Director of Marketing (Partial WFH / Southeast USA)

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HARRY'S COMMENTS: We are working with one of America's largest importers and marketers of specialty lighting for homes and businesses. This role is partially WFH, and the firm is based in the Southeast USA. Ideally, the client would like to see you in the office at least three days a week.

Since 2004, we have handled many searches in the lighting industry, and it's amazing how BIG and VARIED it is.

According to IBIS World, The US Lamp & Lighting Retail Stores industry is $3.2 billion, while Mordor Intelligence reports that the online market for lighting now exceeds $9 billion.

Within that space we have the market for lighting for holidays, special events, parties, and indoor / outdoor decor for homes and businesses -- my client's specialty. You might not think this one niche could sustain a voraciously growing company, but you'd be wrong.

My client markets thousands of SKUs, all made to very tight manufacturing standards. The firm has four go-to-market strategies, including white label, B2B, DTC, and marketplaces. As the firm's new Director of Marketing, all of these will role up to you.

While most of the firm's business is holiday-related, its cadence isn't an all-or-nothing affair like Spirit Halloween's, but it is pronounced. Fortunately, the firm's assortment includes outdoor and patio lighting, and it's constantly finding new applications for its lines, like so ...

Part of your job will be to reduce the effect of that seasonality, which is doable. The firm's wholesale B2B business gives it the volume it needs to compete in the consumer space, and its DTC business pushes the firm to maintain a consumer level of excellence, thereby enabling it to offer ...

• access to product experts and a dedicated account team,
• wholesale pricing and volume discounts,
• same-day shipping,
• 99.9% shipping accuracy,
• early-buy discount programs, and
• the ability to hold inventory until exactly when the client needs it.

A major part of my client's B2B business involves selling (and warrantying!) holiday lighting to landscapers, a $12 billion market with 642K businesses.

Most of these professional decorators/installers lack the financial and storage capacity to inventory holiday lighting until their residential customers request it. My client's model solves for that -- thereby allowing landscapers to make money in what would otherwise be the offseason.

On top of that, my client is selling to the Clark Griswolds of the world, in addition to winning municipal contracts to liven up the downtowns of small-town America with giant Christmas trees, event string lights, patio and bistro lights, outdoor lit decor, outdoor rated LED bulbs and laser lights. Pretty much everywhere you look, there's an opportunity for growth.

We're looking for the marketing equivalent of the spinning plate guy on the Ed Sullivan Show. This is NOT a P&L-owning role. Each channel manager runs their own P&L. You'll need to think of marketing as a shared service, with your team launching new products, running digital campaigns, and producing hard-hitting collateral throughout the year.

To win in this role, you'll need serious chops in digital brand and product marketing. Exciting launches must be second nature to you. You will be the face of marketing throughout the organization, rallying every employee to address both long and short-term opportunities for growth for all brands, channels, and customer cohorts.

I spent a ton of time on the phone with the client teasing out exactly what you ll need to KNOW and DO to hit the ground running in this role. Some of the things I can share with highly qualified candidates include ...

1. The "real" background requirements for this position, along with the top five things all resumes MUST have to be considered for the role.
2. The top five problems that exist due to this position being open. These are the little brush fires you will be expected to put out during your first month on the job. Every ecommerce job has these and this one's no different.
3. What your average day/week will look like in this role. There's what you read in the standard ecommerce job posting ... then there's reality. We've got the reality.
4. The leading and lagging KPIs that will determine your success in this role. In a nutshell: How you'll keep score.
5. The major projects you ll need to complete by Day 100 to be considered a home-run in this position. We ve got the lowdown on how you can plug-and-play and drive REAL value in this ecommerce job.

I have a massive amount of proprietary intel to share with qualified candidates. My industry research for this assignment exceeds 100 pages! Be sure to TEXT me, Harry Joiner, at (404) 281-2025 for this info. Or simply use the email link when you apply for the role below.

• Develop and execute comprehensive marketing strategies across all channels to enhance brand visibility and market presence.
• Drive the organization s brand strategy, including assistance with possibly redefining and reimagining the organization s current brand strategy to ensure that it is properly aligned with the organization s strategic plan.
• Oversee the development and maintenance of a consistent brand identity across all channels and collateral.
• Lead/Manage marketing department professionals over collateral development, product catalog maintenance, ecommerce site updates, email marketing, social media and PR.
• Develop, implement and measure digital marketing campaigns to attract new customers, retain existing customers and grow sales across retail and wholesale channels.
• Set specific goals and kpi s for marketing projects and routinely incorporate analytics to inform and influence future efforts to continually improve effectiveness.
• Conduct competitor research and also research demand for an organization s products and new product initiatives.
• Set measurable goals aligned with the company's seasonal business model, taking into account the timing and impact of initiatives.
• Develop and execute targeted advertising campaigns and seasonal promotions across various channels to improve Return on Ad Spend and Customer Acquisition Cost.
• Strengthen relationships with wholesale clients through personalized marketing strategies and loyalty programs to increase bulk orders.
• Enhance analytics and reporting systems to track KPIs, understand customer behavior, and make data-driven decisions.
• Strategically prioritize top-level initiatives to establish goals and determine appropriate KPIs.
• Drive brand awareness and refine product messaging to resonate with target audiences.
• Implement customer segmentation strategies to personalize marketing efforts and increase key metrics like Conversion Rate, Average Order Value, and Customer Lifetime Value.

• Define competitors based on target customer segments and channels.
• Conduct a thorough review of competitors and industry best practices to identify opportunities for improvement.
• Consider implementing a rebate-based rewards program for wholesale clients to strengthen relationships.
• Enhance social media engagement and invest in high-quality video content to improve brand perception.
• Revamp the retail website to ensure it remains fresh and engaging.

• Partner with influencers to promote the brand both online and offline.
• Pursue multiple initiatives simultaneously to maintain agility and drive excitement.
• Focus on launching new products and creating compelling narratives around them.
• Leverage AI to position the brand as a subject matter expert in content creation and social engagement.
• Explore opportunities for tradeshow attendance and develop targeted marketing presentations for potential customers.

• Establish regular communication touchpoints with customers through newsletters and other non-sales-oriented content.
• Enhance video advertising and email marketing content to better resonate with target audiences.
• Develop collateral for new and reinvented products to support marketing efforts.
• Maintain a strong focus on product development to drive ongoing growth and innovation.

• Bachelor s degree in Marketing, Business Administration, or a related field.
• 10+ years of experience in marketing, with a focus on digital marketing.
• Proven track record in strategic planning, brand management, digital catalog management, content and collateral development, and marketing analytics.
• Experienced leader with a collaborative cross-functional role, influencing key stakeholders and creating operational processes related to efficiencies
• Strong leadership skills and the ability to manage a team.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• Ability to work in a fast-paced environment and manage multiple projects simultaneously.
• Experience in developing and executing marketing campaigns and promotions to drive customer acquisition and retention.
• Proficiency in analytics and reporting tools to track KPIs and derive actionable insights.
• Strong strategic thinking skills to prioritize initiatives and set measurable goals aligned with business objectives.
• Ability to adapt marketing strategies to accommodate seasonal fluctuations and market dynamics.
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills to work effectively across teams and with external partners.
• Familiarity with retail and wholesale channels, with a focus on both immediate performance improvements and long-term growth strategies.