At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead creative direction and storytelling for digital growth projects.
- Company: Join a dynamic digital growth agency shaping the future of brands.
- Benefits: Remote work, potential for full-time role, and collaboration with top talent.
- Other info: Opportunity to define world-class creative standards in a modern agency.
- Why this job: Make a real impact on high-stakes creative projects in a fast-paced environment.
- Qualifications: 8-12+ years in creative strategy or copywriting with a focus on digital performance.
The predicted salary is between 48000 - 72000 £ per year.
We’re looking for a senior storyteller to own creative output at our digital growth agency and make big ideas work in feeds, not just decks.
Employment Type: Contract-to-hire (initial contract with intent to convert to full-time)
Location: Remote (UK / EU preferred)
Experience Level: Senior / Director (8–12+ years)
About Ladder: Ladder builds outsourced digital growth teams for some of the most ambitious companies in the world. We partner with high-growth startups and global brands to solve complex growth problems by embedding elite strategy, performance marketing, creative, and technology into a single integrated team. Our teams operate as an extension of our clients’ businesses — combining the strategic rigour of top consulting firms, the creative thinking of leading agencies, and the execution speed required to win in modern digital environments.
As our client mandates have grown more sophisticated, we’re investing in senior creative leadership to ensure our ideas, narratives, and creative thinking match the ambition, scale, and complexity of the brands we serve.
The Role: We’re hiring a Digital Creative Strategy Director to own ideas, messaging, and creative direction across Ladder’s client portfolio. This role owns the overall creative output of the agency — setting the standard for idea quality, messaging, and creative direction across all client work. This is a thinking- and communication-led role, not an art-direction-led one. You’ll be responsible for turning growth strategy into clear creative platforms, compelling narratives, and high-quality ideas that perform in digital channels. Creative thinking here starts with the feed, the message, and the audience — not with brand campaigns or above-the-line executions. This is not a production role. It’s a senior creative ownership role.
Contract-to-Hire Structure: This role will start as a contract engagement, with a clear path to full-time. The contract will involve hands-on creative leadership across live client work — owning ideas, messaging, and creative direction in real performance environments. This is a senior, high-impact hire and the first role of its kind at Ladder. We believe the best way to get this right is to work together in the real world before making a long-term commitment. If it’s a strong mutual fit, the intent is to transition into a full-time role.
What You’ll Do:
- Own the creative standard and idea quality across all Ladder client work
- Translate growth strategy into clear creative platforms, narratives, and messaging frameworks
- Lead conceptual thinking across performance, brand, and lifecycle creative
- Be hands-on with ideas and words — shaping positioning, messaging, and ad concepts
- Shape and sell ideas that perform, creatively and commercially
- Act as the senior creative authority in client conversations and presentations
- Guide designers, copywriters and growth strategists with strong creative direction (you don’t just review work)
- Improve how creative is briefed, developed, and evaluated across the agency
- Balance storytelling with performance realities across Meta, Google, TikTok, and emerging channels
- Push creative thinking across native digital formats — not traditional campaigns
Who This Role is For: This role is for a senior creative strategist / ideas person who:
- Comes from a creative strategy, copywriting, or ideas-led background
- Is an exceptional conceptual thinker and communicator
- Thinks naturally in messaging, narratives, and ideas — not just visuals
- Has led creative thinking for digital-first brands or performance environments
- Can confidently present and defend ideas with senior clients
- Understands how creative ideas actually work in feeds, platforms, and algorithms
- Uses data as fuel for ideas, not permission to have them
- Wants genuine accountability for creative quality, not just influence
Who This Role Is Not For:
- Art-direction-first or craft-led Creative Directors
- Traditional ATL / brand campaign specialists
- Designers looking to step into leadership
- Performance marketers rebranding themselves as creatives
- Anyone whose primary experience is big brand campaigns rather than digital performance
Why Join Ladder:
- You’ll own and shape the creative product of a modern digital growth agency
- You’ll work on complex, high-impact growth problems — not just campaigns
- You’ll collaborate closely with elite strategists, media specialists, and AI-powered systems
- You’ll have real authority to raise standards and change how creative shows up
- You’ll help define what “world-class creative” means in a performance-first world
If you believe great creative ideas — clearly expressed and well executed — are the ultimate growth lever in digital environments, we’d love to hear from you. Apply via LinkedIn with a portfolio or examples of work you’ve led.
Creative Strategy Director (Digital Performance & Brand) - Contract-to-Hire in Edinburgh employer: Ladder.io
At Ladder, we pride ourselves on being an exceptional employer that fosters a collaborative and innovative work culture. As a remote digital growth agency, we offer our team members the flexibility to work from anywhere in the UK or EU while tackling complex growth challenges for ambitious brands. With a strong focus on employee growth and creative leadership, we empower our staff to shape the future of digital performance and brand storytelling, ensuring that every voice is heard and valued in our pursuit of world-class creative excellence.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Creative Strategy Director (Digital Performance & Brand) - Contract-to-Hire in Edinburgh
✨Tip Number 1
Network like a pro! Reach out to your connections in the industry and let them know you're on the lookout for opportunities. A personal recommendation can go a long way in landing that dream role.
✨Tip Number 2
Show off your skills! Create a portfolio that highlights your best work, especially projects that align with the creative strategy role. Make sure it’s easily accessible and visually appealing to catch the eye of potential employers.
✨Tip Number 3
Prepare for interviews by practising your storytelling skills. You’ll need to articulate your ideas clearly and confidently, so rehearse how you’d present your past work and how it relates to the role at Ladder.
✨Tip Number 4
Don’t forget to apply through our website! It’s the best way to ensure your application gets seen by the right people. Plus, it shows you’re genuinely interested in joining our team at Ladder.
We think you need these skills to ace Creative Strategy Director (Digital Performance & Brand) - Contract-to-Hire in Edinburgh
Some tips for your application 🫡
Showcase Your Storytelling Skills:As a senior storyteller, your application should reflect your ability to craft compelling narratives. Use your cover letter to share a brief story about a successful project you've led, highlighting how your creative direction made a difference.
Tailor Your Portfolio:Make sure your portfolio is tailored to the role. Include examples that demonstrate your experience in digital performance and brand strategy. Highlight projects where you turned growth strategies into clear creative platforms and messaging.
Be Authentic and Personal:We want to get to know the real you! Don’t be afraid to inject some personality into your application. Share your creative philosophy and what drives you as a strategist. This will help us see if you’re a good fit for our culture.
Apply Through Our Website:For the best chance of success, apply directly through our website. This ensures your application gets to the right people quickly. Plus, it shows you’re serious about joining our team at Ladder!
How to prepare for a job interview at Ladder.io
✨Know Your Audience
Before the interview, research Ladder and their clients. Understand their brand voice and the types of campaigns they run. This will help you tailor your responses and demonstrate how your creative strategies can align with their goals.
✨Showcase Your Storytelling Skills
Prepare to discuss specific examples of how you've turned growth strategies into compelling narratives. Be ready to share case studies that highlight your ability to create high-quality ideas that perform well in digital channels.
✨Be Hands-On with Ideas
Since this role is about owning creative output, come prepared with a few initial ideas or concepts that could work for Ladder's clients. This shows initiative and gives you a chance to demonstrate your thinking process during the interview.
✨Communicate Clearly and Confidently
Practice articulating your thoughts on creative direction and messaging frameworks. The interviewers will be looking for strong communication skills, so ensure you can present and defend your ideas effectively, just as you would in client conversations.
