Business Development Manager - Events & Nightlife

USA Tech Recruit; Palo Alto (CA); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

USA Tech Recruit in Palo Alto is seeking a Business Development Manager to drive growth in the events, nightlife, and entertainment space. You will leverage an existing network of venues, promoters, organizers, and artists to turn relationships into signed accounts.

The role is highly relationship-driven: you will conduct demos, pitch value, negotiate terms, own the sales process end-to-end, and support onboarding.

Qualifications

• 2+ years in events, nightlife, entertainment, hospitality, ticketing, or related industry.
• Existing active network within events/nightlife ecosystem with 10–20 contacts you could call on day one.
• Direct relationships with business owners and decision-makers.
• Proven ability to close deals and negotiate commercial terms confidently.
• Strong sales instincts and the ability to run conversations from initial pitch through negotiation and close.
• Comfortable operating in a fast-moving startup environment with minimal process and significant autonomy.

Responsibilities

• Leverage existing network to generate warm opportunities and close accounts.
• Run product demos, pitch their value proposition, and negotiate commercial terms including fee splits, guarantees, and exclusivity agreements.
• Own the sales process end to end, from initial introduction through negotiation, close, and onboarding.
• Turn every new client into a source of referrals, expanding your network beyond existing relationships.
• Build relationships with key decision-makers across the local events and nightlife ecosystem.
• Supplement warm opportunities with targeted outbound prospecting, including cold introductions, DMs, and other direct outreach.
• Stay hands-on after the close by supporting onboarding and, where appropriate, attending a client's first event to help establish a strong relationship.
• Act as a trusted industry partner to clients and help them understand how they can improve their event sales and operations.

Skills

Networking

Sales

Negotiation

Communication

Relationship building

Startup environment

Account management

Lead generation

Prospecting

Demos

Job description

We are working with an all-in-one commerce and ticketing platform built for the events, nightlife, and entertainment industry. The platform helps promoters, venues, artists, and organizers increase revenue by bringing ticketing, drinks, tables, merchandise, sponsorships, and affiliate sales into one streamlined experience. With high-converting event pages, built-in promoter tracking, automated commission payouts, and on-site payment tools, they are helping event operators sell more while simplifying the operational side of running events.

We are looking for a Business Development Manager with 2+ years of experience in the events, nightlife, or entertainment space to leverage an existing network of venues, promoters, organizers, and other industry players and turn those relationships into signed accounts for us. This is a highly relationship-driven sales role for someone who already knows the local events and nightlife ecosystem and can hit the ground running with an established network.

Key Responsibilities:

• Leverage your existing network of event organizers, venue operators, promoters, DJs, and collectives to generate warm opportunities and close new accounts.
• Run product demos, pitch their value proposition, and negotiate commercial terms including fee splits, guarantees, and exclusivity agreements.
• Own the sales process end to end, from initial introduction through negotiation, close, and onboarding.
• Turn every new client into a source of referrals, deliberately expanding your network beyond your existing relationships.
• Build relationships with key decision-makers across the local events and nightlife ecosystem.
• Supplement warm opportunities with targeted outbound prospecting, including cold introductions, DMs, and other direct outreach.
• Stay hands-on after the close by supporting onboarding and, where appropriate, attending a client's first event to help establish a strong relationship.
• Act as a trusted industry partner to clients and help them understand how they can improve their event sales and operations.

Key Qualifications:

• 2+ years of experience in events, nightlife, entertainment, hospitality, ticketing, or a closely related industry.
• An existing and active network within the events/nightlife ecosystem — you should be able to identify 10–20 relevant contacts you could call on day one, including venues, promoters, organizers, DJs, or collectives.
• Direct personal relationships with business owners and decision-makers, rather than primarily second-degree or "friend of a friend" connections.
• Proven ability to close deals and negotiate commercial terms confidently.
• Strong sales instincts and the ability to run conversations from initial pitch through negotiation and close.
• Articulate, polished, and confident communicator who is comfortable pitching to new prospects.
• Highly relationship-driven, with the ability to build trust quickly within a close-knit industry.
• Comfortable operating in a fast-moving startup environment with minimal process and significant autonomy.
• Entrepreneurial and proactive — someone who will create opportunities rather than wait for an established lead-generation machine.
• Willingness to remain hands-on with customers after the sale and take ownership of the overall relationship.

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