Website Manager & Content Strategist

Website Manager & Content Strategist

The University of Lynchburg, a private, regional university in the beautiful foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Central Virginia, is seeking applicants for full-time, Website Manager position in the Department of Marketing and Communications.

This position reports to, is supervised by, and evaluated by the Executive Director of Marketing. The evaluation of work performance will be ongoing and will be carried out by the Website Manager and Content Strategist. It will include the specific duties and responsibilities of this position description plus employee attitude and general working behavior.

Job Type: FT (Benefits Eligible)

Job Purpose:

The Website Manager & Content Strategist is the technical and editorial owner of the University of Lynchburg's digital presence. This is a strategic role responsible for the intersection of content strategy, web performance, and AI-driven discoverability. The Website Manager ensures our digital platforms serve prospective students, current students, faculty, and the broader community with clarity and speed, while serving as the bridge between creative marketing goals and technical execution.

Specific Job Duties:

• Develop and own the University's web content strategy, including voice, structure, and editorial standards across all digital platforms.
• Build and enforce a centralized content intake and governance model to manage requests from departments across the University.
• Execute hands-on website updates and page builds using WordPress and Elementor, reorganizing content for web best practices and audience clarity.
• Audit, map, and continuously improve site navigation and information architecture to reduce friction for prospective students and other key audiences.
• Manage the WP Engine hosting environment, including staging and production workflows, server-side performance optimization, and plugin governance.
• Establish and maintain global Elementor templates and design guidelines to ensure a cohesive brand presence across all web platforms.
• Ensure 100% of site content meets WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility standards and own the annual audit and remediation process.
• Optimize content for both traditional organic search and AI-discovery engines, including structured data, FAQ strategy, and entity-based content approaches.
• Own GA4 implementation and deliver monthly analytics reports to leadership connecting web performance to enrollment funnel metrics.
• Identify and implement AI-assisted tools to accelerate content production, metadata generation, and A/B testing while maintaining brand and accuracy standards
• Maintain and develop an editorial calendar aligned to the academic year, admissions cycle, and University events.
• Supervise the student Digital Media Assistant and serve as a mentor for emerging web and content professionals.
• Collaborate across departments via Asana, email, and Google Workspace while enforcing centralized governance standards.

Starting Salary: $62,000-$68,000

Benefits:

• Generous paid vacation, personal days, paid sick time and family leave, comprehensive insurance (medical, dental, vision, etc.) and retirement plans, flexible spending account, tuition remission, life and long-term disability insurance, and more. Learn more about employment benefits at the University of Lynchburg.

Schedule:

• 8:30 am - 5:00 pm (7.5 hours/day with some evenings and weekends to meet needs of the department may be required)

Experience/Skills:

• Minimum of 5 year of progressive experience in website management, digital content strategy, or web marketing, preferably in higher education or a mission-driven organization.
• Demonstrated experience owning a large, multi-stakeholder website (500+pages) from both a strategic and technical standpoint.
• Proven track record of developing and executing a content strategy that improved measurable outcomes such as traffic, leads, time-on-site, or enrollment inquires.
• Background working in environments with decentralized content contributors and centralized governance, ideally in higher education, healthcare, or government.
• Advanced, hands-on experience with WordPress and Elementor, including custom CSS, template hierarchy, and plugin management.
• Proficiency with WP Engine's hosting platform, staging environments, CDN configuration, and performance tooling.
• Working expertise in technical SEO, including Core Web Vitals, schema markup, canonical tags, and XML sitemaps.
• Solid working knowledge of HTML and CSS sufficient to write and debug custom code within WordPress.
• Experience auditing and remediating WCAG 2.1 AA issues using tools such as Siteimprove, axe, or WAVE.
• Familiarity with AI writing assistants and emerging LLM-powered content tools such as Gemini, Notebook LM, ChatGPT, Claude, Jasper, or Surfer SEO.
• Experience with project management and intake tools such as Asana, Monday.com, or similar platforms.
• Strong written communication skills and ability to enforce editorial standards across a large organization.

Physical Demands:

• Prolonged sitting and wrist movement

Required Qualifications:

• Minimum of 5 years of experience in website management or digital content strategy.
• Advanced proficiency in WordPress and Elementor.
• Demonstrated knowledge of SEO best practices and GA4 analytics.
• Working knowledge of WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility standards.

Preferred qualifications:

• Experience in a higher education marketing or communications environment, with fluency in the enrollment funnel as it applies to prospective students.
• Familiarity with CRM integrations such as Slate or Salesforce and how web forms connect to enrollment systems.
• Experience with heatmap and UX research tools such as Hotjar or Microsoft Clarity.
• Working knowledge of email marketing platforms and how web content connects to audience nurture campaigns.
• Experience with AI-powered SEO tools such as Surfer, Clearscope, or SEMrush AI, and an understanding of how large language models surface institutional content.
• Background in brand management or experience maintaining a design system or style guide at scale.
• Certifications in Google Analytics, HubSpot Content, or a recognized SEO platform.
• Experience with video, podcast, or multimedia content strategy as the University expands its content formats.

Education: 

• Bachelor's Degree in Communication, Marketing, Journalism, Information Science, or a related field. Equivalent experience may be considered.

Work Remotely:

• No

We seek candidates who are committed to the University of Lynchburg’s efforts to create an environment that fosters a student-centered environment, develops the breadth of knowledge associated with liberal education, respects and supports diversity, equity, and inclusion, values and celebrates diverse faith traditions, and sustains close working relationships among faculty, staff, students, alumni, and community partners.

Candidates must successfully pass a background check that is satisfactory to the University. 

Submit a cover letter, résumé, and three professional references to: 

Human Resources Jobs Page

The University of Lynchburg is dedicated to inclusive excellence. We celebrate the diversity of our common life, affirming our different histories, realities, and identities. All belong here. 

As a testament to our strong commitment to accessibility, diversity, and inclusion, we will attract, celebrate, and retain a community of diverse students, staff, and faculty; foster belonging; and create a campus environment that embraces civil discourse and accountability for our words and actions. 

The University of Lynchburg embraces diversity in its broadest sense. We will cultivate an inclusive, equitable, and safe campus climate grounded in mutual respect and understanding, where all members of our diverse learning community - alumni, employees, learners, visitors, and volunteers- can thrive. 

The University of Lynchburg is an equal-opportunity employer.