Senior Creative Strategist (DTC Performance Marketing)

Summary: We seek a senior-level creative strategist to lead performance-driven advertising for fast-growing direct-to-consumer brands. In this role you will own the end-to-end creative engine: conducting customer and competitor research, defining audience personas, crafting and testing new ad concepts weekly, and iterating based on data. You will lead a small creative team (writers, designers, editors, producers), work closely with media buyers and stakeholders, and be accountable for campaign KPIs (CTR, conversion rate, CPA, ROAS). This is a senior (>10 years) position with significant responsibility and autonomy; only candidates with demonstrated track records of scaling paid ads should apply.

Responsibilities:

Creative Research & Strategy: Mine customer reviews, social comments and surveys to build detailed audience avatars (pain points, motivators, objections). Analyze competitor ad libraries and market trends to identify winning angles. Use ethnography (interviews, UX research) to uncover fresh insights.
Testing Roadmaps: Develop structured testing plans and hypotheses for new creatives. Plan and prioritize weekly creative sprints: define variables to test (hooks, offers, formats), expected results, and success metrics.
Creative Development: Write and brief creative concepts yourself (scripts, hooks, ad copy, storyboards). Own production of ads with designers, video editors and creators. Provide clear, actionable briefs detailing hook/messaging frameworks and visual direction.
Iteration & Optimization: Launch high velocity (dozens) of new ads weekly, monitor their performance (hook rate, CTR, CPA, ROAS), and analyze results. Identify winners (e.g. 25%+ of tests hitting ROI targets) and double down while killing losers. Feed learnings immediately into the next week’s creative batch.
Leadership & Collaboration: Lead and mentor junior strategists, writers, and editors. Partner closely with media-buying, account and production teams. Provide strategic direction to designers and video teams, reviewing creative output for on‑brand messaging and performance potential. Communicate campaign strategy and results confidently to executives and clients, aligning creative direction with overall business goals.
Creative Operations: Establish and refine creative processes and testing infrastructure (creative briefs, asset libraries, analytic dashboards). Manage production timelines and budgets for creative projects. Champion new tools (e.g. AI-assisted ideation) to improve efficiency and creative quality.

Must-Have Skills and Experience:

5+ years in performance marketing or DTC creative strategy. Proven track record of scaling paid social or video ads with measurable ROI – e.g. campaigns you wrote that hit six- or seven-figure spend.
Deep expertise in Meta Ads (required) and at least one other platform (TikTok, YouTube, Google, Snap, etc.). Comfortable with Facebook /Google Ads managers and analytics tools.
Data- and hypothesis-driven mindset: strong comfort with CTR, CVR, CPA, ROAS and other KPIs. Able to translate data into creative insights and prioritize tests accordingly.
Excellent copywriting skills (hooks, scripts, ad copy, on-screen text). You’ll be writing much of the ad copy yourself, not just delegating.
Strong leadership and communication: experience leading creative teams or client relationships. Able to present strategy and feedback clearly.
Highly organized, detail-oriented and able to juggle multiple fast-moving projects/deadlines.
Nice-to-Have: experience with agency-side DTC brands, additional channels (Amazon, Pinterest), advanced CRO/landing-page testing, or creative ops background. Familiarity with audience research methods (survey design, ethnography) and creative analytics tools is a plus.

Benefits: Competitive salary (see below), performance bonus, equity or profit share (if applicable), fully remote/hybrid work, flexible hours, professional development budget. How to Apply: Submit your resume and a link to your portfolio or examples of ad campaigns with metrics. (See screening questions below for details.)

As part of the online application, candidates should provide basic info and answer prescreen questions.

Years of Experience: “How many years have you worked in performance marketing or creative strategy?”
Brand/Channel Fit: “List direct-to-consumer brands or accounts you’ve managed. Which ad platforms have you used (Meta, TikTok, Google, etc.)?”
Portfolio Link: “Please provide a link to your portfolio or examples of ad campaigns you created.”
Campaign Metrics: “For one of your campaigns, provide key results (e.g. CTR, CVR, CPA, ROAS) and budget spent.”
Creative Role: “Describe your specific role in the campaign(s) above. Did you write scripts, direct production, etc.?”
Channel Preference: “Which creative/ad channel are you strongest at (e.g. Meta videos, TikTok, YouTube)? Why?”
Testing Experience: “Give an example of an A/B or multivariate test you ran on creative. What was your hypothesis and outcome?”
Leadership: “Have you managed or mentored creative teams (copywriters, designers, video editors)? Describe your experience.”
Collaboration: “How do you work with media buyers and account teams? Provide an example of a cross-functional project.”
Salary Expectation: “What is your desired salary or current compensation?” (optional, to gauge range).
These questions ensure candidates explicitly address the “must-have” criteria (DTC/Meta/TikTok experience, performance results, team leadership) before moving forward.

3. Interview Guide
Behavioral Questions
Leadership: “Tell us about a time you led a creative team (writers, editors, designers) on a high-stakes campaign. What approach did you take, and what was the outcome?”
Stakeholder Communication: “Describe a situation where you had to convince a skeptical executive or client to try a new creative strategy. How did you present your case?”
Problem-Solving: “Give an example of a campaign that initially failed to meet goals. How did you diagnose the issue and what did you do to turn it around?”
Collaboration: “How do you balance creative vision with performance data? Have you ever had to push back on a designer/editor or media buyer? How?”
Adaptability: “In a fast-paced sprint environment, priorities change quickly. How do you manage stress and ensure deliverables on time?”
Technical Questions
Data Analysis: “Explain how you measure creative performance. Beyond CTR, what metrics do you track and why?”
Testing Framework: “Walk me through your process for designing a creative A/B test. How do you formulate hypotheses and d ---------- when an ad is a ‘winner’?”
Research Methods: “How do you develop audience personas? What research sources (surveys, reviews, social listening) do you use to refine them?”
Creative Strategy: “What’s the difference between performance-driven and brand-driven creative? Can they work together?”
Tools & Workflow: “What tools or software do you use for workflow and analytics (e.g. Slack, Asana, Google Analytics)? How do they fit into your process?”
Budgeting: “How have you managed creative production budgets? Have you ever had to reallocate spend due to performance?” (Assesses ops skills.)