Marketing and Media Relations Strategist

**Job Summary**:
The position supports the Faculty of Forestry’s overall marketing and communications needs with a noted focus on digital marketing and media requirements under the Dean’s Office. Reporting to the Associate Director of Communications and Marketing, the Strategist is integral to building awareness and demand for Faculty programs, research, development, and other initiatives. While also ensuring the consistency of branding and messaging across platforms.

The University of British Columbia’s (UBC) Faculty of Forestry is recognized globally as one of the leading forestry faculties in the world. Today the Faculty embodies a comprehensive offering of undergraduate and graduate programs that cover a breadth of disciplines, including wood products science, natural resources conservation, forest sciences, urban forestry and forest resources management. Our programs model the broad spectrum of topics that relate to forests’ interplay between our environment and all those who live on our planet.

**Organizational Status**:
This position reports to the Associate Director of Communications and Marketing.

**Work Performed**:
The role supports the marketing and communications oversight for the Faculty of Forestry’s Development and Alumni Engagement team, Student Services, Graduate Services, the Dean’s Office, Communications and Marketing and faculty members/labs as required. This includes:

- Develops and implements marketing and communication plans; advises on the most appropriate communication tools to reach a varied audience, including websites and social media, podcasts, videos, digital signage, and media designed to increase awareness of and engagement in Forestry initiatives.
- Develops and implements marcom projects including advertising, online publications, events, media engagement and digital campaigns, and internal newsletters.
- Plans and implements student recruiting initiatives, developing digital campaigns and media toolkits for the Faculty’s undergraduate, professional masters, and micro-certificate programs.
- Provides design oversight for digital marketing materials, such as web page design and content creation, social slides, digital signage, presentations, infographics and the coordination of review processes.
- Leads the development and execution of strategic media relations and communication plans to effectively reach a diverse audience through various channels.
- Conceptualize media objectives and craft targeted strategies to secure high-profile media coverage for faculty, departments, and community engagement initiatives.
- Ensures content on the Faculty of Forestry website is current/relevant and aligned with initiatives relating to marketing and communications objectives.
- Responsible for copyediting, proofreading, and collecting content and assets for feature articles, web posts, announcements, researcher profiles, social media, newsletters and media releases as required.
- Liaises with faculty, students, campus communicators and other staff, department heads and deans to solicit story ideas.
- Supports media needs of Forestry departments, research forests, and Haida Gwaii Institute, including liaising with campus and local media as required. Pitching story ideas to news media.
- Builds out social media and paid digital campaigns to promote programs, research, events, awards and initiatives.
- Represents the Faculty in community management on all digital channels to build and grow trust and relationships with target audiences by listening, moderating and interacting. Supports issues management as needed.
- Manages the Social Media Amplification budget to boost relevant digital content. Manages budgets and payments for in-house paid digital campaigns.
- The ability to perform video editing is an asset.
- Tracks metrics related to media coverage, digital channels, campaigns and web performance to ensure data-driven improvements.
- Provides expertise and industry best practices in digital marketing, content marketing, advertising and media. Provides supervision of junior and student staff.

**Consequence of Error/Judgement**:
Must exercise tact and diplomacy when dealing with faculty, staff, suppliers, students, and alumni. May need to balance multiple projects with competing deadlines and make decisions on how best to manage the work given, based on the timeframe, the relative strategic importance of the projects and the impact of failing to meet deadlines. The quality of the digital and media assets developed and managed has a profound influence on the public’s opinion of the Faculty of Forestry. The production and distribution of inaccurate, inconsistent or ineffective information could have a significant detrimental effect on the Faculty’s ability to compete for research funding, reputation with alumni, to attract and steward donors, and the Faculty’s ability to attract the best graduate and undergraduate students possible.

**Supervision Received**:
Works