Sales Planner, The Athletic
$75-85k
Subscription-based sports content publisher
Job no longer available
Subscription-based sports content publisher
501-1000 employees
Job no longer available
$75-85k
501-1000 employees
Company mission
To produce smarter coverage for die-hard fans and redefine the way fans get access to sports content by flipping the normal model for sports journalism.
Role
Who you are
- 1-2+ years media experience
- BS/BA degree or related degree
- Attention to detail and organized
- Excellent knowledge of advertising and digital media
- Proficiency in Microsoft and Google office applications; sales and data management tools such as Salesforce are also desirable
- Motivated self-starter and quick learner
- Collaborative, responsive and accountable
- Excellent communication skills both with external clients as well as internal stakeholders
- Excellent relationship-building skills and the ability to work effectively in a team environment
- Strong ability to communicate end-to-end planning process and share that knowledge with the larger team
What the job involves
- The Sales Planner will act in partnership with our Advertising Sales & Strategy teams to lead and support thoughtful and compelling programs that deliver successful outcomes for our Advertisers
- The Sales Planner will be knowledgeable of digital and audio advertising platforms, tools, and products to create compelling media offerings
- The Sales Planner will work with The Athletic clients externally and be a partner to sales and other operational teams internally
- Support development of RFP (Requests for Proposal) process utilizing the full scope of The Athletic’s ad products that strategically address the advertiser’s needs and campaign objectives for digital and audio business lines
- Build and revise media plans, check avails, reserve fixed placements and update associated fixed placement calendars, and negotiate Terms & Conditions; Enter final plans into online proposal systems
- Manage the digital process workflow from RFP to IO and liaise with key approval stakeholders in AdOps, Revenue Analytics, Legal, Ad Product, Research and Strategy
- Adhere to process controls and ensure all approvals are accurately secured
- Maintain proper documentation of all IOs, T&Cs and Campaign activities
- Attend all Product trainings and develop a deep understanding of the full suite of The Athletic’s products across all platforms
- Assist with campaign kick off management
- Coordinate handoff of digital campaigns to AdOps to ensure pre and post sales continuity
- Field customer complaints and work with the appropriate department to resolve them
- Respond to servicing and information requests from team members and clients: work with various internal teams to gather information for customers and fulfill requests
- Provide excellent customer service to both internal and external clients
- Communicate detailed and specific account information to Sales and Operations management as needed
- When other team members are out of office or low on bandwidth, Planner is responsible for coverage and resourcing assistance to support larger department needs
- Planner is expected to surf the TA site regularly and frequently to ensure our Client’s ads are delivering as expected
Our take
The Athletic provides authentic, in-depth coverage written by journalists who know the teams they write about inside out. Its model bucks the trend of traditional sports journalism outfits by asking for a subscription rather than relying on ad-revenue.
Despite initial doubts that users would be willing to pay for sports journalistic content, The Athletic has found significant success and was acquired by the New York Times in 2022. Despite it operating at a loss directly after the takeover, it was clear that the New York Times perceived this as a long-term investment.
In 2025, it was reported that The Athletic was now profitable, which aligns well with its parent's prediction of profitability within 4 years. This has been aided by accelerated customer growth alongside the rising trend of subscription-based sports news.
Kirsty
Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle
Insights
Company
Funding (last 2 of 7 rounds)
Jan 2020
$50m
SERIES D
May 2019
$21.8m
SERIES C
Total funding: $139.7m
Company benefits
- Paid Time Off
- Paid Sick Leave
- Paid Parental Leave
- 401 (k)
- Short & Long Term Disability
- Free Subscription
- Competitive Health Care
- HSA & FSA
- Commuter Benefits
Company HQ
Financial District, San Francisco, CA
Leadership
Adam Hansmann
(President & Co-Founder)Previously a McKinsey Business Analyst and then Associate at Calera Capital.
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