DIRECTOR OF FIELD MARKETING

JOB DESCRIPTION

Department

Marketing

Reports To

Chief Marketing Officer

Location

Atlanta, GA Metro area preferred

Work Arrangement

Hybrid

Employment Status

Exempt

Travel

Up to 50%

Role Purpose

The Director of Field Marketing is responsible for leading and executing a best-in-class localized marketing strategy across all restaurant locations, including company-owned and franchised locations, bridging national brand strategy with local market execution to ensure each restaurant maximizes relevance, traffic, and community engagement.

Playa Bowls is a growth brand, and this role requires a wide skill set that can serve established markets, growth markets, and new entry markets alike. In established markets and select DMAs, a successful track record in digital media, local events, cross-promotional opportunities, sponsorships, clubs, local PR, and influencer campaigns is familiar and second nature.

For new entry markets, where brand awareness is low, owning and optimizing comprehensive 18-month marketing plans for new store openings is equally important to the brand. These plans require building phased strategies that span early market entry, pre-opening awareness, launch execution, and sustained post-opening growth. To accomplish these goals, the Director of Field Marketing and their team will work directly with Playa Bowls franchise partners to build and execute a calendared plan that drives brand recognition, establishes community presence, and generates trial and repeat visitation through a coordinated mix of PR, influencer engagement, partnerships, events, and localized digital media campaigns.

This leader manages and develops a high-performing field marketing team while overseeing a network of external partners, including creative agencies, public relations firms, influencers, and event activation vendors, and requires strong cross-functional collaboration with Operations, Brand, Digital, Media, Finance, IT, and Executive Leadership to ensure alignment, scalability, and seamless execution across all markets.

Key Responsibilities

Local Shop Marketing

• Develops and oversees localized marketing strategies that drive traffic, sales, and brand affinity at the shop level.
• Partners with Operations and franchise owners (where applicable) tailor marketing initiatives to individual market needs.
• Establishes frameworks and toolkits that empower local teams to execute effectively while maintaining brand consistency.

New Shop Opening Marketing

• Owns and leads the development and execution of the "18-Month Epic Wave" brand marketing plan for each new market entry, ensuring a phased, high-impact approach from pre-opening through sustained growth.
• Leads end-to-end marketing strategy for new shop openings, including pre-opening buzz, grand opening events, and post-opening sustainment plans.
• Coordinates cross-functional efforts to ensure successful launch execution.
• Identifies and leverages local insights to maximize awareness and initial customer acquisition.

Local PR Strategy

• Builds and executes localized public relations strategies to generate earned media coverage.
• Develops relationships with local media outlets and journalists.
• Creates scalable PR playbooks for regional execution while supporting high-impact local storytelling opportunities.

Local Influencer Strategy

• Designs and implements a local influencer marketing program to drive brand awareness and engagement.
• Identifies, vets, and manages relationships with relevant influencers across markets.
• Establishes measurement frameworks to evaluate effectiveness and ROI.

Local Partnerships & Event Activations

• Identifies and cultivates strategic partnerships with local businesses, organizations, and community groups.
• Plans and executes impactful local events and activations that enhance brand presence and community connection.
• Develops scalable partnership models that can be adapted across multiple markets.

Local Social Strategy

• Defines and executes a localized social media strategy that complements national efforts.
• Enables local teams with content guidelines, tools, and best practices.
• Monitors and engages with local audiences to build strong community relationships.

Local Loyalty Strategy

• Drives adoption and engagement of loyalty programs at the local level.
• Develops targeted campaigns that incentivize repeat visits and increase customer lifetime value.
• Leverages customer data to inform localized marketing efforts and personalization.
• Develops a localized loyalty strategy that cross-promotes with other local brands, sports teams, events, non-profits, and community organizations to enhance the value of membership, strengthen "club" identity, and deepen the brand's connection to the local community.

Local Marketing Innovation

• Identifies emerging trends, tools, and technologies to enhance local marketing effectiveness.
• Pilots and scales innovative programs that differentiate the brand at the community level.
• Fosters a culture of experimentation and continuous improvement.

