Posted On: May 11, 2013

Media-Related Job

Media Organization: Aaron Allen & Associates (Global Restaurant Consultants)

Company Description

Aaron Allen & Associates is one of the most sought-after and prestigious restaurant consultancies in the world. Our clients span all six inhabited continents, more than 100 countries, post combined annual revenues exceeding $100 billion, and include many of the most successful restaurant, hotel and foodservice businesses. We are a truly globally oriented firm. And, while we work with many of the biggest and brightest in the industry, we operate like a small boutique firm with a fun and unique company culture.

While our primary business is global restaurant industry consulting, we are embarking on building a world-class content development team comprised of journalists, senior-level copywriters, food writers, editors, researchers, publicists, and digital/social media marketing pros to be part of an ambitious new project in development. We're looking to assemble a team of the very best and have several key positions available.

Job Description

Do you love food, wine, travel, restaurants, hotels, writing, and editing? Are you fascinated by new cultures, cuisines, emerging trends/technologies and what's happening in other countries all around the world? Do you have great ideas and the courage to pitch and pursue them? If yes, then you may have just stumbled on to your dream job.

We have embarked on building a world-class content development team and are in search of our managing editor to join us in creating something very special together and to help lead the content team on an ambitious mission.

We are creating a new content series that will include a global restaurant industry news digest, list-style feature articles, and will entail tracking and reporting on the most important restaurant industry trends from around the world in the areas of restaurant branding, marketing, menus, design, and growth. Sometimes, we will also venture into spectacle (most bizarre restaurants, service mistakes, examples of the most outrageous, fascinating facts & figures, etc.) with a more irreverent and comical point of view.

We are seeking someone who knows how to whip lackluster copy into shape; someone who can write a sticky, super-clickable headline (or 25) quickly; someone who can lead and teach a team of junior editors and interns; and someone who is ready to play a key role in building the #1 resource site for senior restaurant and hospitality industry executives around the world.

We believe in building positions around the interests, passions and strengths of talented people so the creation of the final job description will be collaborative. A few of the key functions of the position include:

1. Establish internal SOP and editorial guidelines, working closely with multiple stakeholders to execute strategy, manage process and project workflow, manage projects, write and edit content, and help recruit and assess new writers/editors.
2. Lead daily editorial meetings and get the team fired up to write lots of compelling blog posts and photo slideshows -- Edit staff writers' content quickly -- Coach staff writers to help build their writing and editing skills -- Re-package ho-hum stories and turn them into highly shareable posts.
3. Editorial Content Development and Management: establish and maintain editorial calendar, manage freelance and in-house writers, write and edit content, direct and execute rewrites, manage and implement changes, maintain quality standards and consistency of brand voice.
4. Work closely with the CEO to ensure copy is hitting traffic, conversion and other strategic goals; brainstorm on new content ideas and refine brand voice; and interview weekly for feature point-of-view article (for the blog and newsletter).
5. This position will create/oversee creation of various communications, including blog posts, byline articles, press releases, proposals, information products, infographics, meta descriptions, client brand briefs, marketing collaterals, training materials, the overhaul for AaronAllen.com, and assignments for other writers and editors.

AUDIENCE:
Senior executives of restaurant, foodservice and hospitality companies worldwide. Primarily emerging brands and large chains ($20m - $37b). Our newsletter is read in 140+ countries and we represent global hospitality organizations so our content strategy must incorporate examples from around the world, be culturally aware and provide fresh insights to industry executives at the top of their class. The content focus is centered on restaurant marketing, branding, design and business growth. Our audience is very hungry for examples, case studies, best practices, facts and figures, trends and how-to content related to the aforementioned topics.

KEY METRICS:
Post and email deadlines, website pages (quality/quantity/rank), growth of inbound links, web to email conversion rate, email circulation, contact frequency, productivity of the content team.

QUALIFICATIONS:
• Bachelor’s Degree in journalism, interactive media, communications, marketing, creative writing or equivalent experience with strong skills in social media, SEO, and creative editing.
• Must possess a crisp, active writing style, organization, and an unyielding drive for accuracy.
• Tech-savvy and fast-learner.
• Experience across multiple digital marketing/ analytics platforms a plus.
• Global experience/ travel exposure a big plus.
• Experience creating and evaluating SEO and social media strategies.
• Highly self-motivated, resourceful and comfortable with ambiguity.
• Innovative, in-tune with latest and greatest approaches to building a global audience, site traffic, back-links, and social shares.
• Understanding of the restaurant industry from a B2B point of view.

To Apply

Write to us. Please send resume/CV, writing samples, and a cover letter that stands out to Aaron Allen (aallen@aaronallen.com).