Website Gulf Shores & Orange Beach Tourism
ALABAMA GULF COAST CONVENTION AND VISITORS’ BUREAU
Gulf Shores, Alabama
TITLE: Job Description – Manager of Advertising
SUPERVISES: Marketing Specialist, external advertising agencies, and advertising vendors.
REPORTS TO: Vice President of Marketing
OBJECTIVE:
Overall: Works with VP Marketing to discover and communicate marketing and advertising insights that assist team members with strategic program conception, implementation, and continuous results improvement.
Advertising: Oversees advertising budgeting, media placement, and implementation across Leisure, Meetings, Sports and Events, and specialty and niche audiences and seasonal efforts. Reports results for all funded activities.
QUALIFICATIONS:
1. College degree or equivalent experience required in either Marketing, Internet Marketing, or Digital Advertising.
2. Minimum 4-6 years of advertising and media purchasing negotiation experience and results tracking, preferably with a destination marketing organization, an advertising agency, or media placement firm.
3. Desirable to have experience in the interpretation of advertising, internet, and social results. Google Analytics Certification and KPI definition a strong plus. Able to multi-task and manage competing priorities.
4. Has working knowledge of Microsoft Office Suite, Adobe, developed expertise in PowerPoint and Excel along with other industry analytical tool sets.
5. Excellent written, verbal, and presentation skills.
ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:
1. Ability to manipulate data, perform operational tasks and operate office equipment.
2. Ability to be organized, analyze data with advanced Excel and strategy skills to influence marketing and sales plans.
3. Use time management, and clearly communicate both in person, in writing and/or by telephone. Transform advertising data into a digestible and presentable story.
4. Ability to lift 35 pounds.
5. Have dependable transportation and a current driver’s license.
6. Flexibility to fulfill responsibilities on evenings, weekends. Some travel required.
RESPONSIBILITIES:
% Time
Devoted Duties
ADVERTISING STRATEGY & PLACEMENT:
40% Strategic member of annual marketing and budget planning process with responsibility for collaborating on marketing, creative and internet strategies to: Develops annual advertising budget and ad placement schedule for each client group. Oversees implementation provided by Marketing Specialist, working with internal Communications resources and our appointed agencies and partners to deliver ads and content. Suggests campaign improvements, as necessary. Makes real-time campaign optimizations, reports post campaign performance with a focus on takeaways, and future campaign optimization. Uses available analytics and reporting to impact continuous improvement in our advertising strategies and audience/asset targeting.
Oversees annual RFP process for Leisure, Meetings, Sports Commission, Special Events advertising, and promotion and for traditional and digital Industry Partner advertising co-op programs. Supervises and assists Marketing Specialist with implementation steps for setting up analytics (UTM codes, tagging, look-alike audiences, etc.) and channel tracking.
15% Serves as Communications department lead for special events coordination and ad planning for
internal and approved external client group events (NCAA Beach Volleyball; destination
impactful events, e.g., Shrimp Festival; OB Arts Festival; etc.). Serves as Communications lead
planner for CVB events (Marketing SquareTable; annual Tourism Summit sponsors sales; etc.).
10% Participate as available to maintain currency on 3Q SEO activity, website conversion optimization
and reviews, Infutor/RUF custom segmentation applications and any IP sector ad and co-op ad
tracking and reporting efforts.
OTHER:
10% Provides financial and operational input and advertising budget tracking for annual Communications, Marketing, Meetings, Sports & Events areas.
5% Regularly reports on activities to VP Marketing; strategizes against inter-dependencies to plan and manage efforts effectively. Demonstrates an understanding of how to use strategies and data to solve business questions and drive effective business solutions.
5% Serves as meeting planner, with assistance of Marketing Specialist, for Industry Partner meetings: Marketing Square Table meetings (2-3x per year) and Annual Tourism Summit.
5% Pursues professional development activities to update, grow and mature personal skill
sets as well as for direct reports. Attends user summits for Southeast Tourism Society
Connections. Alabama Governor’s Conference on Tourism, Destinations International or
ESTO as needed or as requested by VP Marketing.
5% Participates in regular departmental meetings, client service meetings and agency project or vendor partner meetings, lending expertise to planned efforts.
5% Serves on Emergency Crisis Communications Team overseeing deployment and review
of crisis plan, as assigned. In the event of an occurrence or an anticipated occurrence that
produces a mandatory evacuation order for the CVB tax district, employee is responsible
for physically reporting to a location designated by the President/CEO within 48 hours of
the time of the occurrence.
100%
EVALUATION:
Three months after hire (introductory period), then annually. [Reserve right to extend introductory period if needed to carry out full training and exposure on all duties.]
NOTE: During the introductory period, the manager is expected to work their regular Monday through Friday schedule at the CVB office. Following the successful completion of their introductory period, the manager may elect to work a hybrid schedule which would require a minimum of three days worked in the CVB office each week and the remaining days may be worked remotely. The employee’s remote work location is subject to inspection by and the approval of the CVB as an acceptable work location.
Holds bi-weekly status update meetings (including a written status report) with VP Marketing to assess progress against projects and plans.
All departmental touch points will be asked for input annually on the relationship management of their
business with the CVB Communications Department by the incumbent in this position.