Join Our Crew

Overview

North Star Marketing works extensively with schools across the country (private, independent, faith-based, and charter/public), helping them shape winning marketing and enrollment strategies. We develop comprehensive brand identity packages, websites, print collateral packets, online marketing campaigns, and traditional advertising programs for schools of all sizes. 

The Education Marketing Manager (EMM) consults with Marketing and Admissions Directors, Heads of School, and Advancement/Development Directors to shape marketing strategy. He/she then orchestrates the required ramp-up projects and online/traditional campaign implementation through a blend of hands-on engagement and team coordination. This role’s core purpose is to strengthen, retain, and grow our school client-base by providing marketing leadership, strategic execution and oversight, and quantifiable success towards stated client outcomes. 

Besides stewarding our clients in education, the EMM collaborates daily with North Star’s production managers, copywriters, designers, programmers, and marketing support team.

This position is best suited for a candidate with advanced studies in marketing, public relations, mass communications, or online marketing. Experience in school marketing, admissions, or development is essential for this position. 

Hear from one of our own:

“After working in admissions for two years with a private Christian school, I developed a passion for marketing the school and helping parents evaluate the benefits of a private school education. When I transitioned to my role at North Star Marketing as Education Marketing Manager, I was surprised at how both positions had a very similar mission and how seamlessly I could transition from one to the other.

With experience in running marketing campaigns, giving campus tours,  planning events, and walking through several enrollment seasons, I had a firm understanding of the many hats that marketing and admissions directors wear on a daily basis. As the Education Marketing Manager at NSM,  I have the opportunity to partner with our school clients and take on some of the hats my clients are juggling. Although I am no longer on a school campus, I am very active in managing online marketing campaigns and working toward meeting marketing and enrollment goals.

I help clients develop and implement strategic plans that strengthen Google visibility, improve messaging, generate more leads, and create loyalty with existing families. It is a true joy to work alongside the phenomenal team at North Star Marketing each day and know that my mission is the same as it was as an admissions director: to partner with schools and strengthen their marketing and enrollment.“

– Kaleen Goodeill, Education Marketing Manager at North Star

Roles and Responsibilities
Account Health and Growth

• Purpose: Grow portfolio of education clients by developing strong relationships, trust, and providing strong leadership
  • Making recommendations valuable for the client related to current or potential work
  • Timely communication and regular touchpoints
  • Provide leadership and communicate the value of agency offerings and team approach
  • Keeping clients accountable to the plan
  • Building and nurturing positive relationships with clients
  • Leveraging internal resources at the appropriate times
  • Growing in knowledge of the education industry and market segment
  • Creating a growth plan for the account
  • Proposal development
  • Capturing new opportunities in Salesforce.com CRM

Marketing Strategy & Services Execution

• Purpose: To provide marketing leadership and execution to define, plan,  and achieve the client’s strategic goals and objectives.
  • Client onboarding
  • Organizing, planning, and leading client meetings
  • Create a strategy and game plan
  • Own results and ensure the strategy is implemented correctly by the team
  • Reviewing analytics, tracking software, KPIs
  • Product/service/audience discovery and research
  • Client meetings to develop and refine strategy
  • Inbound marketing and growth-driven development services implementation
  • Strategic updates or recommendations to client backlog
  • Continuing education; staying up-to-date with current trends
  • Facilitate/lead internal client strategy teams

Project Management

• Purpose: To initiate, coordinate, and assess the execution of the client’s marketing plan, ensuring it’s on-time and on-budget; keep clients updated.
  • Weekly update to the client on status and progress of projects
  • Sprint planning and coordination for committed work
  • Update production manager with client schedule changes
  • Strategic gameplan, budget, and retainer management/tracking
  • Create project briefs to update internal teams on details of deliverables
  • Facilitating internal meetings/discussions
  • Scoping new project work with internal teams
  • Plan & conduct project retrospective/post-mortem
  • Event/task creation for one-off tasks
  • Internal time tracking
  • Process improvement

