Public Relations Manager

Job Title:                     Public Relations Manager

Supervisor’s Title:       Director of Communications

Department:                Marketing & Communications

Key Relationships:

                                    Internal: All Employees

                                    External: Clients, Vendors, and Visitors

SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL & MAJOR RESPONSIBILITIES: Under the direction of the Director of Communications, the Public Relations Manager manages and implements communications programs to support the priorities of the department and Visit Corpus Christi.

The Public Relations Manager is responsible for creating and maximizing positive editorial media coverage for the destination, partners, and the Visit Corpus Christi Organization and will support the Director of Communications in creating and executing media relations, program outreach, and strategic communications planning for the organization.

CLASSIFICATION:  FULL-TIME, EXEMPT:  Bi-Monthly, Salary.

PRINCIPAL DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES (Essential Functions): 

• Coordinate logistics with hospitality partners for media missions, familiarization tours, and events, ensuring seamless execution across platforms.
• Collaborate with the Director of Communications to manage reporting and logistics with PR agencies, freelancers, photographers, and other external resources as required.
• Plan and execute media familiarization tours (FAMS) in close collaboration with the Director of Communications, strategizing with area attractions and venues to create tailored positive experiences for visiting journalists, content creators, and influencers.
• Coordinate publicity initiatives for upcoming events, tradeshows, clients, and meeting organizers.
• Support the department’s editorial/pitch calendar across all segments, including national leisure, trade, local, and industry. Work closely with the Director of Communications to assess success and maximize opportunities.
• Build and maintain strong local, regional, and national editorial media relationships.
• Assist in developing and executing strategic PR plans and materials, including press releases, story pitches, and editorial content.
• Manage and coordinate PR content trips for both PR and social media purposes.
• Monitor local key news media consistently to collect pertinent information for the organization and industry, sharing relevant information within the company.
• Manage the digital media portal, editorial image library, b-roll, and other media resources.
• Manage the local influencer program, maintaining relationships, overseeing the calendar of events, KPIs, and associated event planning.
• Lead communication meetings for Event Promotional Tiers with partners and attractions to coordinate marketing and communication deliverables.
• Lead outreach and onboarding meetings for the Partner Portal, ensuring maximum partner and stakeholder engagement.
• Assist and collaborate with the Marketing & Communications team to track key performance measures such as local earned media value, media hosted, and media placements.
• Manage KPIs and media reporting via the CRM and qualitative scoring system to date.
• Manage Public Relations giveaway inventory.
• Respond promptly to media inquiries and requests, reaching out to existing media contacts with potential story ideas.
• Act as an organizational tourism ambassador for Corpus Christi residents.

Other Functions 

• Travel to attend industry events and to promote the destination to potential visitors up to 10% of the year.
• Any additional duties as assigned. 

JOB SPECIFICATIONS:

Required Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (Requirements are representative of minimum levels of knowledge, skills, and/or abilities.)

• Extensive knowledge of Corpus Christi, its tourism industry, social media, blogger relations, media monitoring tools is preferred
• Provides strong interpersonal and communication skills and the ability to work effectively with various constituencies in a diverse community, including managers, co-workers, customers, and the public in general.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, both written and verbal, and the ability to speak clearly and persuasively in positive or negative situations, demonstrate group presentation skills and conduct productive meetings.
• Excellent organizational skills, attention to detail, and time management skills with a proven ability to meet deadlines.
• High functioning knowledge of AP and Creative writing styles.
• Understanding of social media platforms.
• Spanish language skills a plus.
• Ability to travel up to 10% of the time annually.
• Ability to function well in a high-paced and, at times, stressful environment.
• Ability to plan, develop, manage, and coordinate multiple projects and deadlines.
• Ability to espouse high ethical standards and expect the same from all others in the organization.
• Ability to build and maintain relationships and work well with others as part of a team.
• Working knowledge of word processing and spreadsheets computer applications
• Professional image representative of the company image

• Ability to operate a motor vehicle, either personal or company, for various Visit Corpus Christi businesses.

Education, Training and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Marketing, Public Relations, Journalism or equivalent experience in related field.
• Three to five years of media relations experience required. 

License/Certifications:  

• Must have a valid driver's license and must be insurable under VCC current motor vehicle insurance policy.

Computer Software

• Microsoft Office, (Excel/Word/Outlook/Teams skills required).
• Basecamp

• Adobe Platforms
• Cision Media Monitoring or equivalent preferred
• Simpleview CRM preferred