Community Engagement Producer

Description

Community Engagement Producer - Columbia

The Post and Courier, South Carolina's premier news source, is seeking a Community Engagement Producer with a journalism background to drive the execution of innovative audience engagement strategies aimed at increasing brand awareness and developing creative tactics to build lasting relationships within the communities we serve.

This position is part of a special project funded by the Knight Foundation aimed at growing our reach and building a stronger subscriber base in two key Post and Courier markets — Columbia, the state capital, and Myrtle Beach, a coastal city known nationally for its beaches and tourism industry. The Community Engagement Producer will be key to the success of this special project.

The emphasis for this role will be working alongside reporters and editors as a strategic partner, coaching them on how to implement effective audience engagement strategies on our website, mobile app, social media platforms and across major search engines. They will seek new opportunities for us to reach readers on established and emerging digital platforms and develop partnerships in our market that will help us expand the reach and awareness of our brand.

The community engagement producer will also offer in-the-moment guidance on story ideas, headlines, SEO and social share text. They will be responsible for scheduling social media posts, sending breaking news alerts, managing homepages and section fronts and optimizing our daily newsletters.

The community engagement producer should have experience managing social media accounts for news organizations, strong writing and communication skills, and an ability to think on their feet in a fast-paced environment. Experience working remotely across multiple newsrooms is a plus.

Successful candidates will possess a spirit of collaboration and an enthusiasm for coaching. A willingness to experiment across new and emerging platforms is a must, including TikTok, Instagram Reels and Threads. They will also have a solid grasp of data analytics and be able to communicate takeaways and actionable guidance to the editors and reporters they work with.

This position is in-person, based in our newsroom in Columbia, South Carolina.

The Post and Courier, a Pulitzer Prize winning newspaper, values in-depth storytelling, innovative reporting approaches and a commitment to accountability. Based in Charleston, we have expanded throughout the state with reporters and newsrooms in Columbia, Florence, Greenville, Hilton Head, Myrtle Beach, Rock Hill and Spartanburg. While most in the news industry face significant headwinds, The Post and Courier is growing.

Responsibilities

• Engage with our audiences online and during in-person events, including AMAs, social media takeovers, and more.
• Lead innovative tactics across social media platforms, including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and TikTok, in an effort to engage these audiences and develop loyal readers.
• Work closely with the Local Editor in Columbia, the Managing Editor for Expansion Markets and the Audience Team to establish relationships with community stakeholders whose audiences are similarly served by The Post and Courier
• Coach reporters and editors on audience best practices, including SEO, headlines and story formats.
• Use analytics to make real-time digital decisions, such as sending a push notification for a story that is being widely read. 
• Curate our hand-designed homepage, with guidance from analytics, news leadership and your own news judgment. 
• Collaborate across the audience team to execute experiments and share subject matter expertise.
• Assist reporters with video, social and engagement strategies.

Qualifications

Knowledge, skills and abilities

• Strong journalism skills and experience in a newsroom environment.

• Experience understanding and communicating analytics to guide decisions, using platforms such as Google Analytics and Marfeel.
• Knowledge of SEO best practices.

• Experience with social media and an understanding of how different types of content excel on different platforms.

• Ability to multi-task and quickly troubleshoot.

• Strong writing and sharp editing skills.

• A passion for local, state and national news, and a strong awareness of the newsworthiness of a given topic.

• Ability to work flexible hours including early mornings, days, nights and weekends as needed.

Requirements, minimum education level and experience

• Bachelor's degree in journalism, communications, marketing or related field.

• At least 3 years of demonstrated journalism experience.

• Strong communication and interpersonal skills.

• Strong organization and prioritization skills with excellent follow through.