Business Development Specialist

ARAG North America•Des Moines, IA

About The Position

Are you a curious researcher who loves uncovering new opportunities and connecting the dots? Do you bring creativity to your outreach, resilience in navigating challenges and a collaborative spirit that helps teams drive continued growth? ARAG is hiring a Business Development Specialist to research and engage prospective channel partners, support targeted campaigns and help drive lead generation. This role is perfect for someone who enjoys partnering across teams and brings a blend of curiosity, creativity and determination to their work.

Requirements

Understanding of distribution partnership concepts (channels, associations, employer groups, platforms/alliances).
Familiarity with demand generation and campaign concepts.
Working knowledge of Salesforce (or similar CRM) for lead/contact/opportunity workflows and reporting.
Practical knowledge of LinkedIn for list building and outreach.
Understanding of digital communications and marketing approaches
Strong written and verbal communication, confident phone/video presence, and ability to present complex ideas to diverse audiences.
Ability to interact effectively with all management levels and industry leaders.
Strong research, critical thinking, and analytical skills, including data interpretation and detail-oriented data entry.
Proven persuasive and objection-handling capabilities.
Excellent organization, time management, and ability to manage multiple campaigns and priorities in a fast-paced environment.
Hands-on experience with CRM systems (Salesforce preferred), LinkedIn prospecting, and MS Office Suite, including PowerPoint and reporting tools.
Experience collaborating with Marketing to convert campaign responses into qualified meetings.
Strong sense of urgency and adaptability to change.
Effective collaboration and conflict resolution skills.
Bachelor’s degree in Sales, Marketing, or Communications, or equivalent.
3-5 years related experience.

Nice To Haves

Experience in the legal and insurance industry preferred.

Responsibilities

Research and identify contacts at prospective channel partners (Affinity Groups & Associations, Digital Marketplaces & Online Platforms, SaaS & Technology Ecosystems, Financial Services & Advisors, Insurance & Fintech Channels, Affiliate & Distribution Networks and other emerging channel partners) using LinkedIn, web research, events lists, and third party sources.
Build targeted lists; find and validate decision maker and influencer contacts (LinkedIn, websites, referrals).
Tailor outreach to role, industry, and use case.
Collaborate with Marketing to create targeted campaigns for priority segments (messaging, contact strategy, call to action).
Qualify inbound leads from Marketing initiatives (email campaigns, events, webinars, content downloads) and route or advance them appropriately.
Create, update, and maintain leads, accounts, contacts, and opportunities in Salesforce, ensuring accuracy of fields, activity logging, and stage progression.
Track outreach volume, conversation outcomes, and conversion metrics via dashboards; flag risks, trends, and insights proactively.
Provide frontline feedback (objections, questions, offer resonance) to refine campaign content and audiences.
Identify relevant events to attend.
Coordinate attendance at events.
Manage event budgets.
Coordinate follow up on events/webinars (attendee lists, no shows, and engaged accounts) to drive meetings and opportunity creation.
Communicate our partnership value proposition succinctly and credibly across phone, email, and LinkedIn.
Uphold data privacy, compliance, and brand standards in all prospect communications.
Attend conferences and/or outside meetings, as needed.
Serve as a positive role model and deliver exceptional customer service, representing ARAG at its Best.
Perform other duties as assigned.