Local Marketing Creative & Content

• Oversees development of localized creative assets and content that resonate with diverse audiences.
• Ensures alignment with brand standards while allowing flexibility for local relevance.
• Collaborates with internal and external partners to produce high-quality, impactful content.

Key Relationships

Internal Partners
Chief Marketing Officer & Executive Leadership
Marketing Leadership Team
Operations
Brand Marketing
Digital, Media & Public Relations
Finance & IT

External Partners
Creative & PR Agencies
Influencers & Ambassadors
Local Media Outlets
Community Partners & Local Businesses
Event Activation Vendors
Loyalty & CRM Platform Partners

Measures of Success

• New shop opening impact: A material improvement in new shop opening volumes.
• Program consistency: A well-orchestrated, consistently executed 18-month program that delivers results above current baseline.
• Program validation: New local shop marketing programs are successfully tested, validated, and scaled.
• Loyalty growth: Material improvement in top-of-funnel loyalty enrollment and post-enrollment engagement frequency.
• Partnership impact: High-impact partnerships, ambassador programs, and event activations that produce both sales results and genuine brand preference.
• Guest experience: Engaging in-store experiences that increase traffic, conversion, and brand affinity.
• Team culture: Strong team culture and creative output.

Experience & Qualifications

Required

• 10+ years of marketing experience, with a strong focus on field or local marketing in the restaurant or retail industry.
• 5+ years of experience in restaurant marketing specifically.
• Proven success managing multi-unit or franchise marketing programs.
• Strong leadership and team development skills.
• Experience managing agencies, vendors, and cross-functional stakeholders.
• Analytical mindset with the ability to translate data into actionable insights.
• Excellent communication and organizational skills.
• Proven experience creating, building, and scaling local marketing strategies.
• Experience with partnerships, ambassador programs, experiential marketing, and/or retail merchandising.
• Demonstrated experience creating and owning local store marketing calendars.
• Ability to operate strategically while executing in fast-paced environments.
• A demonstrated competitive drive that has produced innovative solutions through an innate desire to do big things and win.

Preferred

• Experience in high-growth or multi-brand environments.
• Familiarity with loyalty platforms, CRM systems, and local marketing technologies.
• Strong network of media, influencer, and community contacts.
• Existing network of external creative, content, social, influencer, and event partners.
• Experience with video, social media, podcasts, and multimedia storytelling.
• Familiarity with marketing automation and content platforms.
• Experience in experiential or event marketing.

Role-Specific Expertise

• Local and field marketing strategy
• New store opening marketing (18-month launch planning)
• Local public relations and media relations
• Influencer and ambassador program management
• Local partnerships and event activation
• Loyalty program adoption and localized CRM strategy
• Local social media and content enablement

Position Requirements

• Must reside in or be willing to relocate to the Atlanta metropolitan area.
• Must be able to work in a flexible hybrid environment, including approximately one day per week in the Atlanta office based on business needs.
• Must be willing and able to travel extensively to support new shop openings, field marketing initiatives, and local market execution across the country.
• Must be at least 21 years of age to comply with state travel requirements.

What We Offer

• Competitive compensation: Competitive base compensation, an incentive bonus plan, and eligibility to participate in our annual performance review program, a direct reward for driving success and growth.
• Comprehensive benefits: Medical, Dental, Vision, a flexible hybrid-remote work environment, Domestic Partner Benefits, Spouse & Children Benefits, HSA, FSA, a 401(k) with company match, Employer-Paid Life & AD&D Insurance and Short-Term Disability, Paid Time Off, Paid Holidays, paid flights and hotels, mileage reimbursement, a cell phone stipend, a company credit card, and more.
• The opportunity to shape new markets: Lead the marketing strategy that introduces Playa Bowls to new communities, building brand recognition from the ground up as we expand into new store openings nationwide.
• The freedom to build something meaningful at the local level: Own local marketing strategy, partnerships, and events that create lasting connections between Playa Bowls and the communities we serve.