Director of Marketing

We have passion for our product – committed to our mission and instinctively think like and go the extra mile for our customers. We are elite performers – striving for excellence, going above and beyond to achieve exceptional results, and learning quickly with horsepower, drive, and grit. We make others better – taking initiative to elevate others, giving and receiving feedback, and championing a culture of growth. We hold one another accountable to living out our talent principles as we march together to achieving our mission.

About the Role

The Director of Marketing sets the high-level strategic vision for Blackbird's brand and owns its execution across every marketing discipline and channel including brand, communications, and consumer growth alike. You'll define how Blackbird shows up in the world and make sure that vision holds together everywhere a diner or partner encounters it, from a press mention to an event.

You'll translate strategy into execution across brand campaigns, public relations, and acquisition. This is a builder role: the brand foundations are in place, and your job is to set the direction for where they go next and make sure every team and channel is pulling in the same direction.

We're looking for someone who can operate at both altitudes — setting the vision for what Blackbird's Marketing direction should take, and staying close enough to execution to make sure that vision actually ships.

What You'll Do

Brand

Own the Blackbird brand voice and identity across all consumer channels

Develop campaigns that feel culturally credible: copy, visual, experiential

Build Blackbird's presence in the cities and dining communities where it matters most

Partner with the Restaurants team to make sure brand work serves both sides of the network

PR & Communications

Own Blackbird's external narrative — press, media relationships, and executive visibility for Ben and the team

Build and run a proactive PR strategy that keeps Blackbird part of the conversation in dining, tech, and culture press

Manage relationships with PR agencies, freelance writers, and media contacts

Prepare messaging and talking points for press moments, partnership announcements, and, when needed, crisis response

Partner with Partnerships and Restaurants teams on co-branded press moments and launch announcements

Consumer Growth

Drive diner acquisition across paid, owned, and earned channels

Set and hit growth targets for app downloads, new user activation, and retention

Build a performance marketing capability that doesn't sacrifice brand to do it

Work closely with product on onboarding, in-app messaging, and lifecycle

Team & Operations

Lead and develop a small in-house team

Manage agency and contractor relationships

Own the marketing budget and report on what's working

Generate reporting and make data-driven decisions to set up strategy

What We're Looking For

8+ years of marketing experience, with meaningful time in consumer-facing roles

5+ years of leadership experience, with a builder's mindset

Proven ability to build brands people actually care about, not just awareness but affinity

Strong storytelling and communications instincts, including experience building or running a PR / earned-media strategy

Strong performance marketing chops; you know how to drive acquisition at scale

Experience at a high-growth startup; you know how to operate with limited resources and high expectations

A writer's sensibility; you can tell when copy is wrong and make it right

Passion for restaurants, food culture, and hospitality

Nice to Haves

Experience in a two-sided marketplace

Background in loyalty, rewards, or payments (not required; a love of the category matters more)

Existing media relationships and press experience in food, hospitality, or consumer tech

NYC market experience and existing relationships in the dining space