Social Media and Content Manager

Virgin Active South Africa (Pty) Ltd; Cape Town; On-site; ZAR 600,000 - 900,000; Full time

Job summary

Virgin Active South Africa seeks a strategic Social Media & Content Manager to shape and amplify the brand's digital voice. You will lead an integrated strategy across platforms, manage communities, drive content excellence, and partner with influencers and brands to deliver measurable business impact.

This senior role requires 7+ years’ experience in social media, strong storytelling, and a track record of growth across wellness or consumer brands.

Qualifications

• Relevant tertiary qualification in Marketing, Communications, Media or related field.
• 7+ years' experience leading social media, content and community strategies for leading consumer brands.
• Proven track record of growing engaged digital communities and delivering measurable business impact.
• Experience managing influencer, ambassador and partnership programmes at scale.
• Strong understanding of content strategy, social media platforms, creator ecosystems, social media tools, analytics, community management and digital trends.
• Experience managing agencies, production partners and cross-functional stakeholders.
• Exceptional storytelling, copywriting and content planning capabilities.
• Strong commercial acumen with the ability to connect social performance to business outcomes.
• Advanced knowledge of social analytics, reporting and social listening tools.
• Experience within fitness, wellness, lifestyle, hospitality or consumer brands.
• Experience operating within regional or global brand environments.

Responsibilities

• Develop and lead Virgin Active's integrated social media and content strategy across all platforms.
• Own the social content roadmap and editorial strategy, aligned to calendar and priorities.
• Lead community growth, advocate programmes and proactive social listening.
• Oversee end-to-end content production across internal teams and partners.
• Drive brand voice consistency and storytelling across channels.
• Lead ambassador programmes, influencer relations and partnerships for measurable value.
• Build relationships with digital platform partners and explore new capabilities.
• Collaborate with Marketing, Product and Sales to promote offerings through content.
• Maximise paid social ROI with cross-team collaboration.
• Establish KPIs, deliver reporting, and drive testing and optimisation.
• Lead agencies and content partners to deliver best-in-class execution.
• Own annual social media and content budget and cost management.

Skills

Social media strategy

Content creation

Community management

Influencer programs

Analytics & reporting

Stakeholder management

Copywriting

Brand voice

Education

Degree in Marketing/Communications/Media

Tools

Social listening tools

Analytics tools

Job description

Your Purpose...

• Is to “change people’s lives for the better through wellness”;
• We deliver social wellness experiences that enable people to meet their personal wellness goals, through holistic physical, mental nutritional and social wellbeing.
• As Social Media & Content Manager, you are responsible for shaping and amplifying Virgin Active South Africa's digital presence, community and cultural relevance. You will lead the development and execution of a world-class social and content strategy that inspires wellness, strengthens member advocacy, drives brand consideration and supports business growth.
• You are the custodian of Virgin Active's digital voice, ensuring every piece of content reflects our purpose, brand values and commitment to delivering exceptional member experiences.
• This role sits at the intersection of Brand, Partnerships & Events, Growth, Product and Sales teams, translating business objectives into engaging content, meaningful conversations and measurable outcomes.

Your Duties and Responsibilities...

Social and content strategy

• Develop and lead Virgin Active's integrated social media and content strategy across all platforms.
• Ensure social and content initiatives directly support lead generation, acquisition, retention, engagement and brand equity objectives.
• Own the social content roadmap and editorial strategy, aligned to the annual marketing calendar and key business priorities.
• Continuously identify emerging trends, platforms and audience behaviours to keep Virgin Active culturally relevant and category-leading.
• Apply best practices and high standards across all social channels.

Community growth & member advocacy

• Build, grow and nurture highly engaged digital communities that deepen member connection and brand loyalty.
• Develop strategies that encourage high-volume member participation, advocacy and user-generated content.
• Lead social listening initiatives to identify opportunities, risks and emerging member trends or needs.
• Ensure Virgin Active actively participates in conversations - through proactive community management - rather than simply broadcasting content.
• Champion a community-first approach that strengthens belonging and drives positive brand sentiment.

Content excellence & storytelling

• Lead the creation of compelling, insight-led content that inspires, educates and motivates audiences on their wellness journey.
• Oversee the end-to-end content production process across internal teams, agencies and external partners.
• Ensure all content delivers against strategic objectives while maintaining exceptional creative standards.
• Create distinctive storytelling frameworks that showcase members, trainers, ambassadors, product innovation and club experiences.
• Drive consistency of brand voice and visual identity across all channels.

