Associate Director, Strategy - Influencer Marketing

About The Strategy Team

Collectively’s Strategy team plays a critical role throughout the lifecycle of an account at Collectively, ensuring our work is brilliant, innovative, and successful. This team works cross-functionally, supporting our core client services teams while also strategically leveraging contributions from other functions to produce the best possible work and results for our clients. We’re fueled by curiosity and a desire to solve client challenges through creative ideas, new solutions, and innovative ways of working together. As a team, we’re never afraid to try something new, ask lots of questions or roll up our sleeves and dig into research & insights.

Responsibilities

This is a cross-disciplinary role that is responsible for overseeing program strategy across multiple brands and activation types, directing a small team of collaborators. This role will play a critical role in evolving our approach to influencer marketing services & solutions on key accounts and client work.

The Associate Director role will report directly to the Senior Director of Strategy and is responsible for four key areas of work

Revenue Development

• Autonomously manage and deliver strategy contributions to RFPs, in partnership with New Business and Account Management teams
• Digest and understand complex/sophisticated client briefs, flagging follow up questions or proactive idea territory beyond direct ask
• Plan, build and conduct brainstorms (internal & external)
• Conduct and synthesize relevant research & insights to shape strategy recommendations
• Develop and articulate innovative influencer strategies (via outlines & slides) that achieve clients’ goals and incorporate best practices of organic and paid social campaigns
• Explore new territory and ideas, including creative concepts, platforms, services, and approaches
• Ensure projects from repeat accounts are basing strategy on historic performance data and current trends
• Direct and manage strategy work, deliverables, and related client communications across multiple complex/anchor accounts
  

Production

• Develop and maintain strong client relationships grounded in a deep understanding of the industry and client business goals
• Collaborate closely with a peer set of cross-functional leaders to deliver successful influencer marketing activations across multiple related brands
• Provide guidance, contributions, and feedback on deliverables, including influencer recommendations, creative briefs and content strategy
• Ensure the “strategic thread” is maintained throughout the Production lifecycle by overseeing creative concept reviews and participating in key account moments, including internal kick-offs, kick-offs/discovery, client presentations (strategy recommendations, influencer reviews, creative, etc), and wraps
• Supports execution of pilot programs and new service territories, helping shape production approach based on industry trends, creative best practices and research
• Support Production in responding to program and strategy shifts and keep projects aligned with client objectives and best practices
• Identify opportunities to optimize and pivot based on performance, trends, or client needs, including development of new materials or workflows
• Proactively identify and articulate incremental opportunities that further clients’ goals and expand our work based on performance and cultural trends
  

Reporting & Analytics

• Working with Analytics & Performance, develop hypotheses for content performance and ensure set-up and early measurement
• Support internal wrap preparation, and direct team to lean into the story & narrative of content performance, probing program performance and insights to develop an insightful and actionable wrap
• Develop an understanding and strategic perspective of new reporting tools, solutions, and offerings, helping teams apply them strategically to proposals/programs as needed and surface trends and learnings across accounts
• Surface qualitative performance trends, optimization opportunities and test & learn territories with actionable recommendations for quick application within the work
  

Functional Growth, Research, & Education

• Manage 1-2 direct reports (Strategists/ Associate Strategists), subject to team scale and growth
• Initiate and lead functional projects that help grow and develop the Strategy practice, including development of new materials, workflows and services
• Play a management role in the development of process and maintain up-to-date research for key clients, trends, industries, competitors, and products, using a variety of research tools (social listening, press/journalism, community surveys, etc)
• Synthesize key trends and information from a variety of sources, including internal data, to inform our approach and educate client and internal teams
• Conduct “audits” of programs, clients, and processes that deliver actionable insights for Collectively’s evolution
• Proactively experiment with and prepare and present POVs/best practices for existing & emerging platforms (i.e. podcasts, TikTok, etc.)
• Prepare and host educational sessions with teams or all employees to ensure everyone is equipped with the best strategies and learnings
• Support agency thought-leadership and sales enablement work in partnership with Marketing, New Business and Account teams

Requirements

• At least 8 years related experience in marketing/advertising industry or similar, with demonstrated success in influencer marketing and complex multi-brand accounts, ideally at the global level
• Demonstrated people management experience, both within the work and with direct reports
• Prior experience within the CPG/FMCG space (personal care category is a plus)

• Both left and right brain thinker, equally comfortable with data and creative thinking
• Strong organization skills with attention to detail and excellent follow-through
• Great communication and client services skills—both internally and externally, written and verbal
• Proven ability to effectively manage and deliver complex work across a variety of tasks and pand manage time appropriately for projects
• Collaborative working style with positive attitude and enthusiasm for making great work happen!
• BA or equivalent

Benefits

Medical, dental, vision, 401K and more.

About Collectively

Recognized on Fast Company's Most Innovative Companies list, Collectively brings innovative marketers and the most creative social media influencers together to drive awareness, gain insights, and create authentic content that builds brands.

This kind of influencer-centered marketing is growing exponentially around the world, and we're pioneers in the space, with more than a decade of experience shaping our work. Since Collectively’s founding, we’ve partnered with 100+ consumer brands, and grown a community of more than 25,000 influencers across all social media platforms. Our work has been recognized by top publications including The Wall Street Journal, Fast Company, Digiday, AdAge, and Business INSIDER, among others. We also have OMMA, Effie, Webby, and OMMA awards for our programs.

In 2020, we were acquired by You & Mr Jones, the world’s first brandtech group. To catch up on our latest Collaborations, please visit our website.