Business Development and Marketing Specialist

Optimized People; Johannesburg; On-site; ZAR 500 000 - 800 000; Full time

Job summary

A leading law firm in Johannesburg is seeking a Business Development and Marketing Specialist to plan and coordinate marketing events, assist with client research, and enhance the firm's brand and profile. This role requires at least a Bachelor's degree and a minimum of 3 years of marketing experience within a professional services firm. Ideal candidates will have strong knowledge of the South African legal market, excellent writing and organizational skills, and proficiency with marketing tools. The position involves both strategic and hands-on responsibilities in a dynamic environment.

Qualifications

• Minimum 3 years of experience in Marketing within a professional services firm.
• Experience in email marketing software preferred.
• Ability to work well under pressure in a fast‑paced environment.

Responsibilities

• Plan and produce physical events for the Johannesburg office.
• Assist with event logistics and communications.
• Support firm’s participation in local and national conferences.

Skills

Strong knowledge of the South African legal and business market

Excellent writing skills

Excellent organisational skills

Project management skills

Ability to build relationships

Agility in workload handling

Creative thinking

Education

Bachelors Degree

Tools

Vuture

Database experience

Website content management systems

Job description

Business Development and Marketing Specialist

About the job Business Development and Marketing Specialist

Our client, a leading law firm is on the lookout for a Business Development and Marketing Specialist

Qualifications

• Bachelors Degree
• Minimum 3 years of experience in Marketing, within a professional services firm
• Strong knowledge of the South African legal and business market
• Experience in composing own correspondence, internal and external documents and working with large schedules and documents
• Database experience – InterAction experience desirable. Experience with virtual event production and platform/tools required. Experience with email marketing software preferred.
• Experience with website content management systems and HTML a plus
• Excellent writing skills, attention to detail and commitment to quality are pre-requisites
• Excellent organisational skills and high levels of accuracy; strong organisational abilities. Excellent project management skills; must be capable of working well under pressure in a fast‑paced, deadline‑driven environment.
• Ability to liaise confidently and build relationships with people of all levels
• Has an agile approach to workload and demonstrates flexibility to meet the demands of an international legal firm
• Well‑developed persuasive and diplomacy skills with the ability to constructively challenge as needed
• Ability to be self‑sufficient but also able to leverage internal network as needed
• Creative with a willingness to consider ways beyond the status quo

Duties and responsibilities

• Events
  • Plan, coordinate and produce physical events (in‑house and at external venues) and virtual events for the Johannesburg office and wider Africa Group as and when required
  • Assist with event logistics including venue hire, food, décor, entertainment, marketing materials, audio‑visual, email communications, onsite facilitation and post‑event reporting
  • Create and edit event lists, invitations, materials and signage
  • Track and report expenditures against budget
  • Conduct pre and post event evaluations and report on outcomes
  • Conduct research of vendors and venues and propose options for events
  • Draft, format and send email communications to promote firm events using Vuture – the firm’s email platform
  • Develop, update and maintain event email distribution lists
• Interaction system
  • Prepare program materials including presentations, handouts and name tags, as well as promotional items/giveaways as requested
  • Provide onsite support at firm events, including setup and breakdown, registration, speaker assistance, venue and vendor coordination
  • Prepare RSVP, attendance and survey summary reports
  • Post events to internal and external websites
  • Maintain event documents including event calendars and forms
  • Maintain an up‑to‑date calendar of client events in South Africa
  • Regular updates to the 'Africa events' spreadsheet of upcoming events/sponsorships
  • Writing intranet stories after key events
• Marketing & Communications
  • Assist in coordination of the firm’s participation in, and sponsorship of, local and national conferences. Responsibilities include handling lawyer reservations or RSVPs, and coordinating and submitting advertisements, giveaways, logos, and other materials as needed for sponsorships and other external activities.
  • Assist in client and market research to help BD manager proactively identify opportunities
  • Preparation of innovative client materials and campaign roll‑outs
  • Co‑ordination and distribution of client briefs/legal updates
  • Liaising with PR agency on possible PR opportunities
• Reputation enhancement, brand & profile
  • Internal distribution of JHB office news alerts
  • Assisting with marketing collateral (brochures, advertising material) with design team
  • Support Business Development Manager in preparing legal directories and award submissions
  • Assist on content creation and editing for Africa blog, LinkedIn pages, and ensuring timely uploads are done
• Pitches, proposals and tender submissions
  • Liaise with BD Manager on Johannesburg office pitches, both pitches led by the Johannesburg office, and providing input for global pitches
  • Update pitch log and ensure pitches are stored in systematic way in pitch library
  • Updating of our global credential management system
• Management of information, projects and finance administration
  • Arrange photographs for new joiners
  • Arrange website CVs for new joiners
  • Ensure marketing administration is completed (including invoices, ordering marketing collateral, printing brochures etc.)
• General Business Development Support
  • Provide BD support to the Johannesburg and wider International Markets BD team as and when required