Marketing Manager, Consumer Shows

Blue Ant Media Inc.•Toronto, ON

2d•CA$75,000 - CA$90,000•Hybrid

About The Position

Blue Ant Media is seeking a creative, strategic, and highly organized Marketing Manager, Consumer Shows to lead the marketing strategy for its portfolio of 11 consumer shows across home, cottage, lifestyle, baby, and wellness categories. This role is responsible for turning live events into must-attend experiences by defining clear value propositions, crafting compelling messaging, and creating campaigns that drive attendance. The manager will lead campaign strategy, messaging, and year-round audience engagement, working closely with various internal teams and external partners. This position also involves leading two Brand Specialists and collaborating with a Coordinator to bring shows to life before, during, and after each event. The role is key in shaping how people discover and experience these consumer shows, involving creative campaigns, audience engagement, partner collaboration, and supporting sales growth. The Consumer Shows Portfolio includes events like the National Home Show, Fall Home Show, Spring Cottage Life Show, The Baby Show (Vancouver), and The Women’s Healthy Living Show, with potential for future additions. The position reports to the VP, Marketing, Canadian Media and is a hybrid role requiring at least three days per week in the Toronto head office.

Requirements

5+ years’ experience in event marketing, consumer marketing, media, live experiences or a related field.
Experience developing creative campaigns that drive ticket sales, attendance, audience engagement or consumer action.
Demonstrated ability to leverage data and consumer insights to inform strategy, define clear value propositions, and shape impactful, audience-focused messaging.
Strong understanding of how to build a clear value proposition and translate it into compelling messaging.
Experience leading creative briefs and working with designers, writers, producers, agencies or internal creative teams.
Strong organic social media instincts, including content planning, platform trends, influencer opportunities and community engagement.
Experience with email marketing, content calendars, promotional campaigns and audience communications.
Comfort supporting B2B marketing needs, including sales materials, sponsorship support, exhibitor communications or partner toolkits.
Strong project management skills and the ability to manage multiple brands, shows and deadlines at once.
Excellent writing, editing and communication skills.
Collaborative working style and comfort partnering with Show Directors, Sales, Creative, Operations, Data, Communications and external partners.
A proactive, solutions-oriented mindset and the ability to make smart decisions in a fast-moving environment.
Availability for occasional evenings and weekends based on the show calendar.

Nice To Haves

Experience marketing consumer shows, trade shows, festivals, conferences, ticketed events, attractions or live shopping experiences.
Experience in home, design, cottage, lifestyle, parenting, baby, wellness, food, retail or similar consumer categories.
Experience developing co-promotion campaigns with major brands, media partners, retailers or associations.
Familiarity with Wrike or similar project management tools.
Experience with Mailchimp or other email marketing platforms.
Experience with Meta, Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn or other social platforms.

Responsibilities

Deliver Compelling, Audience-First Campaigns: Lead the marketing strategy for each show, defining positioning and messaging that connect with audiences and communicate the show’s value. Collaborate with Creative Team, Show Directors, and Data Lead to create engaging campaigns.
Lead the Creative Briefing Process: Guide campaign development across digital, social, print, radio, onsite, email, sales materials, and partner assets, ensuring creative consistency and brand alignment.
Own the Year-Round Audience Engagement Strategy: Lead the organic social and content strategy for the Consumer Shows portfolio, ensuring brands remain active and relevant. Work with the Communications lead on influencer strategy, seasonal content, partner amplification, and platform opportunities.
Bring Big Partnerships to Life: Support large-scale marketing partnerships with brands, media partners, transit partners, retailers, associations, and community organizations.
Support Sales with Strong Marketing Materials: Partner with the Show Team and Data lead to develop materials that drive exhibitor and sponsorship interest, including sales decks, exhibitor messaging, marketing toolkits, and promotional opportunities.
Guide Email and Direct Audience Communications: Oversee the content strategy for consumer and exhibitor email communications, ensuring timeliness, usefulness, and brand alignment.
Lead and Develop the Team: Manage two Brand Specialists and work closely with the Coordinator, Finance & Consumer Shows, setting priorities and ensuring focus on high-impact marketing activities.
Bring the Campaign to Life Onsite: Attend consumer shows to ensure marketing plan execution, capture content opportunities, support partners, and ensure the onsite experience reflects the campaign promise. Bring learnings back into future campaigns.