ABOUT THE ROLE

Fast Company is seeking a self-motivated, experienced ad sales and partnerships director to represent the Fast Company brand and portfolio (digital, experiential, video, social, audio, print, and community). This role will join a talented, growth-oriented national team of sellers focusing on brands and agencies – and will be dedicated to the Northern California Territory as well as Nevada, Utah, Colorado, Oregon, Washington, Wyoming, Idaho, and Montana.

This Director of Brand Partnerships candidate should channel a true entrepreneurial spirit like the business innovators Fast Company covers daily, and boast a deep and compelling ad sales track record, ideally across the greater Bay Area market. As an effective sales leader, you will embrace sales targets, and co-develop and drive strategy with brand stakeholders to achieve those goals. To meet, if not exceed, territory targets, you will be an energetic collaborator with internal teams (integrated marketing, the FastCo Works branded content studio, editorial, events, sales planning, and more) as you engineer sellable opportunities and help achieve profitability for Fast Company’s parent, Mansueto Ventures.

While this position is remote, there is a strong preference for a leader located in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Salary range: $140,000 - $160,000 + commission eligible. Compensation may vary based on relevant experience, skills, industry, and education.

WHAT YOU’LL BE DOING

• Independently develop a robust pipeline of advertising prospects across brand and agency media buyers alike, and increase high-value proposal volume.
• Build meaningful relationships with prospective clients and buyers through strategic in-person meetings, phone, email, and social media outreach, and via participation in professional networking events and programs.
• Drive territory revenue growth by developing and closing smart, strategic pitches and programs that deliver value to the marketers who invest with Fast Company.
• Ignite new thinking, new ideas, and new approaches across the Fast Company portfolio to capture attention in your territory and drive market share.
• Work strategically with sales planning and integrated marketing teams to craft proposals that meet and exceed client KPIs and objectives, growing your pipeline of new business in the process.
• Collaborate with the Account Management team on all post-sale activity to effectively deliver and manage client expectations, ensure successful campaign delivery, and help set the stage for future growth via renewal and more.
• Manage a robust Salesforce pipeline; accurately forecast new business, close rates, and revenue path from pitch to sold.
• Prioritize and balance time invested toward low- and high-spend potential accounts.

WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FOR

• 7+ years of media sales experience preferred.
• Demonstrated experience within the business media sector (from SMB to Enterprise), including a track record and existing relationships in categories such as: Technology (software and hardware), Telecom, Finance and Payments, a huge plus.
• Knowledge of industry and sector trends, and media best practices.
• Record of ad sales performance, meeting/exceeding goals in digitally-led, multiplatform selling environments.
• Experience navigating organizational hierarchies and engaging VP and C-level executives to close business.
• Acute business acumen, and an ability to present and communicate ideas/concepts effectively.
• Maintain and grow assigned sales territory while identifying, prioritizing, and closing new business to meet identified sales goals.
• Ability to develop, maintain, and grow relationships with customers, external partners, and internal teams to deliver on business objectives.
• Experience in media pricing, planning, packaging, and related performance metrics.
• Vertical knowledge of assets in Fast Company portfolio: digital, social media, video, audio, print, custom/branded content, events/experiential (live and virtual).
• Demonstrated record of client-solutions-oriented idea generation in media space.
• Top-flight communication skills, written and verbal, both internal and external-facing.
• Bachelor’s degree preferred.