Marketing and Communications Specialist II

Job no: 541003
Work type: Staff Full-Time
Location: Main Campus (Gainesville, FL)
Categories: Communications/Public Relations/Marketing, Office/Administrative/Fiscal Support, Veterinary Medicine/Animal Care
Department: 28011502 - VM-PR

Marketing and Communications Specialist II

Bachelor’s degree and four years of relevant experience; or an Associate’s degree and six years of relevant experience; or an equivalent combination of education and experience.

Reporting and Writing

• Produces news and feature stories for a variety of print and electronic publications, including the College of Veterinary Medicine’s alumni magazine, Florida Veterinarian, UF Health magazine and the college’s website. Builds strong working relationships with faculty, staff, students and trainees to identify compelling stories and stay informed about college initiatives, achievements and priorities. Covers various special events, such as gift announcements, awards presentations, student events and collegewide events. Develops content using a variety of storytelling formats, including written articles, news releases, blogs, newsletters, photography, video and social media. Must be well-versed in Associated Press style. Works closely with editors to review assignments, story drafts and ideas for upcoming work assignments. Complies with editing, review, news distribution and identity/branding policies of UF Health Communications and the university.

Web and Social Media Communications

• Serves as the primary social media manager for the college’s flagship social media channels, overseeing the social media editorial calendar and developing content and campaigns that help achieve strategic goals. Co-manages a number of College of Veterinary Medicine webpages to ensure they meet high standards for quality, efficiency, design and content. Develops and executes a comprehensive social media strategy aligned with the college’s strategic goals, vision and brand. Identifies trends, audience behaviors and competitive insights to drive innovation, growth and engagement. Monitors various social media accounts, creates a regular content publishing schedule, tracks and evaluates progress of projects, identifies opportunities for process improvement, monitors trends and advises on new approaches for web and social media communications. Conducts regular website audits to identify and address technical issues, broken links, outdated content and opportunities for optimization. Uses data-informed recommendations to improve user experience, web performance and search engine optimization. Captures photo and video for multimedia communications needs. Collaborates with marketing, admissions, development and academic leadership to ensure consistent messaging across digital platforms and adherence to university branding and accessibility standards.

Analytics and Strategy

• Collaborates with leadership and stakeholders in the development of marketing and communications materials, tailoring recommendations and advising on best practices and strategy based on relevant and thorough research. Crafts digital campaigns and content based on strategic goals and organizational objectives, including but not limited to reputation management and recruitment, and efforts to reach target audiences. Stays current on local, regional and national trends that may impact the college’s digital communications to inform decisions. Monitors, analyzes and reports on social media, website and digital campaign performance using relevant analytics tools. Uses data to identify opportunities for improvement, optimize content and campaigns and evaluate return on investment. Develops methods for evaluating efficacy of digital communications, analyzing data to inform and contribute to the optimization of communication strategies across multiple platforms and audiences. Maintains awareness of evolving digital platforms, algorithms, communication technologies and industry best practices to ensure the college remains competitive and innovative in the digital space.

Other

• Builds relationships with college administrators, support staff and students and trainees to scout for stories keep informed of college activities and advise on best practices. Serves as a communications liaison for college programs and initiatives, helping stakeholders identify communications objectives, opportunities and solutions. Coordinates dissemination and production of communications materials, including facilitating creative services such as graphic design, photography and videography, and managing review and approval processes. Other duties as assigned.

Commensurate with education, skills, and experience

Bachelor’s degree and four years of relevant experience; or an Associate’s degree and six years of relevant experience; or an equivalent combination of education and experience.

Valid Driver's License

a. Strong reporting and writing skills, with journalism training
b. Experience producing multimedia content, including photography, video and social media storytelling.
c. Knowledge of SEO and expertise in social media execution and management tools
d. Ability to meet deadlines and handle multiple tasks
e. Proficiency with Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, WordPress, other content management systems
f. Superior spelling, punctuation and grammatical skills; proficient in Associated Press style
g. The ability to plan, organize and coordinate work assignments independently
h. Creative thinking and emotional intelligence
i. Demonstrated ability to work as part of a team toward organizational objectives
j. Experience communicating complex scientific, research, health care or academic topics to broad audiences
k. Demonstrated ability to analyze performance data and translate insights into actionable communications strategies

In order to be considered, you must upload the following: cover letter; resume; and work samples, including two writing samples and at least two examples of social media content or graphic visuals.

Application must be submitted by 11:55 p.m. (ET) of the posting end date.

This is a time-limited position.