Experience and Education

• BS/BA required
• Must have a proven track record in education marketing
• 2+ years of digital or online marketing experience

Certification Requirements:

• HubSpot certifications preferred:
  • HubSpot Inbound Marketing Certification
  • Content Certification
  • Social Media Certification
  • Content Marketing Certification
  • Email Marketing Certification
  • Inbound Sales Certification
• Other certifications preferred:
  • Google Analytics IQ Certification
  • Facebook Certified Digital Marketing Associate

Skill Requirements

Computer & Technical Skills

• Proficiency using Google Apps Suite (Gmail, Chat, Drive, Docs, Sheets, Slides)
• Proven competency with social media (Facebook/Instagram), inbound marketing, and paid media strategies
• Ability to assess and report on strategic performance using analytics tools

Tools

• WordPress (required)
• BrightLocal (preferred)
• SEMRush (preferred)
• Salesforce.com (preferred)

Communication Skills

• Ability to secure clear direction and buy-in from business leadership and then maintain visibility as strategy is executed
• Able to work with teams to take high-level vision and translate down to executable actions
• Ability to foster strong professional relationships and manage expectations with clients and fellow team members
• Ability to work across multiple projects and thrive in an environment with shifting priorities and time-sensitive deadlines
• A strong sense of organization and attention to detail are required
• Strong verbal and written skills are required
• Strong ability to prioritize and balance competing requests for support
• Ability to work independently once strategy and direction are identified while maintaining strong visibility for the agency

Qualifications:

• BS/BA required
• Two (2) years of digital or online advertising experience preferred
• Education marketing experience

Summary of Approximate Time Allocation

Overview

The Senior Writer position is responsible for planning, writing, and shaping content in support of marketing strategies for North Star Marketing’s K-12 private school clients. In this full-time role, the Senior Writer will collaborate with clients and teammates to develop digital and traditional media.

To be considered for this position, you must have experience writing for K-12 private schools, with a keen understanding of the audience schools are trying to reach. 

Ideal candidates will also possess a degree in Mass Communications/Journalism, English, and/or have at least five years of copywriting, editing, and content strategy experience. A portfolio of completed projects is important to determine range, flexibility, style, and experience. Candidates who are not strong writers need not apply. Ideal candidates will possess a degree in Mass Communications/Journalism, English, and/or have at least five years of copywriting, editing, and content strategy experience. A portfolio of completed projects is important to determine range, flexibility, style, and experience. Candidates who are not strong writers need not apply. 

The Senior Writer will be involved in both developing content strategy and writing compelling, engaging content in support of the strategy. The Senior Writer should understand how to write copy for search engine optimization, paid advertising, and social media. 

The Senior Writer must demonstrate excellence in spelling, punctuation, and grammar. Excellent communication and research skills are essential to the success of this position. The Senior Writer must have the ability to move quickly between client and projects, efficiently organize information, and deliver on deadlines. Interviewing skills are essential. 

We are looking for candidates who:

• Find North Star’s core values compelling and engaging
• Have integrity and a high degree of personal responsibility
• Demonstrate a positive, can-do, go-the-extra-mile attitude
• Are comfortable working with faith-based clients
• Are strategic thinkers: able to process, plan, and evaluate
• Are eager and able to learn new things and stay on top of current marketing trends
• Are strong communicators and creative thinkers
• Have expert knowledge of spelling, punctuation, and grammar rules
• Have experience with Associated Press style (prefer this experience)
• Have experience with Google Docs (prefer this experience)
• Are comfortable hitting daily deadlines
• Demonstrate strong analytical skills
• Are strong writers: capable of crafting well-written messages efficiently
• Appreciate and value constructive criticism
• Are comfortable being a key player on a variety of projects
• Handle themselves in a pleasant, personable manner (in-person, phone, and email)
• Are social media, web, and tech-savvy 
• Are detail-oriented
• Enjoy working as part of a team
• Are good listeners
• Have a good sense of humor

