Audience Development - Events (Contract)

Semafor•Washington, DC

About The Position

Semafor is seeking an experienced Contract Audience Developer to support audience development and event execution for Semafor World Economy, its flagship global convening in Washington, D.C. The role owns end-to-end audience development for assigned events and programming, from audience strategy and list building through invitations, registration, attendee communications, and on-site readiness. The successful candidate combines sound audience judgment with hands-on operational capabilities to attract the right mix of attendees, meet participation targets, and deliver a seamless attendee experience. The role develops audience acquisition plans; curates targeted invitation lists; creates and manages attendee communications; maintains event websites, registration pages, and RSVP workflows; tracks audience composition and capacity; and coordinates with editorial, events, design, partnerships, and audience development colleagues. It also supports event execution, attendee management, and post-event reporting as required. The position is ideally based in Semafor’s New York, NY or Washington, D.C. offices, though remote candidates outside those regions are welcome. Compensation is a flat weekly rate of $1,800. Semafor’s flexible paid time off policy applies to full-time, salaried employees; the posting does not specify that this contract role qualifies.

Requirements

Strong experience in audience development, event marketing, or attendee acquisition for high-profile business events.
Demonstrated ability to manage event audience development from initial planning through execution.
Excellent judgment in curating senior executive and business audiences.
Strong copywriting skills and experience developing professional event invitations and communications.
Proficiency with CRM systems, event registration platforms, spreadsheets, and website content management tools.
Ability to manage registration pipelines, capacity targets, and multiple simultaneous deadlines.
Highly organized, resourceful, and comfortable taking ownership in a fast-paced environment.
Experience working across editorial, commercial, marketing, and event operations teams.

Responsibilities

Develop and execute audience acquisition plans for assigned Semafor World Economy events.
Build and curate targeted invitation lists using Semafor’s internal databases and other relevant sources.
Translate event briefs into audience criteria, including seniority, industry, organizational relevance, and desired audience composition.
Align audience recruitment with editorial priorities, event objectives, and partner commitments where applicable.
Draft invitation copy, registration messaging, reminders, and other attendee communications.
Coordinate with the design team on event invitations and associated creative assets.
Manage invitation distribution, personalized outreach, follow-ups, and attendee communications.
Track audience acquisition performance and adjust outreach strategies to meet targets.
Manage event website content, registration pages, and RSVP workflows for assigned events.
Keep event information, registration details, speaker content, and attendee-facing materials accurate and current.
Maintain registration data and manage attendee status changes, cancellations, and waitlists.
Coordinate with relevant teams to troubleshoot registration issues and support a seamless attendee experience.
Own RSVP tracking and audience reporting for assigned events.
Manage registration pipelines against venue capacity, attendance projections, and audience composition targets.
Monitor the volume, quality, and relevance of confirmed attendees against the event brief.
Identify audience gaps and recruit additional participants to maintain the desired balance.
Manage oversubscription, waitlists, and last-minute attendance changes.
Work with Editorial, Events, Design, Partnerships, and Audience Development teams throughout the event lifecycle.
Maintain internal reporting on audience recruitment, registration progress, and operational readiness.
Prepare final attendee lists, event briefings, and handoff materials for on-site teams.
Support event execution, attendee management, and post-event reporting as required.