Freelance Pie Operator Jobs (NOW HIRING)

Job Type
Full-time
Description
Tomlinson's Feed is Central Texas' source for the highest quality pet food and supplies. Voted Best Pet Store by Austin Monthly Readers and The Austin Chronicle, Tomlinson's is the largest and fastest-growing independent pet store in Central Texas with 20 locations and counting.
Locally owned and operated for 80 years, Tomlinson's mission is to make pets healthy and people happy by offering the healthiest products and best customer experience.
The Role
We're looking for a strategic, creative, and hands-on Marketing Manager to lead brand communications, relationship marketing, and event activations across all of Tomlinson's customer touchpoints.
Your primary responsibility is to define and execute a marketing strategy that grows an engaged community around the Tomlinson's brand. You'll own the full spectrum of our marketing efforts-digital, in-store, email, social media, content, events, and partner relations-with the support of a small team of freelance and internal collaborators.
You will manage a team of freelancers including a Social Media Coordinator, Paid Digital Marketer, and Graphic Designer (freelance), as well as a cross-functional internal Event Team (Bark Rangers) and Rescue Coordinator. You will report to the VP of Brand and work closely with the General Manager, eCommerce Operations team, and store leadership.
Who You Are

• You are a brand builder at heart. You think about every customer touchpoint-from an Instagram story to a shelf talker-as an opportunity to strengthen the relationship between Tomlinson's and the people (and pets) we serve.
• You're a player-coach. You can set the strategy and roll up your sleeves to execute it. No job is too small, and you take pride in work done well at every level.
• You are design-savvy. You notice when a font's kerning is off, and it drives you bananas. Whether it's a social graphic or a printed sign, you hold creative output to a high standard.
• You're a storyteller. You take products, partnerships, and community moments and weave them into content that people actually want to engage with.
• You are data-informed. You track the effectiveness of every initiative you launch, and you use what you learn to optimize the next one. You speak fluently in engagement metrics, conversion rates, and ROI.
• You are a relationship builder. Whether it's a rescue organization, a brand partner, or a local vet clinic, you know how to cultivate partnerships that are mutually beneficial and long-lasting.
• You have an entrepreneurial spirit. You present solutions instead of problems, and you're always looking for ways to innovate within the constraints of a growing business.
• You are passionate about pets and community. You genuinely care about animal welfare and the Austin community, and it shows in the work you do.

Ongoing Duties Brand Communications (70%)

• Define and execute a marketing strategy that results in an active, consistent, and high-quality brand presence across all digital and in-store channels
• Plan and execute weekly email marketing campaigns via Klaviyo that drive sales and customer engagement; manage automated campaigns that drive retention
• Oversee social media strategy and ensure frequent, responsive, and on-brand engagement across all platforms
• Own content creation and curation-photos, videos, graphics, blog posts, and crowdsourced content from stores and customers
• Manage marketing and communications content on Tomlinsons.com, ensuring content, messaging, and store information are current and consistent
• Oversee design of monthly promotional signage and ad hoc materials; manage print vendor relationships and oversee production quality and timelines
• Design and distribute in-store conversion programs aimed at moving treat shoppers to food buyers to Autoship customers
• Monitor and respond to customer sentiment across email surveys, Yelp, Google, social media, and website chat
• Manage the master calendar of company and store events, publishing to owned media and local event listings
• Coordinate local advertising with media partners (e.g., KUT/X) to promote marquee campaigns and events
• Ensure all company information and messaging is accurate and consistent across online listings and directories

Relationship Marketing (20%)

• Serve as point-of-contact for brand activation communications; support and encourage brand sponsorship through events, vouchers, and offers
• Work closely with the Rescue Coordinator on rescue-related communications, in-store adoption events, and the Rescue Referral Program
• Oversee planning and execution of customer appreciation programs including Lifetime Member Letters, Lost Customer Letters, Pet Club Letters, and the Apple Pie Campaign
• Define, launch, and manage a referral program targeting local industry professionals such as veterinary clinics and pet businesses
• Track ROI of all relationship marketing initiatives and recommend improvements or new programs as needed

Event Marketing (10%)

• Manage Tomlinson's in-store events (Pound4Pound, Grand Openings, Fall Fest, Spring Fling) and local event activations (Rock the Park, Kite Fest, Tacos & Doggos, ZilkerBark, and others)
• Negotiate activation terms with event partners including Austin FC, Round Rock Express, Waterloo Media, and others
• Schedule and coordinate the internal event team (Bark Rangers) to facilitate event presence and attendee engagement
• Oversee design and optimization of event engagement activities; collect and organize customer contact information gathered at events
• Track event ROI and continuously optimize external event strategy and tactics
• Organize and maintain event equipment and promotional materials inventory

Why Tomlinson's? Our job is to make pets healthy and people happy, which is pretty dang fulfilling. In addition, perks include:

• PTO and 401(k) with 4% employer match
• Volunteer Time-Off
• Health insurance, including medical, dental, and vision
• Generous employee discount
• Discounted Gold's Gym membership
• A beautiful (and friendly) office environment
• A very high-end and occasionally temperamental coffee machine

Requirements Required Skills and Experience

• 7+ years of hands-on experience in marketing, with a track record of building and executing multi-channel strategies in retail, consumer brands, or a related industry
• Strong graphic design skills with proficiency in Adobe Creative Suite (Photoshop, InDesign, Illustrator) and Canva
• Experience managing email marketing campaigns in Klaviyo or a comparable platform
• Experience managing static content on a Shopify-based eCommerce website
• Excellent writing, editing, and storytelling skills across digital and print formats
• Social media expertise with demonstrated ability to grow and engage a community (Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and emerging platforms)
• Experience managing freelance creative teams
• Strong organizational and project management skills-you can manage multiple campaigns, deadlines, and stakeholders simultaneously
• Analytical mindset with experience tracking campaign performance and optimizing based on data
• 4-year college degree in Marketing, Communications, or a related field

Nice to Have

• A passion for pet health and wellness
• Familiarity with the Austin market and local media landscape
• Experience with event marketing and community activations
• Photography and/or videography skills

This is a Full-Time position with a standard 40-hour work week. You'll work out of our office in Central Austin with little to no out-of-town travel required. Occasional evenings and weekends may be needed for events.