Position Summary

The primary aim of this role is to contribute well-written content for a wide range of marketing projects. The main activities and responsibilities of the senior writer include the following, broken out by the area of responsibility:

Writing:

• Review of project briefs and available resources
• Conduct topic research
• Develop clear and engaging copy
• Maintain proper voice, tone, and terminology
• Project collaboration and communication
• Campaign theme development

Editing:

• Proofing content for proper writing mechanics and content quality
• Reviewing and revising content
• Providing editorial feedback and recommendations
• Confirming content has been properly translated in the final deliverable

Content Strategy:

• Collaborate with team members in the development of content strategy
• Develop messaging based on identified problems, insights, and illustrations uncovered through discovery
• Research topics and themes to create solutions that align with strategic goals
• Implement SEO best practices 
• Monitor and assess data/analytics to inform strategy and changes
• Review final deliverables to verify content alignment
• Maintain continuity of voice and ethos for a client’s brand and messaging across multiple platforms
• Create recommendations for content promotional strategy
• Revise best practices and rhetorical strategies based on the effectiveness of previous campaigns and comparable messaging

The job will require writing across the following categories:

• Online marketing
  • Blog posts
  • Email campaigns
  • Webpage content
  • Paid search ads
  • Local listing content
  • Social media updates and ads
  • E-books and white papers
  • Landing pages
  • Infographics
  • Promotional video scripts
  • Newsletters

• Marketing infrastructure
  • Brand standards guides
  • Website sitemaps and content
  • Information packets
  • Brochures
• Traditional marketing
  • Print ads
  • Billboards
  • Direct mail pieces
  • Trade show displays
  • TV spots
  • Radio spots
  • Catalogs

The Senior Writer will be instrumental in producing engaging marketing deliverables for clients and growing our content development knowledge base. The Senior Writer will also support the sales team in promoting marketing offerings. This position requires a personality that is energized by change and challenges. As the marketing landscape is constantly shifting, the Senior Writer needs to enjoy learning about new technologies and consistently evaluating ways to improve North Star’s service model.

Summary of Approximate Time Allocation

Overview

North Star Marketing is looking for a WordPress Developer to join our development and support team. The developer we are looking for will be responsible for developing WordPress-based themes and plugins primarily using PHP, CSS and HTML, configuring content management interfaces within WordPress, and entering complex content in Gutenberg or other page builders. The development will include off-the-shelf theme configuration and extension as well as custom theme development.  In addition, the developer will support internal team members and external clients with website questions and needs.

The position is best suited for a candidate that has intermediate to advanced experience in WordPress and general website development.  Candidates should have a good technical acumen to be able to learn concepts quickly and be well-suited to discuss and assist with others with strong written and verbal communication skills.

Roles and Responsibilities

• Create new WordPress themes and edit or configure current themes.
• Implement a development project from inception to launch.
• Test solutions across multiple browsers and platforms in a local testing environment.
• Leverage WordPress APIs (Actions and Filters) and extend the WordPress admin experience.
• Assist in the remediation, enhancement, and maintenance of client sites.
• Solve team member and client challenges with understanding and empathy.
• Provide insight info and implementation of the platform and related products related to

Experience and Education

• BS/BA preferred
• 3+ years experience of concentrated WordPress usage in theme development and configuration including working with the Gutenberg editor.

Requirements

• Intermediate to advanced skills in PHP, JavaScript, HTML, CSS, and WordPress.
• Ability to clearly communicate with peers and clients (verbal and written) about complex ideas in simple ways.
• Experience with Git and preferably GitHub.
• The ability to set up a local environment for development and testing. We use Local by Flywheel.
• Exceptionally creative problem-solver.
• Knowledge of CSS preprocessors and front-end build systems. We use Webpack and SCSS.
• Basic interactive animation skills using CSS and JavaScript.

