Creative Content Designer

A Creative Content Designer combines marketing and graphic design to create the visual materials that represent all brands within the Convivial Brands umbrella. This individual develops, designs and executes creative, branded assets for multi-channel integrated brand and marketing campaigns, including digital, social media, catalog, print, photo, video, event design and other assets as needed. This role collaborates effectively with Creative team members, Marketing and Sales departments to drive consumer and retailer engagement through programs that drive brand awareness, traffic, retention, advocacy and, ultimately, revenue.

This position is full-time based at our Grand Rapids, MI headquarters

Principal Duties and Responsibilities:

Content Design and Development:

• Become a brand champion and develop branding strategies for all clients, while always maintaining brand standards and composition that support customer conversion.
• Collaborate with the overall marketing team, creative team, and other stakeholders to plan, conceptualize, create, analyze, organize and execute assigned projects.
• Create visual concepts, by hand or using computer software, to communicate ideas that inspire, inform, or captivate an audience. 
• Participates in brainstorms to develop innovative content that is brand right and supports marketing strategies to meets retailer and consumer needs.
• Stay abreast of relevant trends in copy, design, illustration, type, and color, and find ways to incorporate them into new concepts.
• Keep up to date with trends in digital media (including social media, website development, and google ads), software, and traditional marketing efforts (print, magazine ads, catalog development, etc.).
• Ensure that the deliverable is consistent with market trends while maintaining brand identity and business strategy.
• Illustrates concepts by designing rough layouts of art and copy regarding arrangement, size, type size and style, and related aesthetic concepts.
• Demonstrate a strong understanding of typography, layout, and composition, & color theory to apply original ideas to projects.
• Brainstorming, mocking up, and making design/layout recommendations based on knowledge of layout principles and artistic design concepts.
• Ability to create bulk content that transcends all digital and traditional methods.

Cross Functional Collaboration:

• Proactive communication and collaboration with the creative team and other stakeholders to plan, conceptualize, create, analyze, organize and execute assigned projects.
• Work as part of the marketing team to develop and maintain effective and consistent graphics that support brand strategy.
• Be flexible and endorses changes in the work environment in ways that help enhance each brand within the Convivial Brands umbrella.

• Ability to receive and give constructive feedback, respectfully, from other team members with an open mind—knowing that the end goal is doing what is right for the organization.
• Support and collaborate with Creative Product team by cross-training on a variety of product categories including cards, paper tableware, gift packaging, home, giftware, & packaging.

Workflow Management:

• Proactively prioritizes projects, campaigns, and assignments, from the content calendar with little supervision, from creation to completion meeting deadlines and staying within budget.
• Consistently meets all project and task deadlines as assigned by Creative Director and/or Resource Planner
• Be flexible and adapt to changes in the work environment in ways that helps other members keep projects on course.
• Exhibits full responsibility for one’s own work achievements and consistently maintains a high level of self-management that contributes to sustained high performance.
• Effectively use the time available to complete work tasks and activities that lead to the achievement of expected work objectives.

Convivial Brands Expectations of all Employees:

• Adheres to all Convivial Brands Policies and Procedures.
• Conducts self in a manner consistent with Convivial Brands’ Core Values at all times.
• Maintains a positive and respectful attitude with all contacts.
• Consistently reports to work on time and prepared to perform the duties of the position.
• Meets productivity standards and performs duties as workload necessitates.
• Maintains the privacy of all company proprietary information.
• Treat visitors, vendors, customers, and team members with respect and dignity.
• Able to safely perform the essential functions of the job with or without reasonable accommodation.
• Must maintain a score of Y on the GWC rating scale.

Education, Training, and Experience:

• Bachelor’s Degree or Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree in Graphic Design, Fine Arts or similar area is required.
• 3 years working within a marketing firm, advertising firm, design firm or other creative team environment.
• Demonstrate graphic design skills with a strong portfolio.
• Familiarity with Microsoft programs such as Word, PowerPoint, and Excel.
• Proficient in Adobe Creative Suite (InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop), (motion design and 3D tools a plus).
• Strong design and conceptual skills, including typography, color, imagery, composition, systems structures, visual hierarchy and/or interface design

Technical Skills:

• Effectively and efficiently uses Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, Final Cut Pro or Adobe Premier, and InDesign software programs to deliver consistently fresh and relevant content.

• Excellent writing, editing, and proofreading skills.
• Foundational knowledge on hashtag research and the ability to create the relevant content for end consumers, as well as retailers, using those hashtags.
• Meticulous attention to detail and a commitment to producing error free and high- quality design content.
• Proficiency in workflow of Convivial Brands, searching internal data bases, marketing-funnel execution. Has the ability to recognize bottlenecks, and chinks in a process, to be able to improve it.

Salary : $55,000 - $65,000