Marketing and Communications Manager

Primary Responsibilities: The Marketing and Communications Manager plays a critical role in advancing the mission of Catholic Education in the Diocese of Buffalo by developing and executing strong marketing, public relations, and both external and internal communications to drive a positive image of our Diocese, Catholic Education, and the Catholic Church; celebrate our team members, students, and their families; grow enrollment; and praise God for the blessing He bestows upon us and the privilege to teach, serve, and evangelize through Catholic Education.

This role serves the principals, faith formation, and Diocesan Education leaders by promoting enrollment growth, community engagement, and brand awareness. The Marketing and Communications Manager collaborates with school and faith formation leaders, enrollment coordinators, and Diocesan stakeholders to effectively communicate the value of Catholic Education and ensure alignment with the mission, values, and traditions of the Catholic faith.

Marketing Strategy, Planning and Leadership:
• Develop and implement a comprehensive marketing and communications strategy and 12-month rolling calendar to support Diocesan-level and local-level efforts to increase student enrollment, donations, and community engagement.
• Identify target audiences, analyze market trends, and establish goals and metrics for success.
• Collaborate with school leaders to promote each school’s or Family of Parish’s unique identity while aligning marketing efforts with the mission, vision, and values of Catholic Education.
• Collaborate with Catholic University partners to secure and supervise interns to support marketing, communications, and enrollment efforts.
• Work with the Government Program and Advancement Manager to identify and secure grant funding to support marketing, communications, and enrollment efforts.
• Support Diocesan board marketing and enrollment committee(s), as appropriate.

Internal and External Communications:
• Develop and manage internal communication channels to ensure principals, faith formation leaders, educators, school advisory councils and home school associations, Diocesan school board and other leadership, and parishioners are informed and invited to provide input on a frequent and regular basis.
• Support principals and faith formation leaders with tools and templates for effective communication with families, school advisory councils, home school associations, parishioners, and communities.
• Organize and distribute regular system-wide newsletters, updates, or announcements.
• Work with the Data and Systems Manager to lead and administer surveys, focus groups, research, and other initiatives to gather objective and subjective feedback from parents, donors, young adults, and prospective families.
• Understand the unique needs of each community and the impact of our school and faith formation programs.

Enrollment Support:
• Create Diocesan-wide email and other campaigns to deliver value-added content that support stages of development from Baptism to Kindergarten while promoting enrollment.
• Work with the Data and Systems Manager to implement and maintain an enrollment management system and a consistent approach to attracting and enrolling families.
• Train principals and local coordinators to use effective enrollment practices including managing a prospective family funnel, tracking and documenting all touchpoints with prospective families, and ensuring timely follow-ups to guide families through the enrollment process.

Brand Development and Management:
• Promulgate the key messages associated with our strategic plan, as well as our tag line: Catholic Education…It’s everything you value.
• Evaluate/update the Diocesan Catholic Education logo, colors, and other assets to reflect our new strategy and energy for the future.
• Create, publish and maintain brand guidelines to implement best practices while promoting each school’s unique identity, traditions, and centers of excellence.
• Collaborate with the Diocesan Communications team to promote guidelines for communication associated with fundraising, the Road to Renewal, and Diocesan activities/decisions that will impact schools and faith formation programs.
• Promote the unique aspects of Catholic education, including faith formation, academic excellence, enriching student experiences, community impact, and our high-quality workplace.

Content Creation, Storytelling, and Campaigns:
• Create compelling content to showcase the impact of Catholic education, student achievements, faith formation, service initiatives, and alumni success stories, including brochures, videos, newsletters, blog posts, social media content, website updates, and advertisements.
• Plan and execute enrollment campaigns and other promotional events to engage prospective families, and promote school tours and open houses.
• Coordinate photography and videography for events and promotional materials.

