The Bureau of Investigative Journalism is looking for a creative and strategic thinker to support the next phase of our growth as we look to build our audiences, engage communities, deepen our impact and drive revenue.

The audience engagement lead will manage our newsletters, social media and events, working with our editorial team to produce content and activities that amplify our investigations and grow a loyal, engaged community. They will run exercises aimed at expanding our supporter base and building community engagement, and will help the Bureau to research, analyse and understand our current and potential audiences.

The Bureau has established an international reputation for producing high-impact journalism at a global, national and local level. Across our five teams – health, finance, Big Tech, environment and Bureau Local – we produce investigative reporting in the public interest that is co-published with major media outlets around the world, as well as specialist and regional publications. We currently have more than 65k Twitter followers and nearly 20k newsletter subscribers, and are also directly engaging smaller targeted audiences and communities through our impact work. We also hold regular online events with our more popular ones attracting upwards of 500 attendees.

The next phase of our growth will require a cohesive audience strategy that can help drive real-world change while building a sustainable financial base. The experimentation and analysis undertaken by this role, under the oversight of the Impact and Audience Editor, will help lay the foundations for this strategy.

Responsibilities

You will support the organisation to deliver on ambitious plans to grow and better engage our direct audiences:

• Produce a programme of communications to engage current audiences and attract new followers (to include social media, newsletters and bulletins), amplifying our investigations and their impact

• Manage the Bureau’s Twitter and Facebook accounts, working with our editorial teams to produce content that boosts our brand and visibility, helps build our impact and drives greater engagement

• Trial experiments, including A/B testing, to reach and build different audience groups and spur different types and levels of engagement, primarily via (but not limited to) our digital platforms

• Work with impact producers and community organisers on the audience and community engagement strategies of upcoming investigations

• Monitor, analyse and report on reach and engagement data across newsletters, social media and website

• Act as first point of contact for our readers and supporters, in particular ensuring thanks and acknowledgement as well as processing donations

Desirable skills and experience:

• At least three years’ experience in audience development or community engagement

• A passion for investigative, impact-driven journalism and a commitment to the highest standards of journalistic accuracy and ethics

• Excellent communications and organisational skills including experience of:
  – Audience/community consultation, including running surveys and other feedback
  – Proficiency in using MailChimp, including planning, scheduling and tailoring communications for different people and purposes
  – Getting to grips with complex content quickly and use it to create engaging communications
  – Producing excellent written copy

• Reviewing reach and impact of your communications:
  – Using tech tools and analysis effectively, including MailChimp, Google and Twitter analytics
  – Improving UX through trials (eg ensuring content is relevant and accessible, reducing friction, relevant calls to action, email marketing, A/B testing, pop-ups and anchor messages)

• Expert knowledge of social media trends and best practices for organic and paid posts

• Managing a CRM database and keeping accurate, GDPR-compliant records, eg around supporter interactions, preferences and areas of interest

• Familiarity with user experience and SEO content strategies

• Entrepreneurial and digitally savvy, with great analytical and critical thinking skills.

• Working knowledge of digital graphic design

Salary: £32-36,000, dependent on experience

Duration: Permanent

It is envisaged that this is a full-time role, primarily based in our London office (though we have hybrid working), but as the Bureau is committed to supporting people who require a more flexible approach to working, this is open to discussion.

The Bureau is committed to being an inclusive and diverse employer providing opportunities for all, where people can come to do their best work. We encourage individuals from BAME communities or disadvantaged backgrounds as these groups are currently underrepresented in the media industry, which is something we are committed to changing.

To Apply

Send a CV and covering letter to audiencejob@tbij.com by 4 January 2022. Please mention Journo Resources when you apply, it really helps us out.