Director of Marketing
Barter Theatre seeks a visionary Director of Marketing & Communications to oversee marketing efforts in audience and donor development. Reporting to the Managing Director, the Director of Marketing & Communications is a vital member of Barter’s core leadership team and is responsible for crafting an effective brand for the company, engaging and growing audiences, generating earned revenue from ticket sales, and deepening our relationships with our donor base. The successful candidate will be comfortable in a highly collaborative and data-driven environment. They will motivate and coach the marketing and communications team as we connect our patrons and donors with a full season of 12 productions in two theatres, youth programming, and numerous one-off events.
Role and Responsibilities
Institutional Marketing and Communications
- Create an institutional and program marketing strategy to articulate and enhance brand identity, programmatic efforts, ticket sales, and the impact of Barter Theatre in the community to generate $5 million in annual earned revenue.
- Lead the institution’s brand, voice, and reputation through strategic public relations, surveying, distribution of news, announcements, social media posts, and marketing campaigns.
- Serve as the media spokesperson, including crisis management, and develop rapport with members of media agencies for radio, TV, digital publications, podcasts and other channel exposure, providing timely responses to requests, and generating consistent local, regional, and national media interest.
- Develop key messages for all of Barter’s external marketing communications providing copywriting and content development for website and digital communications, including targeted email marketing, video production, and social media.
- Support marketing and communication efforts across the organization, including the marketing and communications for advancement, education, rentals, and community partnership needs.
Earned Revenue Maximization
- Create strategies to optimize decision-making on programs, schedules, and venues to ensure effective allocation of resources for maximized earned income.
- Direct the implementation of integrated marketing and sales campaigns to support subscription, single ticket, and group sales goals through traditional tactics as well as contemporary channels of demand-based ticket sales, digital media, direct response, and out-of-home advertising.
- Oversee creation of collateral for programmatic marketing and institutional branding and collaborate with the Advancement, Education, Sales and Services, and Community Engagement teams on the creation of collateral for their departments, ensuring maximum revenue generation and a unified voice and look for the organization cross-departmentally.
Financial Accountability and Data Analytics
- Regularly monitor sales, forecast revenue, and provide analysis of season and single ticket sales throughout the season.
- Collaborate to develop annual income goals for earned revenue and create/manage expense budgets for all campaigns, institutional marketing, and other related expenses.
- Conduct and analyze audience and market research to assess audience satisfaction, understand demographic and psychographic profiles, and hone tactics for increasing audience size and market footprint.
- Establish standardized reporting metrics to provide business intelligence regarding direct response rates and website data analytics.
- Fully utilize the Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system (Tessitura) ensuring the data integrity of subscription, ticket, and group sales information and supporting appropriate data hygiene and records management.
Team Leadership and Administration
- Create a productive and positive work environment for the marketing and communications team.
- Empower the marketing and communications team to better represent the communities that Barter serves.
- Manage the performance of the marketing and communications team by providing thorough and thoughtful performance appraisals and feedback.
- Oversee relationships and drive goals with contract and consulting vendors including public relations, web development, and digital marketing.
- Establish and maintain productive and collaborative working relationships with Barter staff and board members.
- Inspire a results-driven environment by sharing research and results, revenue and expense projections, and other marketing updates with the marketing team, Core Leadership Team, and Board committees as required.
Qualifications
- Minimum five (5) years of successful marketing, branding, and public relations experience including at least two (2) years in a leadership position.
- Proven ability to create high-level marketing strategies that maximize earned revenue streams while supporting customer service initiatives.
- Acknowledged ability to lead and champion a successful team, encouraging individual goals and innovation in service of the overall departmental and organizational goals.
- Demonstrated knowledge and experience working with diverse audiences and cross sector marketing and digital engagement that results in the broadening of the theatre audiences.
- Outstanding verbal, writing, editing, and presentation skills with demonstrated proficiency in writing.
- A true collaborator who can be a thought leader, advisor , and a leading voice as part of the core leadership team.
- Experience in performing arts is preferred.
- Experience with Tessitura or other ticketing databases is highly desirable.
- Knowledge of website development, user experience, and marketing automation are helpful.
Please direct inquiries to Ross Egan, Managing Director
Barter Theatre, PO Box 867 Abingdon, VA 24212 or regan@bartertheatre.com.
