Brand Partnerships Associate, Energy Central

About Smooth

Smooth Media is the talent management company for knowledge creators — the people teaching, explaining, and breaking down the world through smart, insightful content. We serve as a true strategic partner to our creators — an extension of their team that helps them run, grow, and professionalize their business.

About the Role

Reports To: Head of Brand Partnerships

Energy Central is a media company owned by Smooth that empowers, engages, and educates utility and power professionals. We're building something ambitious in a space that matters, and we're growing our team to match.

Energy Central is a B2B media platform serving 120,000 utility and power professionals through newsletters, events, and digital content. We're building out our brand partnerships function and looking for a sales manager who can develop and close meaningful advertising and sponsorship relationships with brands targeting this audience.

This is a full-cycle sales role. You'll own your book of business, build relationships with marketing leaders at companies active in the energy space, and develop proposals that connect brand goals to Energy Central's engaged professional audience. You'll work closely with the editorial and account teams to make sure campaigns deliver real results.

If you're excited about the future of energy and want to sell in a market that's only getting bigger, this is a strong opportunity to get in early and help shape how it's done.

• Own and grow a portfolio of B2B brand relationships across the industries and buyer personas we serve
• Create strategic media plans and proposals tailored to brands' KPIs, budgets, and campaign objectives
• Lead the full sales cycle: outreach, pitching, negotiating, and closing, with a focus on building long-term relationships, not one-off deals
• Lead communication with internal stakeholders to ensure smooth and successful campaign execution
• Support junior team members and collaborate cross-functionally to move deals forward
• Identify repeat and upsell opportunities by staying close to existing brand partners and understanding their evolving goals

• 3-5 years of experience in B2B media sales, advertising, or brand partnerships (experience selling to or within the energy, infrastructure, or utility space is a strong plus)
• A proven closer with a track record of building a pipeline and hitting revenue targets
• Someone who's as comfortable in a relationship as they are in a negotiation, you build trust and you know how to close
• Strong written and verbal communication skills (you'll be pitching to senior marketing and brand leaders regularly)
• Genuine curiosity about the energy industry: you don't need to be an expert, but you need to be interested enough to become one
• Must be NYC-based (in office Mon-Thurs)

• Base salary: $75,000, plus commission on closed deals
• On-target earnings: $150,000 in Year 1, $250,000+ in Year 2, with uncapped upside as your book grows
• Health, dental, and vision insurance
• Unlimited PTO (mandatory 10 days per year minimum)
• A front-row seat to a growing B2B media business in one of the most important industries of the next decade
• Strong opportunity for growth at a profitable, bootstrapped startup

Smooth Media is an equal opportunity employer committed to fostering an inclusive and diverse workplace. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or any other legally protected status.