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One of the coolest ecommerce jobs around!

HARRY’S COMMENTS: We are working with a 9-figure, tier-one private equity-backed CPG company in the over-the-counter health categories in their search for a VP of Ecommerce based in the Southeastern USA.

This is a leadership position, and there is no fully remote option for this role. You don’t have to relocate but you will need to get to company headquarters a few days per week to be with the team. Let’s discuss.

About the Company

The client is an innovator, marketer, and distributor of over-the-counter (OTC) consumer health care products to food, drug and mass retailers and mass e-tailers. The firm’s mission is to be the best middle market U.S. CHC company as defined by its ability to …

• Achieve outstanding value through superior growth in sales and profits,
• Develop innovative products and passionate marketing programs to create enthusiastically satisfied consumers,
• Provide a culture that fosters teamwork, collaboration, and mutual respect, and
• Make a difference in its stakeholder communities.

Recognizing that not all consumers’ health and personal care needs are being met today by the dizzying number of products in-store and online, the company is dedicated to building a portfolio of over-the-counter health and personal care brands to fill the void.

The firm is focused squarely on driving value by 1/ Assembling a portfolio of leading, well-differentiated consumer healthcare brands; 2/ Gaining share through insights-driven programs that create happy consumers, and 3/ Scaling its business with acquisitions that make sense. To this end, they’re well on their way.

About the Role

This is a hugely important role, for which the client seeks a proven ecom leader ideally trained in FMCG / OGSM disciplines. There’s a lot going on in that space — which means that you’ll need the skills, passion, track record, and command presence to drive the development and execution of Brand-specific digital strategies in an ever-changing omnichannel arena where each channel is being impacted differently by elasticity, supply chain and labor shortages, consumer mobility, and DTC.

To win in the role, you must be DEEPLY familiar with online demand gen, conversion, retention, CX, and engagement — PLUS Amazon and other marketplaces where mass-market Food/Drug/Mass/Club Retail dominate share of FMCG sales, but omnichannel ecom is leading in terms of share of growth.

As one of the key figures in the firm’s growth plan, you will report to the firm’s CEO.

You will partner with Marketing, Sales, Finance, Regulatory/Quality, and Supply Chain in understanding the customer journey, and you’ll learn from these insights to create use cases, define communications needs, establish OSEP media strategies while evolving the firm’s communication and media measurement models and establishing relevant KPIs.

Additionally, you’ll build out a marketplace strategy that grows the firm’s Amazon, Wal-Mart, and other marketplace channels exponentially.

It’s a lot to say grace over, so you’ll need to be highly entrepreneurial and embrace collaboration while remaining deeply analytical and hands-on.

My best advice to you?

Bring 80/20 thinking to the role, and understand how to prioritize — tasks, opportunities, and resources. Some of the client’s brands account for much greater revenue than others, and some hold more promise for ecommerce growth. (This is very common in FMCG.)

The good news is you will be part of a strong team. You’ll have smart people you can loop into your decision-making process, and you’ll have access to the firm’s private equity partners who have excellent ecom operating backgrounds.

They’ve been to this rodeo before.

Initially, you’ll get the most traction through Amazon and to a lesser extent, other online marketplaces. This makes perfect sense when you think about it: The last time you had a recurring ache or pain, did you buy the OTC remedy on a 3P marketplace like Amazon? Or did you visit the brand’s DTC site?

Most folks buy on a 3P marketplace.

Therefore, you’ll need to know Amazon inside and out. What, specifically, does that mean? It means you’ll have a span of influence that includes …

• Inventory management and forecasting
• Listing creation and SEO optimization
• Catalog cleanup of existing listings
• Channel clean up and brand protection
• Online advertising program management
• Customer service
• Product reviews and feedback
• Multichannel account management on US and international Amazon channels

You’ll have a team and a first-rate agency to help you manage Amazon and other marketplaces, but you’ll still need to be “snow-proofed” on things like Sponsored Brand ads, Sponsored Display ads, Amazon DSP Audience Builder, and DSP Targeting & Competitor Retargeting.

Even in situations where one of the client’s brands is channeled through Amazon 1P, we’d still expect you to understand …

• How to use Amazon Advertising with your best-selling ASINs?
• How are you using Amazon Advertising to launch new products?
• How can you use Amazon Advertising to move ASINs into adjacent or new categories?
• How can you use Amazon Advertising during key seasonal periods or events?
• How can you use Amazon Advertising to clear out excess inventory?
• And so forth.

You won’t believe how much we know about this search …

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 ecommerce job. 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 this 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 50 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.

View Harry Joiner’s profile

Key Responsibilities:

• Oversee all digital and marketplace strategic planning and activation across all the firm’s portfolio of eight consumer health brands. Analysis will include marketing, cost to execute, and operations for these channels, with Amazon being the main focus.
• Lead the Amazon 1P and 3P strategy across marketing and operations. This will include driving leads to Amazon, optimizing the onsite experience, using Amazon brand analytics to lower costs and drive sales, and looking for opportunities to launch new products.
• Oversee digital marketing programs to increase brand/product awareness and drive customer acquisition, conversion, and retention. You should have the breadth of experience to consider and prioritize customer touches across SEM/SEO, re-targeting, display, affiliate, social, shopping portals, and email marketing to realize the highest return at the lowest cost while understanding that topline revenue creation is just as important as efficiency.
• Develop and execute a plan to create a digitally enhanced brand experience across prioritized digital touchpoints. This will include building a content calendar in alignment with Brand Management, and driving an enhanced experience where the brand has the best chance of achieving the firm’s goals and objectives.
• Oversee marketplace reporting statistics, including customer analyses and marketing effectiveness, while analyzing all relevant data to determine go-forward strategies.
• Lead the partnership with the Operations team to review Amazon and other marketplace sales reports and identify opportunities for inventory movement and adjustments to maximize site sales.
• In partnership with Marketing, execute clear storytelling while driving key messaging.
• Design the vision for what “always-on” looks like in the path to purchase, while more widely addressing consumers’ health needs.
• Leverage best available 2P/3P data to inform media and digital marketing strategies that complement the firm’s 1P data.

Skills & Abilities:

• Bachelor’s degree, plus a minimum 8-10 years of relevant marketing, digital media and ecommerce experience
• Deep understanding of the omnichannel and Pure Play landscape with experience calling on these customers and understanding their distinct needs and capabilities
• Analytic capability, defined as the ability to use data and facts to assess ROI and make investment decisions.
• Ability to use consumer and shopper insights to influence content and placement strategies.
• Experience developing and gaining approval of budgets and managing all programs on time and on budget.
• Hands-on style, capable of working independently while building relationships internally and with external partners and agencies
• Results-oriented, with the ability to make an impact and be accountable for the results and performance of the digital business.
• Proven ability and willingness to adapt quickly to change and to manage multiple priorities.
• Ability to develop and manage a high performing team of partner agencies
• Excellent communication and presentation (oral & written) skills
• Deep understanding of marketing technology, consumer media, journey mapping, and analytics