visual clarity for both close-range works such as computer use and reading and distance such as operating motor vehicles and determining the accuracy, neatness, and thoroughness of work assigned.
• Sensory abilities required include vision, touching, and feeling with more than 50% of the day spent communicating including talking and hearing.
• Required to perform work both inside and outside.  Exposure to extreme heat, high humidity, and occasionally adverse weather conditions as well as occasional extreme cold.
• May be exposed to hazards such as moving vehicles.
• Noise levels are considered normal to loud and will be subjected to loud, above the ambient noise level.

This description of job responsibilities is intended to reflect the major responsibilities and duties of the job but is not intended to describe minor duties or other responsibilities as may be assigned from time to time.
 
This position is subject to close at any time once a satisfactory applicant pool has been identified.  Applicants who complete the online application process will receive an email receipt of submission to the email address provided.  If the email confirmation is not received, the applicant may contact Human Resources at 912-635-4081 for confirmation, however, due to the volume of applicants received, we are unable to provide information on application status after receipt.  Applicants who need assistance to accommodate a disability may request an accommodation by contacting Human Resources at 912-635-4081. 
 
All qualified applicants will be considered but may not necessarily receive an interview. Incomplete applications or applications without accompanying documents when required will not be considered.  Selected applicants will be contacted for the next steps in the selection process. Successful completion of background checks is required including credit when applicable to the position.  Relocation expenses are not authorized, applicants should consider this when applying.  
 
Jekyll Island Authority is an Equal Opportunity Employer. The Authority supports equal employment opportunities for all persons without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, veteran status, or any other status protected by law.  Drug-free workplace.