Van Wagner has been connecting brands to sports for over twenty-five years. When we first entered the sports landscape, we used our creativity and expertise to develop unique signage in live sporting events and marketing opportunities for brands to reach sports fans through our Dorna division, including home plate signage in MLB, courtside signage in the NBA and NCAA, and the Allstate college football field goal net program. Our world-class Productions division creates the best in-venue fan experiences for 9 of the world’s top 10 sporting events, including the Super Bowl, Olympic Games, Kentucky Derby, CFP and Final Four among others.
About Van Wagner College
Van Wagner’s College division is the fastest growing company in the industry and now manages the corporate sponsorship and multimedia rights for over 40 NCAA athletic departments and conferences spanning the entire continental United States. We work with our partners to identify and create advertising, marketing, and promotional opportunities for sponsor businesses, across mediums including TV & Radio broadcast, websites, social media, digital and fixed signage, print media, e-newsletters, fan experiences, event activations, and much more. Van Wagner is the exclusive multimedia rights partner for Kent State University Athletics
About the Account Executive Role
The Account Executive role is a critical part of the Van Wagner team that operates locally in support of Kent State Athletics. We’re looking for entrepreneurial self-starters that are driven, team-oriented, never shy away from a challenge, and have a can-do attitude to join our team. This is a great opportunity to grow a career in sports marketing and partnership sales.
Responsibilities include, but are not limited to:
- As a representative of the University, you will build and maintain positive working relationships with local and regional businesses, the campus community, and especially the athletics department
- Work with existing sponsor businesses to grow and extend their partnerships with the university
- Prospecting, calling on, scheduling, and conducting initial discovery meetings with new businesses that would benefit from associating with the university
- Ideation and collaboration with the General Manager to shape what partnerships between new businesses and the university can look like
- Prepare and present on strategy PowerPoint proposals to new businesses that thoughtfully story tell what the partnerships can look like
- Negotiate with new businesses to secure sponsorships
- Draft and coordinate agreements, managing all relevant information in Salesforce
- Collaborate with Kent State Athletic staff and General Manager of sponsorships to fulfill the terms of sponsor agreements that provide advertising, marketing, and promotional benefits to sponsor businesses. This can include platforms such as TV & Radio broadcasts, websites, social media, digital and static signage, print media, e-newsletters, fan experiences, event activations, and much more.
- Collaborate with the General Manager of sponsorships and other team members on game days for sponsor activations as well as the entertainment of current or prospective sponsors
- Capture proof of performance examples and provide fulfillment summaries to share with current sponsors
- Update new business development activities in the CRM system (currently Salesforce)
What We’re Looking For:
- Experience working in marketing, advertising, sales, and/or events
- Ability to work flexible hours, including some evenings, weekends and, on rare occasions, holidays. (Don’t worry, we make up for it with time off and remote/hybrid scheduling at other times of the year!)
- Great interpersonal communication skills
- A willingness to talk to people you have never met
- Great listener who can understand the needs of different organizations and can suggest relevant ideas for how those organizations can partner
- Demonstrated integrity and professionalism
- Energetic and self-motivated attitude but loves working in a TEAM atmosphere
- Competitive response to challenges (A “Bring it on!” attitude)
- Hard work and persistence
- Comfort with being uncomfortable (this is how we grow!)
- Coachability
- Strong organizational skills
- Proficiency with Microsoft Office, especially PowerPoint, Word, and Excel.
- Proficient with Social Media platforms (Facebook, X, Instagram)
- Salesforce experience (preferred)
- Must be fully COVID-19 vaccinated and have a clean driving record
Why Van Wagner May Be Right For You:
- An unmatched culture within our organization that focuses on building trust with our team members, sponsor businesses, schools, and conference partners through a people-first approach that delivers business results
- Competitive salary, with bonuses and commissions based on performance (with no cap!)
- Outstanding benefits package (including medical, dental, vision, life insurance)
- 401k
- Opportunity to compete in sales contests with cool prizes (i.e. Trips to Final Four or CFP Championship Game)
- Ongoing professional development training
We are an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, age, disability, gender identity, marital or veteran status, or any other protected class.
