Social Media Manager

Join The Dink, the leading media and events brand in pickleball, the fastest growing sport in the world. This is a unique opportunity to manage a sports media brand that reaches millions of people daily. The Social Media & Content Manager will oversee our digital presence, create engaging content, monitor the pickleball ecosystem and drive audience growth across multiple platforms. 

Work directly with our CEO and Head of Content in NYC to learn the ropes of what it takes to build a media brand. This person should be stoked at the idea of flexing their creative muscle to entertain, inform, and make our passionate fans/listeners/followers laugh.

Expect to attend various pickleball tournaments, celebrity pro-ams, brand activations and other events in NYC and across the US. We are looking for someone who is creative, super detail oriented, growth-minded and an expert in the latest trends and best practices across social media. If you’re a creative storyteller with a passion for sports and social media, we’d love to hear from you. Join The Dink and help shape the future of pickleball content!

Someone who plays pickleball is a huge plus! Serious Candidates: please send an email to thedinkteam@heydink.com with samples of previous work (e.g. portfolio, links to social media posts, etc.) and a brief description of your familiarity with pickleball, if any.

Key Responsibilities

• Manage The Dink’s entire social media presence, including IG, X, TT, FB, YT, Threads, etc.
• Create original short-form content, videos, graphics and memes related to the latest in the world of pickleball, while finding unique ways of tying a niche sport to the broader zeitgeist (e.g. talking head videos, man-on-the-street interviews, news graphics, challenge videos and more)
• Develop and execute viral content strategies, leveraging trending topics and creative storytelling in-office and throughout NYC
• Continuously research and implement the latest social media trends, ensuring all content aligns with platform-specific best practices to drive engagement and growth
• Share content strategically to maximize the distribution of and visits to our newsletter, stories on thedinkpickleball.com and views/listens of our podcast and video series
• Track and report key social media metrics (e.g., follower growth, engagement rate, video views, newsletter sign-ups, podcast downloads) to refine strategies and optimize content performance with an emphasis on growing our newsletter readership, website visits and podcast downloads
• Analyze historical and current social data to develop and implement short-term and long-term plans to increase engagement and drive significant audience growth
• Ideate and produce original content ideas. Write scripts, film and edit short form storytelling videos highlighting compelling and viral topics and news
• Edit daily short form videos for our podcasts, YouTube content and events according to current best practices
• Build and manage an organized content library; construct content calendars based on key growth goals and aligned with our marketing initiatives
• Constantly monitor pickleball social media, publications and other mediums to stay on top of and contribute to the most important topics, stories and conversations
• Provide commentary on news and developments across the sport of pickleball and the pro pickleball landscape
• Create content to promote our events, tournaments and activations
• Work with content team, writers, and operations to ensure that we are properly promoting our in-house content and initiatives (e.g. updates, events, product launches, news, announcements)
• Engage with our readers, followers, listeners and fans across all channels daily

Qualifications

• NYC based, ability to come into the Manhattan office 5 days per week
• 2 years of experience in social media management, content creation, digital marketing, or a related field
• Experience with short form video editing and graphic design
• Proficient in major social media platforms (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, TikTok, etc.) and fully up to speed on the latest social media trends and strategies
• Ability to leverage analytics and assess performance metrics to make data-driven content decisions and build a sophisticated social media strategy
• Understanding of key copywriting concepts and best practices
• Previous experience in sports, media and content is a plus
• Ability to work and operate efficiently to meet quick turnarounds
• Extreme attention to detail to avoid common errors like typos, spelling mistakes and design flaws
• Willingness to "work" on weekends - you will watch pro pickleball and post updates, and occasionally attend video shoots, tournaments and events
• Experience with assessing performance metrics and analytics to build short and long-term social media strategies
• Demonstrated track record of managing and growing social media accounts

About Upswing Sports & The Dink

Upswing Sports is a portfolio of ventures related to racquet sports, with an emphasis on the fastest growing sport in the world, pickleball. Our cornerstone media property, The Dink, publishes daily content for millions of followers, readers and listeners across its newsletters, podcasts, YouTube channel, news website and expansive social media presence. The Dink also hosts pickleball’s largest amateur tour, The Dink Minor League, as well as various other events like celebrity pro-ams and social mixers, and sells products via its ecommerce presence.