Nice to Have

• More advanced interactive animation skills.
• Plugin development experience.
• Knowledge of and experience with meeting WCAG 2.1 standards.
• Evidence of contribution to the broader web development community.
• Experience with Object-Oriented Programming and RESTful APIs.

Examples of Work

• Participating in development of a new website with a cross-functional team
• Creating a new feature for a North Star plugin or theme
• Creating a video for how to add a new user in WordPress
• Troubleshooting a client’s support request
• Assisting a marketing manager with questions about a client’s site
• Working with Git, local development and tools (Local by Flywheel, PHPloy)
• Adding scrolling testimonials to a current website home page
• Changing the style and layout of a photo gallery

Summary of Approximate Time Allocation

Overview

The Paid Media Specialist position is a full-time, remote role, working with our Digital Marketing Manager, Education Marketing Managers, Production Managers, Strategists, Copywriters, Developers, and Designers. This team member is focused on managing multiple paid search and paid social marketing campaigns across multiple clients in the education industry.

This position is best suited for a candidate that has mid to senior-level experience in search engine marketing (SEM), with a broader background in digital marketing and conversion rate optimization (CRO). Candidates should possess a firm grasp of promotional writing; emphasizing writing for paid ads is a must and the ability to strategically and purposefully develop ad content toward a greater marketing goal.

As a vital member of the digital marketing team, the Paid Media Specialist will help tactically drive the paid search and paid social marketing efforts for North Star Marketing clients. This position is responsible for Google Ads, Bing Ads, Facebook & Instagram Ads, Retargeting, Geotargeting, Dayparting, Demographic Targeting, Mobile Targeting. The Paid Media Specialist must possess advanced knowledge of search engine marketing (SEM), social media, search engine optimization (SEO), content marketing, and understand each channel’s complementary impact. 

In support primarily of client engagements, this position will focus heavily on Google Ads and Facebook Ads, using multiple analytics platforms to improve traffic, customer engagement, and conversion funnels. This team member will support the broader marketing team as a subject matter expert in paid media, both implementing and optimizing various paid search and social campaigns for lead generation and customer conversion.

Roles and Responsibilities

Paid Media Strategy & Execution

• Work with the digital marketing manager to develop paid media best practices and standards at the firm, including reporting, measurement, and return on ad spend (ROAS).
• Partner with education marketing managers and the digital marketing manager to develop specific marketing strategies, translate those strategies into objectives and tactics, clarify the scope of value and scope of work, and align the key performance indicators used to measure success. 
• Managing day-to-day analysis and implementation of paid media campaigns (Google Ads, Facebook & Instagram Ads, Google Display, Youtube, Bing Ads, etc.), including researching, coordinating, creating, monitoring, and optimizing paid media ad campaigns
• Research and identify the best paid media strategy for prospective and current clients
• Google, Bing, and Facebook Ads setup and configuration
• Writing paid ads for the appropriate platform
• Collaborating with content, design, and tech teams to support paid media clients’ needs.
• Client strategy meetings (primarily in-house; frequently by phone or video chat; occasionally on-site with clients)
• Implement rigorous A/B testing and tracking to drive campaign improvements
• Preparing the paid media offering for scale; building and documenting the process

Analytics & Reporting

• Consolidate key metrics, provide monthly reporting and analytics to education marketing managers and clients, and provide insights for paid media campaign optimization
• Continually monitor and recommend improvements for paid media campaigns to support our clients’ agency and growth objectives.
• Analyze existing best practices in integrated media campaigns, as well as innovations made possible by emerging technologies
• Benchmark paid media activities against our clients’ competitors and peers in their respective industries.
• Use analytic tools to track, monitor, and optimize digital footprint and campaigns based on historical performance.
• Prepare and deliver both qualitative and quantitative analysis reports and dashboards that inform all audiences of our collective performance across all paid media marketing efforts, highlighting the impact achieved for our clients.

