We are working with a well-established retailer in the footwear category. Our client is looking for a world-class Director of Digital Marketing with an expertise in Performance Marketing/Paid Media, SEO and Web Analytics. NOTE: This is an onsite role and the location can be shared with qualified and interested candidates. Relocation is expected with assistance. 4 days onsite with WFH on Friday. About the Role This opportunity centers on a Director of Digital Marketing role at a major footwear retailer at a high-stakes inflection point. The organization has brought its digital marketing capabilities fully in-house and is now investing in strategic leadership to elevate performance across paid, owned, and earned digital channels. This position offers a unique chance to help scale the digital business from a “sustain and maintain” phase to a high-performance, integrated growth engine. The incoming director will oversee a robust team of digital channel managers, including specialists in SEO, paid search, social, analytics, affiliate marketing, and performance shopping. Each team member has technical depth, but the team needs a unifying leader—someone who can integrate strategy across silos, deepen alignment with ecommerce and IT, and upgrade the company’s attribution model from last-click to multi-touch. This is not a role for a passive optimizer. It’s a fit for someone who combines hands-on digital expertise with strategic foresight, technical fluency, and organizational maturity. The business has strong leadership buy-in to invest in tools, analytics, and cross-functional integration—but the roadmap must be earned through influence. Key near-term challenges include: • Conducting a comprehensive performance audit of all paid and organic channels prior to back-to-school season • Identifying and correcting gaps in SEO ownership, particularly as it relates to site infrastructure, content, and feed management • Bringing a strategic lens to digital merchandising and vendor-fulfilled products, including recommendations for selectively allocating media spend • Actively partnering with ecommerce, merchandising, and IT to improve customer journey consistency and data visibility across systems • Establishing credibility as a cross-functional leader capable of driving both results and organizational clarity The ideal candidate is a performance marketing expert with broad exposure to digital strategy, ideally gained from both agency and retail-side roles. They’ll have experience managing integrated teams, building attribution models, and launching cross-channel campaigns informed by analytics. Mastery of tools like Google Analytics, Adobe Analytics, and Excel is essential, as is a facility for vendor selection and integration management. Candidates who have built performance teams, taught digital marketing, or navigated organizational transformation are especially encouraged to apply. Essential Duties and Responsibilities: Digital Marketing Strategy and Leadership • Lead and mentor a high-performing team of digital marketing professionals. Foster a culture of performance, innovation, inclusion, and continuous learning. • Develop and implement an integrated digital marketing roadmap aligned with company growth objectives, with clearly defined KPIs and measurable outcomes. • Collaborate closely with brand marketing, ecommerce, creative, and technology stakeholders to ensure alignment across messaging, promotion strategy, and campaign delivery. • Work with internal project managers to ensure campaign deadlines and milestones are achieved on schedule. • Effectively manage budgets and allocate resources to maximize ROI across marketing initiatives. Channel Execution & Optimization • Oversee the daily activities of digital marketing managers and channel specialists responsible for paid media, organic content, CRM, and web updates. • Build and maintain a consolidated digital analytics framework to gain visibility into full-funnel performance and customer behavior. • Drive improvements in search engine optimization (SEO), conversion rate optimization (CRO), and segmentation-based customer journeys. • Guide the execution of marketing automation campaigns from strategic brief to technical deployment. • Leverage tools such as Google Analytics, Meta Business Suite, and email analytics to optimize spend and content across digital platforms. • Own paid media platforms including Ads and oversee all agency relationships tied to media performance. Cross-Functional Impact • Champion a results-driven, customer-first culture across all digital programs. • Serve as a key contributor to the company’s broader brand and growth strategy through actionable performance insights and media recommendations. Required Qualifications: • Minimum 5 years of experience in digital marketing and ecommerce, preferably in retail or consumer products. • Bachelor’s degree in marketing, business, or a related field; equivalent experience also considered. • Proven ability to manage and coach a team, set KPIs, and deliver results in a fast-paced environment. • Expertise in digital tools including Google Ads, Meta Ads, email marketing platforms, and business intelligence dashboards. • Strong record of success in marketing automation, segmentation, A/B testing, and full-funnel optimization. • Understanding of ecommerce best practices, attribution, and customer journey analytics. • Highly organized, able to prioritize and juggle multiple projects while meeting deadlines. • Advanced proficiency in using performance data to make strategic and tactical decisions. • Experience working across both owned and paid digital media channels. • Commitment to fostering a diverse, equitable, and inclusive digital experience. Knowledge, Skills and Abilities: • Strong analytical and communication skills with the ability to simplify complex data for senior leadership. • Experience with digital media buying, creative brief development, and campaign reporting. • Clear and persuasive presentation skills; ability to communicate with both technical and non-technical stakeholders. • Comfortable managing large and small media budgets with a focus on ROI optimization. • Deep interest in staying ahead of emerging digital trends and technologies. • Creative thinker with strong attention to detail and a bias for action.