Head of Digital Marketing

Job Introduction

Head of Digital

Salary £75,000 - £85,000 plus up to 15% Bonus

Permanent  

Hybrid / Ashford, Kent  

This is a crucial hire to our Saga Cruise Marketing function. You will truly have the chance to exploit all your digital superpowers! You will be leading on growth through paid, organic, social and ecommerce channels.

This is a fast-paced role, we need you to be innovative and full charged, able to increase demand, trial new channels and continuously evolve our digital transformation.

As our Head of Digital, you will be critical to leading the redevelopment of the cruise website, planned for 2025. You’ll be a direct line to our fabulous Marketing Director, and manage a team of 8 across social media, CRO, Digital Performance, Content, SEO, and web development.  

As a natural leader, you will be able to drive and motivate this exceptional team of digital experts. You will need to inspire and develop them through this transformation journey while managing and growing a fast-paced trading platform.

On top of this great team, you’ll have the 6-figure budget to deliver! Ensuring integrated multi-media digital campaigns that reach new audiences and grow First Time Buyers and Repeat customer volumes. Fully focussing on the relationship management of media agencies to ensure high performance and innovation. You will consistently evolve SEO and content to maximise traffic and purchase intent.

We need you to drive continued and extended CRO application across all activity demonstrating results at a micro campaign and macro business performance level. You will embed this with the team for continued learning and optimisation.

Our Cruise Marketing Team is already a big success across Saga, you’ll work closely with the Head of Marketing and Head of CRM to integrate the digital team into the rest of the wider marketing functions here as well as fully owning the digital performance reporting across all channels and regularly presenting to our stakeholders.

We work in a hybrid way at Saga both at home and in the office. When you do come into the office, it’ll be with a real purpose in mind – to meet with your team, to work together, and of course to socialise and celebrate too!  

The Cruise Digital team get together in Ashford 3 days a week! We also have an office in London, Kings Cross.

Role Responsibility

In this role you’ll be accountable for:

• All Digital Activity: Oversee and ensure high quality of all digital marketing activity from lead generation to conversion and retention. Ensure all digital activity and customer journeys are of the highest quality, are measurable and meet regulatory requirements.
• eComm strategy: Maintain and oversee the delivery of the ecommerce strategy – delivering efficient, sustainable pax and revenue growth, increase in Per Diems and increased Load Factors.
• Trading targets & Performance metrics: Accountable for trading performance – closely driving sales performance, reporting into the business weekly, overseeing monthly sales forecasting and annual budget setting for both Direct and PCW channels.
• Drive CPA efficiencies across Digital channels through improved agency management, use of 1st party data, and better integrated planning.
• Performance updates: Lead the reporting and communication to wider team of our month-on-month CPA effectiveness. Own Weekly/Monthly digital performance reporting to key stakeholders. Take a lead role in our monthly performance & planning meetings, helping shape the narrative and business updates and evolving its design. Take a leading role in presenting to the wider marketing team in our Monthly All Hands Marketing meeting.
• Web / CRO development progress: Progress of web platform functionality, improving the user experience and CRO.
• 3rd party relationships and output: Management of external digital media, SEO and digital experience & design agencies.
• Team development and growth leadership: Leadership of the Cruise Digital team, creating a centre of excellence, supported with strong best practice and external insight & trends.

The Ideal Candidate

You will already be an accomplished Digital Leader who has managed a fast paced highly skilled digital team.

You’ll also need to demonstrate the following skills, experiences and Saga Values;

• Demonstrate digital leadership experience, with proven success in defining and leading delivery of transformation alongside BAU optimisation.
• Strong experience in delivering a digital strategy of UX, CRO paid media and SEO, and can demonstrate proven measurable results and improvements you have personally made.
• Have a strong trading mentality, driving new business sales performance day to day across multiple digital activities.
• Extensive experience in using digital best practice to design solutions, a deep understanding of mobile-first and responsive/adaptive design and assessment of emerging technologies & capabilities.
• Experience of a Digital transformation across digital and ecomm channels, including data and platform requirements. (Sitecore experience would be valuable.)
• Proven experience in merchandising and leverage of content to deliver digital commercial performance as an integral part of the commercial mix.
• Experience of managing sophisticated buying journeys and driving proven ROI.
• Demonstrable ability to leverage customer behavioural and attitudinal insight, technology trends and commercial context to inform activity.
• Have a sound knowledge of the industry’s latest trends and technologies, with proven experience in applying insights to improve business performance.
• Career experience in a large consumer-facing organisation, ideally in the travel sector.
• Confident, clear and empathetic translator of complex data led opportunities to marketing teams and stakeholders.
• Very strong leadership skills.
• Strong commercial awareness and budget management experience - Highly numerate.

Package Description

Everyday our colleagues deliver exceptional experiences to our customers. We believe exceptional work deserves even more exceptional rewards, that's why we have put together an amazing benefits package for all colleagues.

BENEFITS AVAILABLE:

• 25 days holiday + bank holidays
• Company performance related annual bonus - Up to 15% (level 2)
• Car Benefit – car allowance scheme - £4800 per annum
• Option to purchase additional leave up to 5 extra days
• Pension scheme matched up to 10%
• Life assurance policy on joining us
• Wellbeing programme
• Colleague discounts including family discounts on cruises and holidays
• Range of reductions and offers from leading retailers, travel groups and entertainment companies
• Enhanced maternity and paternity leave
• Grandparents leave
• Income protection
• Access to Saga Academy, our bespoke learning platform

About the Company

Over the past 70 years we have become the UK's specialist provider of products and services to people aged over 50 in the UK. The Saga brand has become one of the most recognised and trusted brands amongst UK consumers in this demographic, recognised for its high-quality products and exceptional standards of service. These include cruises and holidays, insurance, personal finance and the Saga Magazine.

We are a dynamic and forward-looking business with a clear, single-minded purpose; to create exceptional experiences every day whilst being a driver for positive change in our markets and communities. Our focus on exceptional experiences empowers our colleagues to create moments that are simple, personal and special for our customers and for each other. Our values underpin our approach and help guide us to deliver our purpose.

At Saga we are committed to treating all employees fairly and to offering equal opportunities in all aspects of employment and advancement. We value diversity not just because it is the right thing to do, but because diverse teams perform better.

We’re passionate about diversity, equity, and inclusion. Championing diversity is important to us, and diverse teams really are the best ones. We’re dedicated to creating a culture where every colleague feels like they belong. So that at Saga, more than anywhere else, you can be your best, be yourself and make a difference.

Fair consideration is given to all applicants, including those with disabilities and those over who are over the age of 50. As champions of age inclusivity and signatories of the Age-Friendly Employer Pledge, we are proud of our multigenerational teams. We are also an official Disability Confident Committed employer and ensure that our recruitment process is inclusive and accessible, we will make reasonable adjustments as required. For more information on our DEI policies please visit our Saga Careers page.

​Saga does not accept agency CVs unless specifically engaged on the role by the Talent Acquisition Team. Please do not forward CVs to our recruiters, employees or any other company location. Saga will not be responsible for any fees related to CVs received in this unsolicited manner.

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Saga Group

Saga Group