Experience and Education

• Bachelor’s degree in marketing, communications, or related field
• Five or more years of relevant business experience in a digital marketing or advertising agency environment.
• Minimum of 3 years managing a high volume of PPC campaigns
• Advanced experience with researching, coordinating, creating, monitoring, and optimizing paid search ad campaigns
• Experience implementing digital marketing strategies in the education industry preferred
• Experience designing and developing paid search marketing best practices within an organization

Certification Requirements

• Google Ads Search Certification
• Google Ads Display Certification
• Google Analytics Certification
• Proven track record of using biddable media to acquire, engage, and nurture users throughout the funnel; campaign management skills with attention to detail
• Other Preferred Certifications:
  • Facebook Certified Digital Marketing Associate (preferred)
  • Google Ads Video Certification (preferred)
  • Google Ads Measurement Certification (preferred)
  • HubSpot Inbound Marketing Certification (preferred)
  • HubSpot Social Media Certification (preferred)

Skill Requirements

Computer & Technical Skills

• Proven grasp of all paid media mediums, including remarketing, display, content, mobile, and video
• Experience with Google Display Network, including remarketing and contextual advertising
• Proven track record of similar paid media role or paid media campaign management, and can demonstrate improving performance and ROI
• Proven competency with social media, digital advertising, email marketing strategy, and web analytics
• Experience with natural search planning and implementation
• Sound SEO knowledge
• Google Analytics and advanced Adwords Editor knowledge
• Deep experience using keyword research tools
• Advanced Excel/Google Sheets and experience using agency-level paid media campaign management platforms a must
• Experience setting up and using Google Tag Manager, Facebook Pixels, and UTM Tags
• Experience in HTML, JavaScript, or PHP a plus
• Experience using WordStream a plus
• Must stay current and maintain industry knowledge, trends, etc. in digital space

Tools

• WordStream
• SEMrush
• HubSpot (preferred)

Communication Skills

• Ability to secure clear direction and buy-in from business leadership and then maintain visibility as strategy is executed
• Able to take high-level vision and translate it down to executable actions
• Ability to foster strong professional relationships and manage expectations with clients and fellow team members
• Ability to work across multiple projects and thrive in an environment with shifting priorities and time-sensitive deadlines
• A strong sense of organization and attention to detail is required
• Strong verbal and written skills are required
• Strong ability to prioritize and balance competing requests for support
• Ability to work independently and follow the approved strategic direction 

Please be advised this position requires extensive training and requires some outside reading at the start to be in alignment with NSM’s theory and practices.

Summary of Approximate Time Allocation

Overview

The content strategist seat/position is a full-time, remote, or on-site role, working with our education marketing managers, production managers, writers, designers, developers, and internal marketing team.

Candidates should possess a degree in Mass Communications/Journalism/English with at least five years of copywriting/editing experience. Experience in creating and implementing a content strategy for a brand or product development team is required, preferably in the education industry. Candidates must demonstrate a deep understanding of the customer buyer journey, the various stages of that journey, and the role content plays in nurturing buyers to complete an intended outcome. The content strategist candidate should possess an exceptional grasp of promotional writing, with an emphasis on writing for search engine optimization, online advertising, and social media. Additionally, candidates must demonstrate the ability to strategically and purposefully develop content towards a higher marketing goal and generate highly creative, engaging, and compelling content for their audience. An aptitude for proper writing techniques, including spelling, punctuation, and grammar, is a must.

Excellent communication and research skills are essential to the success of this position. The content strategist must have the ability to work across multiple projects, quickly organize information, and deliver on deadlines in a fast-paced environment serving clients in the education industry. 

