Director of Marketing

The Association of American Colleges and Universities (AAC&U), the leading national higher education organization committed to advancing the vitality and public standing of liberal education by making quality and equity the foundations for excellence in undergraduate education in service to democracy, seeks a Director of Marketing.

The Director of Marketing will report to the Vice President of the Office of Communication and Public Affairs (OCPA). The Director of Marketing plans, implements, executes, and assesses comprehensive marketing strategies to promote Association events, programs, products, and services. A key part of this role involves planning and writing marketing copy. The Director of Marketing also closely collaborates with the membership team on member recruitment and retention campaigns and the meetings team on event marketing campaigns.

General Responsibilities

• In collaboration with the Meetings and Program Offices, develop and implement marketing plans that employ appropriate assets to promote Association events, programs, products, and services.
• Plan and write compelling marketing copy for use in email marketing and other formats that is on brand and on message, that effectively targets multiple audiences, and that leads to conversions.
• Create and schedule all email blasts sent from Association accounts; execute marketing automation campaigns based on segmentation, user behavior, or customer data.
• Collaborate with the Director of Membership on the development and implementation of marketing campaigns and related materials to support member recruitment and retention strategies.
• Conduct market research to inform marketing efforts; apply social listening to identify potential engagement opportunities and map marketing content to trending issues in higher education.
• Develop and report on key performance indicators related to marketing activities; ensure social media marketing strategy and content marketing cohere with the association’s broader social media strategy.
• Build brand awareness and enforce brand guidelines.
• Collaborate with IT and other association staff to ensure that content presented on association’s website is on brand, up to date, and accurate.
• Advise the Director of Sponsorship on the negotiation of trade agreements and manage the implementation of marketing activities related to or derived from the agreements.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Qualifications

• 6+ years of relevant work experience, preferably at a membership association, higher education institution, or nonprofit organization
• Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field (i.e., marketing, communications, business, or related field); Master’s degree preferred
• Outstanding writing, grammar, and proofreading skills; ability to plan and write successful marketing copy
• Ability to distill succinct messaging from complex ideas, to convey points persuasively, to adapt writing for different purposes, and to craft compelling copy with appeal for various audiences
• Ability to translate short- and long-term goals into actionable marketing activities that make coordinated use of both traditional and digital marketing channels
• Strong project management skills, attention to detail, and ability to manage multiple projects, timelines, and stakeholder relationships effectively
• Strong understanding of existing and emerging inbound marketing approaches, social media platforms, and search engine optimization
• Demonstrated understanding of the nature of email marketing and ability to develop a strategy to effectively communicate with email contacts
• Strong interpersonal and cross-functional communication skills
• Interest in, and knowledge of, higher education and its contemporary issues is a plus

Salary commensurate with experience; plus, exceptional benefits. Please submit a résumé, a cover letter describing relevant experience and salary requirements to: AAC&U, Box OCPA, 1818 R Street, NW, Washington, DC 20009 or to recruit@aacu.org. Review of applications will begin on August 13, 2021.

AAC&U believes that a broadly diverse staff is critical to achieving excellence as a national higher education association. We seek to recruit, develop, and retain the most talented people from a diverse candidate pool. We are fully committed to equal employment opportunity and compliance with the full range of fair employment practices and non-discrimination laws.