Influencer, ambassador and partnership strategy

• Lead the Friends of Virgin Active ambassador programme, ensuring it delivers measurable brand and commercial value.
• Develop and manage relationships with influencers, creators, athletes and wellness partners.
• Integrate sports sponsorships, Kauai collaborations and strategic partnerships into content and community strategies.
• Identify new partnership opportunities that enhance relevance, reach and credibility.
• Measure and optimise the effectiveness of all influencer and partnership investments.

Digital innovation and platform partnerships

• Develop and maintain strategic relationships with key digital platform partners, including Meta, TikTok, Google and emerging platforms.
• Identify, beta test and implement new social media capabilities, products and innovations that enhance Virgin Active's digital presence, member engagement and competitive advantage.

Product and innovation marketing

• Partner closely with Marketing, Product and Sales teams to bring new offerings, innovations and member benefits to life through content.
• Translate product features into compelling member stories and experiences.
• Ensure social channels become a key platform for education, discovery and adoption of new products and services.

Commercial impact and performance

• Collaborate with Brand, Growth, Product and Sales teams to maximise the effectiveness of paid social activity.
• Ensure content strategies contribute to leads generation, member acquisition, retention and lifetime value objectives.
• Use audience insights, data and experimentation to optimise performance and improve ROI.
• Balance brand-building initiatives with measurable business outcomes.

Reporting, analytics and optimisation

• Establish and monitor meaningful KPIs across engagement, community growth, advocacy, acquisition and retention.
• Deliver regular reporting and strategic recommendations to senior stakeholders.
• Use social listening, market intelligence and competitive benchmarking to identify opportunities for growth.
• Build a culture of testing, learning and continuous optimisation.

Leadership and stakeholder management

• Lead and inspire agencies, freelancers, creators and content partners to deliver best-in-class execution.
• Collaborate effectively across Marketing, Product, Operations, Growth, Partnerships and Global Virgin Active teams.
• Act as Virgin Active's internal subject matter expert on social media, content and digital communities.

Budget management

• Own the annual social media and content budget, ensuring effective planning, forecasting, cost management and reporting.
• Evaluate and optimise investment across content, creators, agencies, partnerships, technology and paid amplification to maximise commercial impact and ROI.

Our Minimum Requirements...

We can’t live without…

• Relevant tertiary qualification in Marketing, Communications, Media or related field.
• 7+ years' experience leading social media, content and community strategies for leading consumer brands.
• Proven track record of growing engaged digital communities and delivering measurable business impact.
• Experience managing influencer, ambassador and partnership programmes at scale.
• Strong understanding of content strategy, social media platforms, creator ecosystems, social media tools, analytics, community management and digital trends.
• Experience managing agencies, production partners and cross-functional stakeholders.
• Exceptional storytelling, copywriting and content planning capabilities.
• Strong commercial acumen with the ability to connect social performance to business outcomes.
• Advanced knowledge of social analytics, reporting and social listening tools.
• Experience within fitness, wellness, lifestyle, hospitality or consumer brands.
• Experience operating within regional or global brand environments.

Core Interpersonal Skills:

• Emotional Intelligence- proven ability to anticipate the needs of others before they are voiced
• Active Listening- Able to genuinely hear concerns with the ability to defuse tense situations and ensuring members and staff feel heard and valued
• Cultural Awareness and Fluency- understand international norms, etiquette and diverse backgrounds to provide a welcoming environment for our international and VIP members
• Empathy – be able to understand, or and be aware of, someone else’s feelings especially during stressful situations, such as travel delays or billing disputes

Operational & leadership Skills Required:

• Attention to Detail, noticing the small things
• Resilience and Composure, be able to remain calm and optimistic under extreme pressure, during peak or periods or system failures
• Problem solving and conflict resolution – be able to turn challenges into opportunities by thinking and acting quickly to resolve issues before they impact a member’s experience
• Adaptability: be flexible to handle unpredictable shifts in processers, resource changes, last minute VIP guest arrivals, or sudden changes in event plans.
• Relatability – the capacity to connect with diverse stakeholders across all backgrounds
• Situational Awareness – constantly monitoring the environment to identify members who need support or help
• Curiosity- the ability to seek out and transform standard transactions into personalised stories and memorable experiences
• Time Management – the ability to efficiently meet stringent deadlines while maintaining a relaxed and unhurried demeanor for guests.
• Digital Fluency – must be proficient in new age technology and systems