Posting Details

Position Information

Position Title Communications Consultant 3
Working Title Content Strategist
Location Olympia
EEO Statement All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, genetic information, disability, or veteran status.
Union Represented Yes
Overtime Eligible Yes
Monthly FTE 1.0
Salary Step (minimum monthly amount) $3,664.00
Salary Step (maximum monthly amount) $4,929.00
Cyclic Position No
Cyclic Details n/a
End Date n/a
Special Note This is a full-time, overtime-eligible position on the Olympia campus of The Evergreen State College.
Position Purpose The Content Strategist is responsible for developing, managing, and measuring an institution wide content strategy in support of recruitment (for enrollment and employment purposes), marketing, fund raising, branding, awareness, and community outreach activities. The Content Strategist will plan for the creation, delivery, promotion, management, and governance of content that is read, seen, or heard, with a focus on content in the context of Evergreen’s brand identity. This position will:
• Engage in audience research and channel research.
• Organize and leverage content.
• Integrate the Evergreen brand into new or existing content.
• Identify new content opportunities.
• Ensure content is clear, consistent, concise, relevant, and useful to users.
• Align content with the college’s strategic goals.
• Optimize content for each medium.
Nature and Scope The Content Strategist is a specialist in the area of communications strategy and has a high level of knowledge, confidence, and familiarity with tools that track and drive the concept, design, creation, maintenance, archiving, and disposal of content. This position reports to the Director of Integrated Marketing and Web Technologies and is a member of the Office of Marketing and Communications. The Content Strategist will work collaboratively with the Director of Integrated Marketing and Web Technologies and other Office of Marketing and Communications staff to plan, execute, and evaluate content strategies which support the user experience. The position provides guidance to campus content contributors across all media.
Essential Functions Audit and Analysis
• Distill the college’s vision, mission, strategic plan, and marketing plan into objectives and actions for content strategy.
• Collect, analyze, and interpret data and survey results, including audience and channel research, to develop a deep understanding of the college’s audiences; develop communication strategies and organize and structure content based on those findings.
• Analyze admissions and outreach content to ensure it is competitive with benchmark schools and in alignment with audience expectations, the college’s marketing vision, and industry best practices.
• Connect with college programs, services, and departments to understand their role in content creation, and analyze how that content is currently being used and leveraged.
• Identify and fact-check existing content, analyze for appropriate tone and voice, identify gaps, determine appropriate presentation hierarchy of content, and initiate the process of getting missing content into production.
• Assess and improve current content and content development and distribution workflows.
• Integrate and utilize metrics to inform more effective communication.
• Discover and assess current and emerging content strategy techniques, best practices, and user needs.

Strategy and Planning
• In collaboration with the Director of Integrated Marketing and Web Technologies and the Office of Marketing and Communications, develop and implement an overall content strategy influenced by audience and channel research as well as the college’s vision, mission, strategic plan and marketing plan.
• Work collaboratively to shape and implement Evergreen’s brand strategy, social media strategy, web strategy, advertising and public relations strategy, and The Evergreen Magazine strategy.
• Participate in shaping and implementing editorial calendars for college publications and social media sites.
• Provide guidance on the college’s student recruitment messaging strategy to optimize support and engage prospective students (and their influencers) during their college choice journey.
• Provide guidance to departments, programs, and services college-wide create, connect, and distribute content; suggest creative opportunities to improve content and the user experience.
• Work with creative and/or project teams to establish or convey content requirements.
• Develop and document editorial and content governance procedures.
• With colleagues in the Office of Marketing and Communications, update and maintain the college’s editorial style guide with recommendations for editorial tone, style, and voice of all written content.
• Work with the Office of Marketing and Communications staff and internal clients to time the enhancement or retirement of legacy content.
• Provide input on information architecture, navigation structure, and design of the college’s website; participate in efforts to improve search engine optimization.
• Keep abreast of emerging styles and distribution channels for text, video, and photo content, and suggest adoption and integration when appropriate.
• Identify and champion content that is meaningful to primary audiences.

Creation
• Develop best practices for creating high-quality, accessible content.
• Create or suggest tools and systems for curating and accessing content.
• Write and edit compelling new content; streamline and standardize existing content.
• Formulate audience personas, focusing on their attributes, demographics, psychographics, habits, wants, needs, related affinities, and user story.
• Define content success criteria.

