Head of Audience Development

We are excited to be recruiting for a Head of Audience Development to join our Marketing Team. Reporting to the Marketing Director, the Head of Audience Development will champion long‑term audience growth, segment expansion, and brand resonance. This role blends data‑driven insight, audience research, and creative influence to ensure every production and experience reaches the right people in the most meaningful ways. Acting as both strategist and relationship builder, the Head of Audience Development will uncover emerging audience behaviours, identify new growth opportunities, and shape the brand narrative to deepen engagement across all our customer touchpoints.

The role drives forward a holistic, audience‑centred approach, ensuring marketing strategies, creative execution, content, and customer journeys all support sustainable expansion and increased revenue. A pivotal connector across the marketing ecosystem: influencing campaign strategies, while collaborating with CRM and our performance marketing specialists, informing content and brand decisions, and maintaining and developing strong relationships with producers and promoters. Through evidence‑led storytelling and continuous insight, this role ensures the organisation remains culturally relevant, commercially ambitious, and deeply connected to the evolving needs of both existing and future audiences.

What you’ll be doing…

• Lead the organisation’s long-term audience development strategy, using insights, research, and data to identify, attract and retain high‑value and high‑potential segments; ensure messaging, creative and positioning are rooted in evidence and support long‑term loyalty.
• Oversee organic audience strategies, working closely with the CRM Manager to design journeys that nurture engagement, deepen loyalty and increase lifetime value.
• Provide cross‑team insight leadership, enabling Senior Marketing Managers and CRM Managers to activate opportunities within campaigns; align daily with the Head of Performance Marketing on priorities and performance.
• Shape and advise on campaign strategy through segment intelligence, behavioural trends and growth recommendations that influence planning, messaging, and channel mix.
• Partner with the Head of Performance Marketing and Marketing Director to shape the growth strategy; inform budget allocation by show/audience/platform based on commercial priorities and forecasts.
• Support the Marketing Director in setting the overarching marketing vision, strategy and priorities, aligned to organisational and commercial goals.
• Work across the LW Brand including LW Theatres, Resident shows and LW Tickets - Audience engagement, acquisition & conversion, creative campaigns, LW brand amplification & commercial/partnership marketing.
• Champion an insight‑first approach across the marketing team, ensuring strategic decisions are grounded in evidence, behavioural understanding, and opportunities for growth.
• Advance the brand narrative, ensuring it remains resonant, inclusive, and compelling for new and returning audiences across every channel and touchpoint.
• Act as a trusted client‑facing representative, building strong strategic relationships with producers and promoters; provide evidence‑based recommendations that influence show positioning, targeting and creative strategy.
• Lead management and performance reviews of external design and CRM agencies, setting clear briefs, standards, and measurement expectations.
• Champion accessibility and inclusivity, advising the Digital Platforms Manager to ensure digital experiences meet the needs of emerging and priority audiences.

Key KPIs for the role include:

• Revenue growth attributable to audience development strategies.
• Volume and quality of new audience acquisition (data capture, segmentation expansion, enriched profiles).
• Engagement breadth and depth across priority segments.
• Improvements in long‑term loyalty indicators (repeat visits, multi‑show engagement, retention).
• Strength and impact of partnerships and producer relationships, contributing to campaign effectiveness.
• Demonstrable use of insight in campaign planning and performance optimisation.

What we need from you…

• Significant previous experience in audience development, brand marketing and growth strategy.
• Demonstrates a strong track record of using data, research, and customer insight to drive engagement and commercial performance.
• Previous experience in a senior marketing role within entertainment, live events, arts, culture, media, or another consumer‑facing sector where understanding audience behaviour is central to success.
• Demonstrable experience of shaping brand narratives, influencing cross‑channel campaign strategy, managing external agencies, and building trusted relationships with senior stakeholders, producers, or commercial partners will be highly valued.
• A background that combines strategic thinking with creative judgement, commercial awareness, and the ability to translate complex insight into clear action will be especially important for success in this role.

Salary: To be discussed on application please advise salary expectations.

Deadline for applications: 3rd June 2026

Diversity & Inclusion

At LW Theatres, we pride ourselves on being a family of individuals and actively welcome applicants from all backgrounds – it’s one of our core values and we believe celebrating our differences is key to success. At the heart of our Company is a culture of inclusion where everyone feels seen and heard and can be themselves at work. Regardless of your background, all we ask is that you have the skills and experience required and the desire to succeed. In return, we pledge to ensure that our selection process is both transparent and fair. We are also open to discussing opportunities to work flexibly.