Assistant/Associate Director of Social Media

PRIMARY OBJECTIVE:

Develop and oversee the execution of strategic social media initiatives in support of institutional goals. Curate, monitor and analyze a comprehensive organic and paid social media strategy for university-wide social media channels consistent with the university’s overall positioning strategy and communications objectives.

ESSENTIAL JOB RESPONSIBILITIES:

Identifies, creates and curates daily social media content on all university-wide social media channels in support of Lawrence’s overall positioning strategy and consistent with Lawrence’s institutional voice.

Grow the volume of widely diverse followers from around the world and increase active engagement on all university-wide social media channels.

Monitor and respond to daily social media activity pertinent to Lawrence University in a social media-timely fashion.

Take sentiment temperature and report concerns occurring in the social conversation.

Engage in online dialogue with prospective students, current students of all backgrounds, parents, alumni, friends and others who follow and/or engage with Lawrence.

Serve as a customer service representative for the institution through social media channels as well as in person.

Create daily, weekly, monthly and/or year-long social media plans/strategies for the office of communications as well as various campus offices for specific social media campaigns (Alumni, Conservatory, Development, Athletics, etc.).

Plan and execute paid social media campaigns that supplement the college’s digital campaign strategy.

Analyze the impact of Lawrence’s social media efforts.

Review data on a regular basis to identify results, insights and trends to make informed decisions and plans.

Serve as a subject matter expert, resource and educator for various offices on campus to share social media news, best practices and policies.

Monitor and respond to campus emergencies as a member of the crisis communications team.

Participate in crisis response training and regular drills to assure readiness.

Take and edit photos, videos and simple graphics for use on social media accounts.

Be familiar with Photoshop, Premier and AfterEffects software.

The successful candidate will be willing to immerse themselves in the campus community to better reflect the Lawrence experience.

Perform other duties as assigned.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES REQUIRED:

Demonstrated proficiency working with major social media channels on a Mac platform including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, LinkedIn and YouTube.

Proficient knowledge of social media monitoring and analytics tools.

Desire and ability to learn the culture and social climate of the institution.

Excellent written and verbal communication skills including knowledge of AP Style and its appropriate use on social media channels.

Highly organized with exceptional attention to detail.

High level of social competence and ability to adapt to a variety of social situations both digitally and in person.

Demonstrated commitment to promoting diversity, inclusion and multi-cultural competence in an educational and work environment.

Self-motivated and goal-oriented – not needing direction to keep a social media channel operating with fresh content.

Able to work independently and as part of a team.

Able to independently exercise sound judgment, quick decision-making and effective problem solving skills.

Must be able to work a flexible schedule that includes evening and weekend work to maintain an active and thorough social media presence.

Strong interpersonal skills, a strong work ethic and a positive, upbeat and professional attitude.

Able to cohesively communicate social media terms, procedures, results and best practices to a variety of individuals with different levels of social media knowledge.

Demonstrated ability to perform well under pressure, particularly during crisis situations.

Bachelor’s degree in English, Public Relations, Communications, Marketing, Journalism or related field.

Familiarity with a higher education work environment preferred.

RELATIONSHIPS:

Maintain effective, respectful and collaborative relationships with the entire communications team, Lawrence staff, faculty, students, alumni and various social media followers/influencers worldwide.

Interact in a professional and productive manner with a diverse faculty, staff and student population in a fast-paced higher education environment.