Careers

HARD MEDIA Inc (HMI) of Fountain Valley, CA is a premiere independently owned automotive media and events production company. HMI currently produces DSPORT magazine, the national IDRC event series, and DSPORTMAG.COM. HMI is looking to add talented individuals to its growing staff.

Please email all resume and portfolios to  inbox@hardmediainc.com.

SALES/MARKETING

Position Description:
Full-time, hourly or salary depending on schedule, experience and amount of project and task ownership. The SALES/MARKETING candidate will be responsible for maintaining sales, handling client accounts, and other marketing related activities for print, online and social media. The candidate must be able to meet sales goals and work with the editorial and creative teams.

Job Description:

  • Meet and/or exceed monthly/ annual sales revenue target
  • Maintain relations with key accounts
  • Understanding of automotive performance, tuning, and car culture
  • Identify new opportunities and develop a mutually beneficial product package for magazine and client
  • Open new accounts
  • Constantly looking for new opportunities with the many resources available
  • Promote and market all facets of the business operations to expand business opportunities
  • Able to work with a team, but also excel on their own
  • The ability to negotiate and close the most complex advertising sales deals.
  • Research and develop new customer lists
  • Participate in trade shows, special events and other promotional programs as required
  • Other duties and tasks as assigned

Education/Experience:

  • Bachelor’s degree (marketing/business/advertising preferred)
  • Experience in advertising sales (print, events & online), experience in publishing/automotive industry a plus

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

  • A deep knowledge and understanding of the online market, advertising community, customer requirements and how media is bought and sold.
  • Excellent written & verbal communication skills
  • Well developed presentation skills
  • Excellent customer relations skills
  • Proven ability to ‘close’ a sale at both the clients and agency level
  • Demonstrated accomplishments through consultative selling in developing new business and expansion within key verticals.
  • Reliable – sets & meets specific performance goals, sales targets, priorities and deadlines.

Equipment/Software Used:

  • Microsoft Office (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint)

EDITOR

Position Description:
Full-time, hourly or salary depending on schedule, experience and amount of project and task ownership. The EDITOR will be responsible for creating high quality content (words and images) for print, online and social media. The editor must be able to meet deadlines and work the art and video production teams.

Job Description:

  • Oversee the entire editorial process in order to develop and grow the DSPORT brand name
  • Write posts and features for daily, weekly and monthly deadlines.
  • Possess proper grammar and writing skills
  • Monitor editorial consistency; responsible for content acquisition, selection and preparation
  • Have photographic skills and experience in photo/graphic processing software
  • Working with art department, photo, video, and production team to create the highest quality content possible.
  • Interest in the automotive industry and up to date with trending topics, people, businesses, teams in the automotive industry.
  • Develop story or content ideas, considering reader or audience appeal.
  • Establish and maintain industry contacts
  • Attend shows, races and other events
  • Efficient work ethic, able to multitask, handle projects from start to finish
  • Accept other tasks and duties as requested or necessary

Education/Experience:

  • 4-year degree in journalism, engineering, photography or communications
  • Minimum 3-5 years experience in content creation for online and print
  • Experience as an editor for a magazine, newspaper, online publication
  • Experience covering the consumer and/or enthusiast automotive industry
  • Experience with social and emerging media

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

  • Strong knowledge of the automobiles, how they work, and the automotive industry.
  • Must be able to drive vehicles with a manual transmission.
  • Must be comfortable driving under various conditions, including but not limited to test tracks and racing circuits.
  • Must possess a valid US passport and be able to travel.
  • Strong background in online and print content creation.
  • Attention to detail and great organizational skills.
  • Detail-oriented self-starter with excellent written and verbal communication skills.
  • Thrive under pressure and meet deadlines consistently.
  • Microsoft Word, Adobe InDesign, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator
  • Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Google+, YouTube, WordPress

ASSISTANT ART DIRECTOR

Position Description:
Full-time, hourly or salary depending on schedule, experience and amount of project and task ownership. The ASSISTANT ART DIRECTOR is responsible for the layout and overall graphic design to ensure all products and visual aspects are up to par with the DSPORT brand name. The Assistant Art Director will work with the editorial team, sales/ marketing, and other departments to keep the magazine and website on track. The Assistant Art Director will be involved with all creative and artistic areas of the company.

Job Description:

  • Designing across all print and digital channels including magazine, online, events, social media, email, mobile, and video.
  • Laying out pages of the magazines (InDesign), presenting the words and images in a way that is easy for readers to digest, with high-visual impact. Often with tight deadlines.
  • Output of press-ready proofs
  • Designing creative and attractive magazine covers and article layouts.
  • Designing logos, flyers and other creative products
  • Developing brand identities from concept to design
  • Designing merchandise including shirt, hats, and etc.
  • Supervising contributing illustrators and graphic designers.
  • Developing standards, systems and best practices for content design.

Education/Experience:

  • BFA in Graphic Design or degree in Arts or equivalent
  • 3 to 4 years related experience or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
  • Previous experience in digital and print design, preferably with a monthly publication
  • Knowledge of prepress workflow

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

  • Experience with creating compelling visuals for different target demographics.
  • Expert level skill at all Adobe Create Suite applications.
  • Able to manage multiple editorial schedules and deadlines
  • Able to develop solid branding strategies for multiple products and campaigns.
  • Able to adapt and change in realtime as necessary
  • Ability to learn new platforms, technologies and techniques
  • Knowledge about automotive industry, trends and topics
  • Adobe Creative Suite, especially InDesign, Photoshop, Illustrator, Bridge and Acrobat.