Director of Marketing

Director of Marketing
www.tripcentral.ca
Location: Stoney Creek, ON / West GTA (role is primarily home-based, with weekly in-office collaboration)

Reports to: President
Team: 6 direct reports

Why You? The Opportunity for Impact
tripcentral.ca is a long-established Canadian travel leader in Canada, with a loyal customer base, and a founder-driven culture that values ideas backed by data and merit. They’re at an inflection point: strong fundamentals, proven marketing performance, and poised for marketing evolution.

This is your chance to join a strong senior leadership team where you'll work directly with the President to refine, elevate, and scale a marketing operation that already works. You'll bring strategic clarity, creative excellence, and modern customer lifecycle thinking to a performance-driven environment. Your voice will matter. Your ideas will be heard. And if they have merit, they'll be executed, often faster than in a large corporate environment.

They're looking for a marketing leader who can balance hands-on execution with strategic influence, mentor a collaborative team, and drive measurable results while strengthening our brand voice. If you're ready to make your mark in a stable, growth-oriented company with real autonomy and accountability, this role is for you.

About tripcentral.ca
tripcentral.ca is one of Canada's leading travel agencies, renowned for its innovative approach and long-standing commitment to exceptional service. Founded in Hamilton, Ontario, and operating for over 35 years, tripcentral.ca has grown into a national brand with a loyal customer base and deep market penetration. The company’s reputation is built on its extensive expertise in all-inclusive vacations, flights, cruises, and tours, serving hundreds of thousands of travellers every year.

A cornerstone of tripcentral.ca’s success is its people. The organization boasts a highly experienced, stable workforce, with many team members having tenures of over a decade. This longevity speaks to a workplace culture grounded in mutual respect, professional development, and a shared dedication to helping Canadians explore the world. More about their defining core values, straight from President Richard Vanderlubbe, can be learned here: https://tinyurl.com/TripcentralCulture  

tripcentral.ca’s flexible, remote-first operating model empowers staff to deliver outstanding customer service from anywhere across Canada, supporting work-life balance and fostering a rewarding, adaptable environment. The company has been at the forefront of excellence in the travel industry and continually improves both the customer experience and operational efficiency.

With its strong national footprint, collaborative culture, and commitment to growth, tripcentral.ca is poised for continued leadership in the Canadian travel market. This is a unique opportunity for a talented marketing director to join a team of experts, shape the next era of brand growth, and have a meaningful impact in a stable, future-focused organization.
  
Role Responsibilities

Marketing Strategy & Planning

• Co-develop the annual marketing plan and budget with the President, aligning campaigns with sales objectives, supplier priorities, and seasonal opportunities
• Drive qualified lead generation for online sales and offline with experience travel agents, through integrated campaigns across digital, direct mail, and partnership channels
• Recommend and test new marketing opportunities (channels, creative approaches, audience segments) supported by data and logic
• Improve brand consistency and professionalism across all customer touchpoints and supplier partnerships
• Collaborate with senior leadership on go-to-market priorities, budget allocation, and performance forecasting
• Balance proven tactics with innovation, evolving the marketing mix without losing sight of what drives results
• Strengthen supplier co-op marketing initiatives, maximizing joint promotional value and partner relationships

Performance Marketing & Analytics

• Own and interpret key performance metrics including ROAS, CTR, email open rates, cost per lead, conversion rates, and year-over-year booking performance
• Increase list size and quality for repeat marketing
• Increase lead generation (form/signups, telephone calls, webchat, etc)
• Increase social impressions, engagement & traffic
• Increase aided brand recall through remarketing, media promotions (trip contesting)
• Leverage Google Analytics 4 and Google Ads to optimize campaign performance and make data-driven decisions quickly
• Oversee digital advertising execution across search, display, YouTube remarketing, and social media channels
• Present concise weekly reports to senior leadership, translating data into actionable insights
• Monitor campaign-level performance over 7-day, 30-day, and 90 day windows, adjusting tactics based on seasonal supply and demand
• Drive CRM and customer retention strategy as database cleanup completes, increasing repeat booking rates and share of wallet
• Guide the team in using Active Campaign, custom CRM tools, and analytics dashboards to refine targeting and segmentation

Brand & Communications Stewardship

• Elevate creative quality and copy across all channels, ensuring messaging stands out in a crowded travel marketplace
• Lead content development for e-blasts, landing pages, ads, social media, and promotional materials with a clear, authentic brand voice
• Oversee visual consistency and design standards, coordinating with external design partners and agencies
• Manage merchandising of supplier products on the website, ensuring clarity, appeal, and conversion optimization
• Strengthen social media presence (Instagram, Facebook) with content that resonates with an evolving customer demographic
• Guide the team on messaging, layout, and design principles, building marketing discipline among staff with deep travel expertise but limited formal marketing training
• Maintain brand credibility and authenticity while evolving tone and creative execution for modern audiences

Team Leadership & Development

• Lead and mentor a collaborative team of six, including five travel marketing specialists and one digital marketing specialist
• Provide clear direction, support, and accountability, fostering skill development and marketing best practices
• Build collaboration across creative, digital, and product marketing functions, ensuring seamless campaign execution
• Support operational continuity during vacation periods through hands-on involvement and team coordination
• Champion a culture of learning and continuous improvement, helping experienced travel professionals grow their marketing capabilities
• Represent marketing on the senior leadership team, contributing to company-wide strategic initiatives and EOS (Entrepreneurial Operating System) processes

Qualifications & Experience
Required:

• 8+ years in marketing, ideally with people leadership/development experience
• Experience in a broker/reseller business vertical (eg. loyalty, insurance, financial products, hospitality/tourism), with a passion for the travel industry
• Demonstrated success in performance or response advertising that drives sales
• Excellent copywriting and creative direction instincts, focused on differentiation
• Working knowledge Google Analytics 4 and Google Ads interpretation
• Strong understanding of CRM-driven marketing and customer retention strategies
• Data-driven mindset with the ability to translate metrics into action
• Marketing Diploma or Degree with concentration in Marketing preferred

Bonus Assets:

• Experience in travel, tourism, or package vacation industries
• Conversion rate optimization (CRO) experience
• Some level of French (reading comprehension)
• Familiarity with EOS or similar operating systems

Technologies & Tools:

• Google Analytics 4, Google Ads
• Active Campaign (or equivalent email marketing platform)
• Custom CRM and database reporting tools
• Canva and external design partnerships
• Social media management (Instagram, Facebook)
• Microsoft Office (Excel, Access or SQL etc)

Benefits & Perks:

• 4 weeks vacation
• Insider travel perks and reduced-rate travel through supplier partnerships
• Comprehensive health benefits through Manulife
• Flexible work arrangement: primarily home-based with weekly in-office collaboration (typically Tuesday afternoons)

Culture & Work Environment:

• Direct access to the founder and senior leadership team: your ideas will be heard and executed if they have merit
• Stable, collaborative team with decades of combined experience and a strong work ethic
• Weekly in-person connection fostering creativity and alignment, balanced with work-from-home flexibility
• Long-term growth trajectory: 12.9% YoY growth from 2003–2019, now rebounding to pre-pandemic volume and ready to scale
• Tight-knit leadership culture that values pragmatism, accountability, and measurable results
• Fast decision-making environment - no endless layers of approval or corporate bureaucracy
• Mission-driven work helping Canadians create meaningful travel experiences with expert guidance and reliable service