Marketing & Communications Specialist – Philanthropy (Contract)

YMCA Calgary; Calgary; On-site; CAD 65,000 - 85,000; Full time

Job summary

YMCA Calgary is looking for a Marketing & Communications Specialist to enhance donor engagement and lead communications strategies. The role involves crafting impactful content and driving integrated campaigns to deepen donor relationships, contributing to the mission of positive community impact.

Qualifications

• Proven experience with donor engagement and fundraising campaigns.
• Strong writing, editing, and project management skills.
• Minimum of 5 years of progressive experience in marketing or communications.

Responsibilities

• Lead donor-focused communications and engagement strategies.
• Craft key messages and create compelling content including videos and blogs.
• Plan, execute, and analyze marketing promotions to drive donor acquisition.

Skills

Donor engagement

Fundraising campaigns

Impact storytelling

Social media management

Content creation

Project management

Event marketing

Collaboration

Education

Post-secondary degree in Communications, Marketing, Public Relations

Tools

Email marketing platforms (Mailchimp, HubSpot)

CMS platforms

Job description

Marketing & Communications Specialist – Philanthropy (Contract)

Join to apply for the Marketing & Communications Specialist – Philanthropy (Contract) role at YMCA Calgary

Marketing & Communications Specialist – Philanthropy (Contract)

Join to apply for the Marketing & Communications Specialist – Philanthropy (Contract) role at YMCA Calgary

The Marketing and Communications Specialist – Philanthropy, will drive donor engagement and growth for YMCA Calgary, championing our mission to positively impact the lives of our communities. Reporting to the Director, Strategic Communications and Engagement, this role will be instrumental in developing and executing marketing and communications strategies to attract and retain individual and corporate donors. As a strategic storyteller and brand steward, this position will focus on elevating YMCA’s community impact as a trusted charity and deepening donor relationships through impactful storytelling and integrated campaigns.

Duties and Responsibilities

The Marketing and Communications Specialist – Philanthropy, will lead donor-focused communications and engagement strategies, ensuring our community understands and is inspired by the YMCA’s social impact. This includes:

• Developing and implementing an annual content strategy to highlight stories and showcase the positive impact of donor support.
• Planning and executing integrated campaigns that support YMCA’s philanthropy programs, including Annual Giving, Major Giving, Endowment initiatives as and Camp Chief Hector’s alumni initiatives.
• Leading integrated marketing efforts across digital, print, and event-based channels to foster donor retention and growth.
• Enhancing the YMCA Calgary website to create a seamless donor journey, making it easy for supporters to understand our mission and give.
• Collaborating with Fund Development to drive the YMCA Philanthropy Launch campaign and increase engagement with key programs.

What You Will Do

• Plan, execute, and analyze marketing promotions to drive donor acquisition, engagement, and retention, using data insights to refine strategies and report on campaign performance to key stakeholders.
• Craft key messages, develop compelling stories, and create content (videos, blogs, social posts, emails, newsletters, impact reports) that resonate with donors and the community.
• Partner with our Fund Development team, and external agencies to build and implement paid and organic media plans to elevate YMCA Calgary’s charitable impact and attract new supporters.
• Design branch activations to engage members and donors, encouraging on-site donations and deepening connections with our mission.
• Lead email marketing and direct mail initiatives targeted at donor acquisition and retention, converting one-time donors into recurring supporters.
• Execute media pitches and secure coverage of impactful YMCA events and stories, showcasing the depth of our community work.
• Manage the content and social media strategy to help elevate YMCA’s community impact and outdoor camp stories.
• Set objectives and track outcomes to ensure continuous improvement and feedback loops.
• Provide media relations and crisis communications response support.
• Plan and coordinate events as needed, which may involve some evening or weekend work.

This job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required and other duties, responsibilities and activities may change or be assigned at any time.

Required Experience and Qualifications

• Proven experience in donor engagement, fundraising campaigns, and impact storytelling.
• Strong writing, editing, and project management skills with an understanding of best practices in donor communications.
• Proven experience in social media management and content creation, including video production, storytelling, and graphic design, with a focus on engaging diverse audiences.
• Proven experience with event marketing, event management and turning moments into remarkable experiences.
• Strong experience developing content strategies informed by audience insights and engagement metrics.
• Familiarity with integrated marketing strategies across digital, print, and in-person channels.
• A collaborative mindset and strong interpersonal skills, with a proactive approach to building and sustaining donor relationships.
• Demonstrated experience leading cross-functional teams or workgroups, with a focus on aligning diverse stakeholders to achieve common goals
• Proven experience collaborating with creative agencies, with strong skills in writing clear, strategic briefs to guide creative direction and ensure alignment with campaign objectives and brand standards.
• Proficiency with email marketing platforms (Mailchimp, HubSpot, Constant Contact) to create, segment, and track email campaigns aimed at nurturing and retaining donors.
• Familiarity with CMS platforms for updating web pages, especially for donor-centric pages like campaign landing pages, impact stories, and donation forms.
• Experience with automation tools to streamline and personalize donor communication, including email workflows and engagement campaigns.
• Proven experience in setting and evaluating KPIs for marketing and communications initiatives, with a focus on driving growth and engagement metrics.
• A minimum of 5 years of progressive experience in marketing or communications, ideally within a nonprofit or charitable organization.
• A post-secondary degree or diploma in Communications, Marketing, Public Relations, or a related field.
• Evidence of a clear Police Information Check and Vulnerable Sector Search.
• At least three professional references.
• Comfort leading and organizing emergency and/or crisis communications response.

Working Conditions and Environment

• This role must be able to travel between YMCA branches and to external meetings on an as-needed basis.
• Work environments include office settings in YMCA Calgary and, on occasion, indoor and outdoor special events. On occasion this role may complete work tasks from home if needed. This is a 40 hour per week position.

Physical Requirements

• This position is not a physically taxing position.
• This position is required to be available by a YMCA Calgary issued smartphone phone in the event of an emergency as an integral part of the YMCA Calgary crisis communication procedure.

Application Instructions

To apply, please submit your résumé along with responses to the questions below in place of a cover letter. Each response should be no more than 4–5 sentences.

• Tell us about yourself and why you’re interested in this role at YMCA Calgary.
• What do you know about YMCA Calgary’s mission, and how does it align with your values?
• Share an example of a campaign you led that attracted new donors. How did you nurture engagement afterward to support retention or repeat giving?
• Tell us about a time you used storytelling to elevate awareness of a charitable cause. What format(s) did you use, and how did you share it?
• Give an example of how you used an event to attract new donors or sponsors and raise awareness for nonprofits. What were the outcomes or results?
• Talk about a time you’ve acted as a business partner (internal or external) in a way that highlights your collaboration, negotiation, and communications skills
• To ensure alignment, please confirm your expected salary range.
• This position is a maternity leave coverage from mid-August 2025 to March 30, 2027. If selected, do you have any concerns with a start date of August 18, 2025?

Supervisory Responsibilities

• This role may occasionally provide informal leadership to coordinators and students.

Seniority level

• Seniority level

  Mid-Senior level

Employment type

• Employment type

  Contract

Job function

• Job function

  Marketing and Sales

• Industries

  Non-profit Organizations

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