ABOUT THE CHRISTIAN CENTURY

The Christian Century is an ecumenical magazine based in Chicago and considered a leading voice of progressive American Protestantism. Committed to thinking critically and living faithfully, the Century explores what it means to believe and live out the Christian faith in our time.

Founded in 1884 as the Christian Oracle, the magazine took its current name at the turn of the 20th century. Notable contributors in the early decades included Jane Addams and Reinhold Niebuhr. In 1963, the Century was the first major periodical to publish the full text of Martin Luther King Jr.'s "Letter from Birmingham Jail."

The Century continues to inform and shape mainline Christianity. Along with publishing its biweekly print and online editions, the magazine hosts several blogs and a podcast on its website. The Century also holds an annual lecture and workshop in Chicago that has featured such figures as Barbara Brown Taylor, Eugene Peterson, Krista Tippett, Anna Carter Florence, Thomas Long, Thomas Lynch, Marcus Borg, and Peter Gomes. The magazine remains a voice that is rooted in the church but that offers fresh commentary on contemporary issues of faith, politics, and culture.

ABOUT THIS ROLE

The Christian Century is seeking an Audience Development Editor who will focus on finding and introducing new online readers to its journalism, along with taking the lead on managing the Century's website and online presence.

This is one of two new positions being added to the Century editorial team to support the Century's ongoing transformation from a legacy print magazine to a multi-platform media organization.

This position will work full-time out of the Century's downtown Chicago office and is not a writing or reporting role. The Audience Development Editor will focus on optimizing and managing Century content (both new and legacy) for distribution on owned platforms (including, web, email, push, etc.) and unowned channels (both established and new social media and search platforms), using both paid and organic strategies. This position will also assume primary responsibility for the Century's website, including coordinating with vendors and serving as an internal training and support resource. And as a member of the editorial team, this position will participate in production, editorial planning, and other collaborative work.

If you are excited about building audiences for online journalism; can quickly write clean copy for social sharing; enjoy exploring and experimenting with new technology; and are familiar with the major denominations, issues, and trends facing Protestant Christianity in the U.S., please read on:

RESPONSIBILITIES

The responsibilities of this role include:

Audience Growth

• Develop and execute content marketing strategies to generate website traffic, email list growth, social followers growth.
• Research and experiment with emerging platforms to reach new audiences.

Social Media

• Lead and manage the Century's social media strategy and presence (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram plus emerging platforms), including testing engagement strategies, designing and optimizing content for social, and leading paid social media campaigns.

Content Optimization

• Manage the online presentation of all Christian Century content to maximize audience engagement, collaborating with others on the editing and writing of headlines, decks, and social copy; choosing and editing web images; adding metadata (page titles, tags, keywords).
• Support and coach staff in on-page SEO (headline writing, keyword and tag usage, etc.).

Analytics

• Regularly analyze and report to staff on audience and referral data across all channels (web, email, social).
• Recommend experiments and strategies to increase reach, engagement and retention based on data-informed insights.

Website Management

• Coordinate with colleagues and vendors on the development and maintenance of the Century's website
• Respond to and troubleshoot website problems and issues
• Train staff on best practices and basic usage

QUALIFICATIONS

You should apply for this position if:

• You have more than a passing knowledge of American Protestantism and are committed to the Christian Century's mission to inform and shape progressive Christianity.
• You possess solid news judgment, knowledge of the major players and issues in American Protestantism today, and the ability to identify breaking news within the Christian community.
• You understand how to grow digital audiences, are familiar with SEO best practices, are skilled at social media and email publishing (or have the ability to quickly learn).
• You're a strong writer who can quickly produce sharp, error-free copy.
• You have training or experience in online journalism, publishing, and/or digital marketing.
• You have a head for numbers and know how to run an A/B test and use testing, engagement and website metrics to make better decisions about digital campaigns (or have the ability to quickly learn how to do this).
• You're comfortable with modern website CMS platforms, basic HTML editing, and basic web image editing.
• You're not afraid to learn and use new online tools.

Although not required, a great candidate would have some of the following:

• M.Div. or  M.A. in religion or other graduate training in religion-related field
• Experience working with or writing for American faith communities
• Undergraduate degree in journalism, marketing, digital communications, or another digital media field
• Experience managing an online community on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram
• Experience using digital analytics/reporting tools, especially Google Analytics, Facebook and Mailchimp
• Experience managing a website

Compensation

• Competitive salary and health-care package
• 401K contribution

APPLICATION DEADLINE IS 11:59PM PACIFIC TIME ON MONDAY, AUGUST 5, 2019.