Maintenance
• Train others on content strategy best practices.
• Retire old content when necessary.
• Follow up with and assist others who are not yet following best practices for content strategy, readability and/or accessibility.
• Research industry trends in content strategy; attend conferences and share lessons learned and best practices with the Office of Marketing and Communications.
Additional Duties • Provide regular status updates to the Director of Integrated Marketing and Web Technologies.
• Perform work as requested or assigned by the Director.
• Attend meetings, conferences, and events on behalf of the Office of Marketing and Communications.
Knowledge Skills and Abilities • Ability to understand, synthesize, and convey institutional messages to diverse audiences and campus constituents.
• Ability to translate, condense, and synthesize ideas into actionable projects.
• Ability to define and leverage social media opportunities, integration, and content strategy.
• Advanced skill in improving the digital user experience.
• Ability to partner across departments to develop appropriate content for key audiences, including prospective students, current students, staff, faculty, community, donors, legislators, and alumni.
• Understanding of user experience principles and methods of aligning user information with communication design.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and prominent social media platforms (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn), including the ability to understand technology strengths, limitations, and logistics.
• Thorough understanding of the tools and resources available for measuring communication and campaign success and ROI, and ability to recommend strategies for tracking and assessing results.
• Superior writing, editing, and proofreading skills; in-depth knowledge of contemporary grammar usage and experience following a style guide.
• Understanding of major forms of content production, distribution, and connection.
• Strong creative problem solving skills.
• Ability to connect content to business results.
• Strong interpersonal and facilitation skills, including the ability to establish and maintain collaborative working relationships and communicate effectively.
• Ability to work effectively with diverse individuals and groups including students, staff, faculty, and the public.
• Ability to write in multiple voices and adapt writing style as necessary.
• Basic knowledge of typography and design aesthetics.
• Effectiveness at time management, assessing priorities, delegation, and project management.
• Ability to work independently and within cross-functional teams that may include writers, editors, designers, photographers, programmers, developers, internal clients, and project managers.
• Ability and inclination to learn new skills, concepts, and technology such as emerging social media platforms
• Strong work ethic, excellent time management skills, and a high attention to detail.
• Ability to focus and work well under pressure during tight deadlines with humor, tact, and professionalism.
• Ability to accept detailed feedback and critique with grace and professionalism.
• Strong analytical skills with an excellent ability to collect, analyze, and interpret a variety of data.
• Ability to effectively research and become rapidly familiar with changing or new content strategies or tactics and integrate new approaches into existing methods.
• Ability to take direction and turn it into actionable, measurable, scalable project plans.
• Ability to work in an open office environment with frequent interruptions.
Minimum Qualifications
Desired Qualifications • Bachelor’s degree in writing, marketing, communications, or related field.
• Two years of experience in content strategy, content architecture, marketing information sciences, or related field, preferably in a higher education, advertising agency, or non-profit setting.
• Experience with several of the following: print production, user experience design, traffic analysis, web content management systems, social media, search engine optimization, email marketing, and user research.
• Experience integrating social media use into advertising, promotional, or content strategy.
Conditions of Employment • Must provide proof of identity and employment eligibility within three days of beginning work.
• This position is assigned to part of the college that is covered by a union shop provision and a collective bargaining agreement. Employees are required to pay an amount equal to the fees or dues required to be a member of the union to the Washington Federation of State Employees within thirty days of their date of hire.
• Must pass a pre-employment background check.
Benefits A full state benefits package which includes: paid sick and vacation leave; paid campus holidays; a generous medical, dental, life and disability insurance package for employees and dependents; retirement; deferred compensation and optional supplemental retirement accounts. For more information about Evergreen’s excellent employee benefits, please view http://www.evergreen.edu/payroll/benefits.htm

Posting Detail Information

Posting Number S2017-049
Number of Vacancies 1
Open Date 08/07/2017
Review Begins Date
Close Date 08/28/2017
Special Instructions to Applicants

Supplemental Questions

Required fields are indicated with an asterisk (*).

  1. * Knowledge, Skill, and Ability #1: Describe your ability to partner across departments to develop appropriate content for key audiences, including prospective students, current students, staff, faculty, community, donors, legislators, and alumni.(Open Ended Question)
  2. * Knowledge, Skill, and Ability #2: Describe your thorough understanding of the tools and resources available for measuring communication and campaign success and ROI, and ability to recommend strategies for tracking and assessing results.(Open Ended Question)
  3. * Knowledge, Skill, and Ability #3: Describe your strong interpersonal and facilitation skills, including the ability to establish and maintain collaborative working relationships and communicate effectively.(Open Ended Question)
  4. * Knowledge, Skill, and Ability #4: Describe your strong analytical skills with an excellent ability to collect, analyze, and interpret a variety of data.(Open Ended Question)
  5. * Desired Qualification #1: Do you have a Bachelor’s degree in writing, marketing, communications, or related field?
    • Yes
    • No
  6. * Desired Qualification #2: Describe how you meet this qualification: two years of experience in content strategy, content architecture, marketing information sciences, or related field, preferably in a higher education, advertising agency, or non-profit setting.(Open Ended Question)
  7. * Desired Qualification #3: Describe how you meet this qualification: experience with several of the following: print production, user experience design, traffic analysis, web content management systems, social media, search engine optimization, email marketing, and user research.(Open Ended Question)
  8. * Desired Qualification #4: Describe how you meet this qualification: experience integrating social media use into advertising, promotional, or content strategy.(Open Ended Question)

Documents Needed To Apply

Required Documents

  1. Cover Letter
  2. Resume

Optional Documents