Job description

The Sr. Manager, Digital Marketing is a key leadership role within the KONG Brand team, responsible for building and scaling the KONG digital marketing presence across paid media, owned content, email, SMS, social, and partnership channels. This role oversees a team of three, ensuring paid, owned, and social content work together as a unified digital ecosystem. This is a strategic and hands-on role for a leader who is equally comfortable setting direction and rolling up their sleeves to deliver. The Sr. Manager partners closely with the Sr. Director of Brand, internal and external agencies to support the KONG digital marketing efforts in a way that is aligned with the brand and informed by data. Job responsibilities Strategy and Execution • Manage and optimize KONG paid media campaigns across Meta, TikTok, Google, YouTube, and emerging platforms, tracking performance against true business outcomes • Develop and execute a full-funnel digital marketing strategy connecting awareness, consideration, and conversion across paid, owned, and social channels • Oversee organic social content strategy in partnership with the Social Media Content Coordinator, ensuring social content is aligned with campaign priorities and brand voice • Partner with the paid media agency to ensure campaign performance, reporting accuracy, and brand alignment across all digital efforts • Stay current on digital marketing trends and emerging tools, bringing relevant insights and recommendations to the team proactively Email, SMS, and Lifecycle Marketing • Oversee the KONG email marketing program including campaign development, automation flows, segmentation, and performance tracking in partnership with the Marketing Manager • Guide the growth and optimization of SMS and direct mail efforts, ensuring messaging is timely, relevant, and brand-aligned • Build and refine consumer lifecycle strategies that drive acquisition, retention, and loyalty across direct-to-consumer and other channels Partnership and Growth Marketing • Support the development of KONG marketing partnership programs, identifying co-branded and affiliate opportunities that extend brand reach and drive growth • Partner with the Social Media Content Coordinator to amplify partnership and campaign activations across social channels • Collaborate with the ecommerce team to align digital marketing efforts with retail partners and the KONG direct-to-consumer site, ensuring a consistent brand experience across all digital touchpoints Analytics, Reporting, and Collaboration • Own digital marketing reporting across all channels, establishing clear KPIs and delivering regular performance updates • Ensure reporting is grounded in business outcomes: revenue, customer acquisition cost, lifetime value, and conversion • Use data and consumer insights to continuously optimize campaign performance, content strategy, and channel mix • Partner closely with the Sr. Director of Brand to align digital marketing strategy with overall brand priorities and campaign planning Leadership and Development • Mentor and develop two direct reports, the Marketing Manager and the Social Media Content Coordinator, setting clear expectations, providing regular feedback, and supporting their professional growth • Align paid, owned, and social content workstreams under a single point of coordination, ensuring the team operates with focus and a consistent brand voice • Foster a collaborative, high-performance team culture Cultural Steward • Show up as a KONG brand steward, dedicated to maintaining the integrity of the KONG brand while thoughtfully evolving it to be relevant, compelling, and culturally connected for the future • Operate with a continuous improvement mentality, proactively identifying opportunities to elevate digital performance and team capability. • Maintain a positive, solutions-focused attitude, bringing curiosity and a collaborative spirit to every project and partnership Requirements Education and Experience • Bachelor’s degree in marketing, communications, business, or a related field required • 4 to 6 years of progressive digital marketing experience, including at least 2 years in a management or team leadership role • Demonstrated experience managing paid social and digital campaigns across Meta, TikTok, Google, and other major platforms • Experience in consumer products, CPG, or pet industry environment strongly preferred Skills and Competencies • Strong strategic and analytical thinking with the ability to connect digital marketing performance to real business outcomes • Deep knowledge of paid social, SEM, email marketing, SMS, and social media management across a full-funnel digital ecosystem • Familiarity with Klaviyo, HubSpot, Meta Business Suite, Google Analytics, and TikTok Ads Manager • Excellent written and verbal communication skills with the ability to present strategy and performance clearly to senior leadership • Strong people leadership skills with a track record of developing marketing talent and building high-performing teams • Highly organized with strong project management skills and the ability to manage multiple campaigns and priorities simultaneously • Genuine passion for pets and an understanding of the pet owner consumer mindset This job description is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all duties, responsibilities or qualifications associated with the job. Compensation • From $120,000 annually Work Location • KONG Headquarters - Golden, Colorado • Onsite Monday through Friday Benefits • Health, Dental and Vision Insurance with low-cost premiums • Access to voluntary benefits • Employer paid short-term/long term disability and life insurance • 401k with employer matching • 12 Paid Holidays • Personal Leave Accrual • Pet Insurance, Tuition reimbursement, dog toys, and more!

Requirements

Must-haves

Strategy and Execution
Manage and optimize KONG paid media campaigns across Meta, TikTok, Google, YouTube, and emerging platforms, tracking performance against true business outcomes
Develop and execute a full-funnel digital marketing strategy connecting awareness, consideration, and conversion across paid, owned, and social channels
Oversee organic social content strategy in partnership with the Social Media Content Coordinator, ensuring social content is aligned with campaign priorities and brand voice
Partner with the paid media agency to ensure campaign performance, reporting accuracy, and brand alignment across all digital efforts
Stay current on digital marketing trends and emerging tools, bringing relevant insights and recommendations to the team proactively
Email, SMS, and Lifecycle Marketing
Oversee the KONG email marketing program including campaign development, automation flows, segmentation, and performance tracking in partnership with the Marketing Manager
Guide the growth and optimization of SMS and direct mail efforts, ensuring messaging is timely, relevant, and brand-aligned
Build and refine consumer lifecycle strategies that drive acquisition, retention, and loyalty across direct-to-consumer and other channels
Partnership and Growth Marketing
Support the development of KONG marketing partnership programs, identifying co-branded and affiliate opportunities that extend brand reach and drive growth
Partner with the Social Media Content Coordinator to amplify partnership and campaign activations across social channels
Collaborate with the ecommerce team to align digital marketing efforts with retail partners and the KONG direct-to-consumer site, ensuring a consistent brand experience across all digital touchpoints
Analytics, Reporting, and Collaboration
Own digital marketing reporting across all channels, establishing clear KPIs and delivering regular performance updates
Ensure reporting is grounded in business outcomes: revenue, customer acquisition cost, lifetime value, and conversion
Use data and consumer insights to continuously optimize campaign performance, content strategy, and channel mix
Partner closely with the Sr. Director of Brand to align digital marketing strategy with overall brand priorities and campaign planning
Leadership and Development
Mentor and develop two direct reports, the Marketing Manager and the Social Media Content Coordinator, setting clear expectations, providing regular feedback, and supporting their professional growth
Align paid, owned, and social content workstreams under a single point of coordination, ensuring the team operates with focus and a consistent brand voice
Foster a collaborative, high-performance team culture

Nice-to-haves

Experience in consumer products, CPG, or pet industry environment strongly preferred

Application prep

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Platform: paylocity
Effort: medium

Benefits

Benefits detected in the listing.

Dental

Vision

401k