Digital Marketing and Social Media:
• Manage the digital presence for Catholic Education at the Diocesan-level, including the website, social media platforms, email marketing, and online advertising.
• Re-design, develop, and maintain the Catholic Education website to align with Diocesan brand standards, promote each school, and allow for frequent, regular, quick, and cost effective updates.
• Create aggressive digital campaigns to reach and engage a significantly wider and diverse audience.
• Provide turnkey social media kits/posts for schools, faith formation teams, and parishes to use to promote their programs.
• Utilize SEO and analytics tools to optimize digital campaigns and measure their effectiveness.

Public Relations and Media Outreach:
• Support the Superintendent in their role as the primary spokesperson for Catholic Education in the Diocese of Buffalo when addressing media and public inquiries.
• Restore, build, and maintain relationships with local media outlets to generate positive coverage of Catholic schools and increase positive earned media.
• Develop press releases, media kits, and op-eds at least weekly to highlight accomplishments, events, and milestones of our schools.
• Represent Catholic Education at community events, fairs, and other networking opportunities.

Crisis Communication:
• Develop and implement crisis communication plans to address sensitive issues promptly and effectively.
• Provide guidelines and scripts for school and faith formation teams to use through the bankruptcy settlement, changes in schools or parishes, or other potentially negative situations.
• Support the Superintendent and/or serve as the point of contact during crises, ensuring timely and transparent communication with families, staff, media, major donors, and other stakeholders.
• Provide guidance to school leaders on managing communications during challenging situations.

Collaboration and Support:
• Convene frequent and regular meetings of school and parish marketing and enrollment coordinators and principals to share marketing tools, resources, training, and best practices.
• Work closely with development and advancement coordinators to align marketing efforts with fundraising and donor engagement initiatives.
• Provide guidance on best practices for school-level marketing efforts.

Data Analysis and Reporting:
• Track and analyze marketing, communications, and enrollment performance data to measure success and refine strategies.
• Provide regular reports to leadership, highlighting key insights and recommendations.
• Utilize enrollment and demographic data to target marketing efforts effectively.

Key Competencies:
Mission-Minded – Possesses a strong Catholic identity, a true passion for Catholic education, and an inherent desire to teach, serve, and evangelize in order to make a significant impact on each community.

Trust & Integrity – Exceptional reputation and credibility. Able to exercise discretion and confidentiality. Uses sound judgment and makes good decisions. Takes ownership for actions and responsibilities.

Service-Oriented – Proven experience delivering high levels of internal customer service. Evidence of an ability to make work easier for administration and staff.

Collaborator – Outgoing and extroverted professional who works well with both internal and external stakeholders.

Planning and Detail-Orientation – Highly organized, system-thinker and project manager who can create process, technology, and resources to support marketing and communications needs. Willing to dive into the details and deliver high-quality end products.

Proactive – Takes initiative to find problems, research best practices, implement solutions, and ensure activities yield the desired results.

Analytical Thinking – Ability to collect and analyze data using best practice systems. Can provide insight and recommendations based on findings.

Creativity – Able to create strategic, emotional, eye-catching, and action-inducing programs, graphics, and materials.

Communicator – An excellent communicator, both verbally and in writing, and presenter. Able to craft compelling messages for diverse audiences. Personable, humble, approachable, and often sought out by their peers and others for advice and guidance.

Qualifications:
• Bachelor’s degree in Marketing, Communications, Public Relations, or a related field
• Minimum of 3-5 years of marketing experience, preferably in education, nonprofit, or faith-based organizations
• Significant experience and relationships with WNY media, as well as experience in crisis communication, digital marketing, branding, and content creation
• Proficiency in marketing tools and platforms (e.g., Adobe Creative Suite, Canva, Google Analytics, social media scheduling and management tools, email marketing, CRM systems, enrollment management systems)

Work Environment:
• This position operates in an office setting but requires frequent travel to schools, student recruiting activities, and events across the Diocese of Buffalo
• Evening and weekend hours are required to support events

Reporting Structure:
• Reports directly to the Superintendent of Schools with an indirect relationship to the Diocesan Director of Communications
• This position does not supervise employees but will collaborate with Catholic University partners to secure and supervise interns to support marketing, communications, and enrollment efforts

Salary Range: $50,000 – $60,000