The Company

Usborne is an independent, family business, creating books which spark curiosity in children of all ages. These range from books for babies such as the bestselling That’s not my… series, to YA fiction from acclaimed authors such as Holly Bourne and Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé – with everything from Magic Painting to Politics for Beginners in between.

Whilst Usborne is now a market-leader in children’s publishing and one of the best-known brands in children’s books, the company retains a friendly, family feel. If you want to work somewhere close-knit enough for people to know your name, but which has a first-class reputation around the world, Usborne is the place for you.

The Department

Usborne Community Partnerships (UCP) is Usborne’s direct sales division, responsible for equipping self-employed Independent Usborne Partners with the knowledge and skills to grow their own businesses, selling Usborne books to consumers – including schools. The UCP Marketing Team communicate the ongoing opportunities and resources  to existing Independent Usborne Partners (from product knowledge and business development training to exciting incentives and rewards) as well as promoting to potential Independent Usborne Partners the benefits of building a flexible business in partnership with a globally-respected brand.

The Role  

This is an exciting, hands-on marketing role, responsible for conceiving, planning, executing, and delivering a regular and consistent programme of brand marketing activity and campaigns:

• Communicate Usborne’s values and differentiate Usborne as a go-to brand for both book buyers and those interested becoming Independent Usborne Partners.

• Use carefully designed marketing campaigns to drive consistent growth in recruitment and retention of Independent Usborne Partners.

• Line manage a small team of dedicated marketers and work closely with the wider UCP division, in particular the Operations Director and Head of Sales and Business Development, to support the strategic objectives.

• Deliver marketing campaigns that support the UCP sales and business development strategy, building an expert understanding of what Independent Usborne Partners need to build their businesses and satisfy these demands in a timely and profitable manner.

• Create consistent, gold-standard assets and comms that create an emotional connection between Usborne and our Independent Usborne Partners that will ripple out to their consumers and communities.

• This role will play an active part in the wider Usborne marketing community, collaborating with colleagues across the business to ensure brand consistency, whilst maintaining divisional focus and expertise.

Experience

• At least 5 years’ experience in a marketing role.

• Demonstrable, effective project-management skills.

• Skilled and confident in forward planning but, typical of a busy and varied direct sales division, you will also be confident in taking an agile approach where necessary.

• Experience of leading and managing a small team.

• Possess confidence and experience of working within brand guidelines without sacrificing creativity.

• Track record writing impactful, purposeful copy targeting specific audiences.

• Proficient in writing focussed design briefs.

• Sitting within a sales division, commercial awareness is imperative, so evidence o fbuilding effective marketing campaigns, with clear objectives, which have achieved measurable results, is paramount.

Location and Benefits

We offer a 35-hour working week from our Eynsham office in Oxfordshire, where after a successful induction period we offer a hybrid working model of 3 days in the office and 2 days working from home which we feel optimises our opportunities for collaboration and contact with our colleagues.

In addition to our transparent salary grading structure, for this role we also offer a range of benefits which include:

• 25 days paid holiday entitlement increasing with service to 30 days after 5 years;

• Industry-leading Pension Scheme and Life Assurance;

• Employee Assistance Programme through Health Assured;

• Healthcare Cashback scheme;

• Virtual GP service;

• Rewards and Discount services;

• 50% discount on Usborne books.

We particularly encourage applications from Black and minority ethnic candidates who are currently under-represented within this area.

The Hiring Process

Our hiring process will incorporate 'long-listing' candidates from the anonymous scoring, then shortlisting through objective CV scoring.

First interviews will be held via MS Teams with our Director of UK Marketing and Global Branding and the Head of UCP Sales and Business Development, either the 10th or 13th July 2023 followed by a further interview with our Global Digital Director and UCP Operations Director in person in our Eynsham office week commencing 17th July.