We are looking for candidates who:

• Find North Star’s core values compelling and engaging
• Have integrity and a high degree of personal responsibility
• Demonstrate a positive, can-do, go-the-extra-mile attitude
• Are comfortable working with faith-based clients
• Are strategic thinkers: able to process, plan, and evaluate
• Are eager and able to learn new things and stay on top of current marketing trends
• Are strong communicators and creative thinkers
• Have expert knowledge of spelling, punctuation, and grammar rules
• Have experience with Associated Press style (prefer this experience)
• Have experience with Google Docs (prefer this experience)
• Are comfortable hitting daily deadlines
• Demonstrate strong analytical skills
• Are strong writers: capable of crafting well-written messages efficiently
• Appreciate and value constructive criticism
• Are comfortable being a key player on a variety of projects
• Handle themselves in a pleasant, personable manner (in-person, phone, and email)
• Are social media, web, and tech-savvy 
• Are detail-oriented
• Enjoy working as part of a team
• Are good listeners
• Have a good sense of humor
  
  

Position Summary

This role’s primary aims are to direct and develop the overarching content strategy and contribute well-written content for a wide range of marketing projects. Principal roles and  responsibilities of the content strategist include: 

Content Strategy and Planning:

• Collaborate with team members in the development of content strategy
• Develop messaging based on identified problems, insights, and illustrations uncovered through discovery
• Identify gaps in existing content and recommend new topics in support of campaigns
• Research topics and themes to create solutions that align with strategic goals
• Align campaigns around SEO research, run keyword research where applicable, and help develop metrics to measure and show return on investment (ROI) for our content
• Create and maintain editorial calendars, social promotional calendars, style guides, taxonomies, metadata frameworks, and content migration plans
• Use customer insights and analytics to monitor visitor engagement and change content to match with customer trends
• Review final deliverables to verify content alignment
• Maintain continuity of voice and ethos for a client’s brand and messaging across multiple platforms
• Create recommendations for content promotional strategy
• Revise best practices and rhetorical strategies based on the effectiveness of previous campaigns and comparable messaging

Writing:

• Review of project briefs and available resources
• Conduct topic research
• Develop clear and engaging copy that portrays brand values
• Maintain proper voice, tone, and terminology
• Project collaboration and communication
• Campaign theme development

Editing:

• Reviewing content from other writers to ensure it meets the firm’s standard of excellence
• Ensure all content has a significant purpose, logical flow and is free from grammatical, punctuation, and spelling errors
• Providing editorial feedback and recommendations
• Confirming content has been translated correctly in the final deliverable

Content Process Owner

• Oversee, document, and optimize the content strategy, planning, and development process
• Help produce training and best practice guides for managing content and relevant systems
• Help develop testing models to ensure content is appropriate for the target audience
• Optimize the content process for continuous improvement and ensure the latest proven best practices are incorporated
• Ensure content process standards are followed by all

Manage Freelance Writers

• Oversee and manage a small group of independent writing consultants
• Assist with recruiting new freelancers to align with current content demands
• Establish and maintain standard operating procedures for all independent writing consultants
• Review and approve invoices for payment from freelancers

Lead, Manage, Accountability

• Keep expectations clear around roles, core values, rocks, and all measurables by sharing your expectations and hearing those of your team members
• Ensure you and your team are communicating well
• Maintain a proper meeting pulse with an even exchange of dialogue; keeping circles connected; reporting measurables
• Having quarterly conversations (The 5-5-5) and bi-weekly/monthly 1:1’s with each member of the team to provide continuous feedback on core values and performance
• Reward and recognize team members, provide both positive and negative feedback quickly, address issues, and hold team members accountable

The job will require content strategy and writing across the following categories:

• Blog posts
• Editorial calendars
• Email campaigns and nurturing sequences
• Website content
• Paid search ads
• Social media updates and ads
• E-books and white papers
• Landing pages
• Infographics
• Promotional video scripts
• Brand Messaging
• Brand standards guides
• Print ads
• Billboards
• Direct mail pieces

The content strategist will be instrumental in servicing client contracts and growing our content development knowledge base. The content strategist will also support the sales and marketing teams in promoting marketing offerings. This position requires a personality energized by change and challenges. As the marketing landscape continually shifts, the content strategist needs to enjoy learning new technologies and consistently evaluating ways to improve North Star’s service model.

Summary of Approximate Time Allocation