Manager, Digital Marketing & Engagement

About the Role

The Cook Political Report is seeking a Digital Marketing & Engagement Manager to own the growth and performance of our digital subscriber platform. This individual will write and manage marketing copy; build and optimize transactional and marketing email campaigns; and design conversion strategies that grow and retain our subscriber base — all while maintaining a tone consistent with our team of nonpartisan political analysts and tailored to a sophisticated Washington, DC professional audience. This is a non-supervisory role ideal for a dynamic, early- to mid-career digital marketer who wants substantive ownership over a small, high-trust brand's digital presence.

Key Responsibilities

• Design, build, test, and manage both transactional and marketing email campaigns using an ESP (e.g., Customer.io) — including segmentation, A/B testing, and lifecycle/nurture sequences.
• Write clear, compelling copy for newsletters, social media, event promotion, and general marketing communications that reflects Cook Political's nonpartisan, analytical brand voice.
• Develop, test, and execute campaigns that convert free readers/subscribers into paying subscribers, tracking funnel performance and iterating based on data.
• Own the end-to-end publishing process for regular newsletters, coordinating with the managing editor on content while managing layout, scheduling, and distribution.
• Maintain a consistent digital presence across social channels (including Substack), complementing analyst-driven content with platform-appropriate framing.
• Track subscriber, engagement, and conversion metrics; report on campaign performance and recommend optimizations to the COO.
• Collaborate with the Director of Communications to track impact and engagement trends for media appearances across digital and on air channels and recommend optimizations to the COO.
• Maintain clean data hygiene and workflows within the CRM/ESP, ensuring accurate segmentation and personalization.
• Explore and pilot AI tools to improve data workflows, and stay current on emerging AI/data tools relevant to CRM/ESP management.
• Produce basic marketing graphics and social assets using Canva & Adobe; work fluently within Google Workspace for collaboration and reporting.
• Apply digital marketing and CRM expertise to promote and support Cook Political's event offerings (registration campaigns, follow-up nurture sequences, sponsor/attendee communications).

Qualifications

• 3–5 years of professional experience in digital marketing, email marketing, or audience development — no supervisory experience required.
• Strong, demonstrable writing skills across formats (newsletter, social, transactional/marketing email).
• Hands-on experience with an ESP or marketing/sales CRM (Customer.io, HubSpot, Mailchimp, Salesforce Marketing Cloud, or similar).
• Working knowledge of nonpartisan political analysis, election coverage, or the broader "business of politics" (campaigns, government affairs, policy media, or PACs).
• Genuine interest in politics and public affairs, with the judgment to maintain a strict nonpartisan tone.
• Proficiency with Canva and Google Workspace (Docs, Sheets, Slides, Gmail/Calendar).
• Experience with digital products/platforms at a DC media brand, PAC, trade association, or government affairs organization strongly preferred.
• Comfort working with performance data (open/click rates, conversion funnels, subscriber growth metrics) to inform decisions.
• Bachelor's degree preferred but not required with equivalent experience.