Social Media Lead

Salary Banding: £65k - £75k per annum (DOE) + Bonus + LTIP & Benefits

Contract Type: Permanent & Full Time

Location: London - Maple Street HQ (4 Days Per Week in Office)

Be Part of Something Big. Join the Wingstop Team! At Wingstop, we are not just in the chicken business, we are in the flavour business. Our focus is on delivering exceptional experiences and memorable moments for both our customers and our team. We have been recognised for our commitment to excellence, earning accolades such as The Sunday Times Best Places to Work 2024, 2025 & 2026, The UK's Number 1 QSR Brand 2025 and Deliveroo's Number 1 Dish in 2025. But our mission remains simple: BRING THE FLAVOUR.

Who are we looking for? The Social Media Lead will own and evolve the social strategy for Wingstop UK & Ireland, driving brand relevance, community engagement, cultural influence and measurable commercial impact across every platform. Reporting directly to the Chief Brand Officer, this role is responsible for platform strategy, creative content output and how Wingstop shows up in cultural conversation. As social becomes an increasingly important driver of brand relevance and business growth, this role will lead the in-house social team, manage agency partners and act as the senior social voice across the business. This is a strategic leadership role focused on deciding where we invest, what we build, how social drives commercial outcomes and how community insight informs decision‑making across the organisation. The Social Media Lead will also play a critical role in turning fans into loyalty members, ensuring loyalty is expressed through social in a way that feels culturally relevant, community‑led and genuinely valuable to our audience.

Key Responsibilities

• Community Insight & Innovation
  • Own social listening, community intelligence and audience insight programmes to identify emerging behaviours, cultural trends and unmet customer needs.
  • Translate signals from comments, creators, fandom and broader culture into actionable business insights.
  • Act as the voice of the customer and fan community internally, ensuring insight influences Brand, Growth, Operations and Product decisions.
  • Identify emerging youth culture trends and platform behaviours ahead of the market.
  • Build feedback loops that connect social conversations directly to business decision‑making.
  • Use both qualitative and quantitative insight to shape future campaigns, products, partnerships and customer experiences.
  • Help fuel innovation initiatives through social and community intelligence.
• Platform Strategy
  • Own and continuously evolve the social platform strategy across all channels.
  • Define the role each platform plays, where investment is prioritised and where the brand chooses not to participate.
  • Identify new platforms, formats and creator opportunities ahead of category competitors.
  • Build business cases for emerging platform opportunities and innovation.
  • Ensure social activity supports key trading moments, campaign launches and always‑on brand building.
  • Partner with internal teams to align platform activity with broader business objectives.
• Community & Creator Ecosystem
  • Own community engagement strategy across comments, creators, collaborations and brand participation.
  • Build and grow an engaged fan community, prioritising meaningful engagement over follower growth.
  • Develop creator strategies and programmes that deepen fandom and increase participation.
  • Identify and activate passionate advocates and fans to drive scalable community momentum.
  • Ensure community management generates actionable insight, not simply engagement metrics.
  • Build strong relationships within the creator ecosystem and platform partner networks.
• Content & Creative Leadership
  • Lead creative content output across all social channels.
  • Set and maintain high standards of craft, platform‑native storytelling and cultural relevance.
  • Develop repeatable content formats and franchises designed to compound engagement over time.
  • Translate broader brand campaigns into social‑first platform‑native executions.
  • Identify opportunities to create culturally relevant moments that drive conversation and attention.
  • Ensure content balances creativity, entertainment and commercial outcomes.
• Loyalty & Fan Conversion
  • Develop social‑first strategies that convert fans into loyalty programme members.
  • Partner closely with Growth teams to drive customer acquisition, engagement and retention through social channels.
  • Define how loyalty is expressed across social platforms and creator partnerships.
  • Create community and engagement mechanics that drive participation in loyalty initiatives.
  • Leverage creators, content and fandom to strengthen customer relationships and visitation frequency.
  • Help translate fan engagement into advocacy, membership and long‑term customer value.
• Performance & Measurement
  • Define and own the social measurement framework across brand, community and commercial metrics.
  • Establish KPIs covering engagement, community growth, share of attention, loyalty participation and commercial contribution.
  • Measure social's impact on brand health, fan conversion and member growth.
  • Create regular reporting and insight programmes for senior leadership teams.
  • Build a culture of testing and learning across content formats, creators, platforms and conversion tactics.
  • Use performance data to inform strategy, optimise investment and improve effectiveness.
• Team Leadership & Agency Management
  • Lead, mentor and develop the in-house social team.
  • Set standards for creativity, speed, judgement and execution.
  • Manage and direct social agency partners, owning briefs, feedback and performance expectations.
  • Operate as the senior social leader within the business and represent social at SLT level.
  • Translate platform, audience and community insight into actionable business recommendations.
  • Foster a culture of innovation, learning and continuous improvement.

Skills & Experience

• Essential
  • 6+ years' experience in social media leadership roles within consumer‑facing brands.
  • Deep expertise across major social platforms, particularly TikTok and Instagram.
  • Demonstrable experience delivering social strategies that drive both brand and commercial outcomes.
  • Strong portfolio of social campaigns and initiatives with measurable impact.
  • Proven experience leading high‑performing teams and managing agency partners.
  • Strong understanding of social measurement and attribution frameworks.
  • Experience working directly with creators, influencers and platform partners.
  • Ability to influence and communicate effectively with senior stakeholders.
• Desirable
  • Experience within QSR, food & beverage, hospitality, retail or other high‑frequency consumer sectors.
  • Experience working with youth‑focused, culturally driven or community‑led brands.
  • Experience scaling a social function during a period of rapid business growth.
  • Strong understanding of loyalty programmes and customer retention strategies.
  • Experience leveraging community insights to influence product or commercial decisions.

Key Behaviours & Mindset

• Deeply culturally connected with Gen Z and youth audiences.
• Commercially minded and understands social as a driver of business performance.
• Strong point of view on the future of social media and digital culture.
• Comfortable moving at platform speed without compromising quality.
• Naturally curious about consumer behaviour, trends and emerging culture.
• Strategic thinker with strong analytical capabilities.
• Collaborative and highly influential communicator.
• Confident operating at senior leadership level.
• Proactive, entrepreneurial and comfortable working in fast‑growth environments.
• Passionate about building communities, fandom and brand relevance.

Why Wingstop?

At Wingstop, we believe in rewarding and investing in our people. Here's what we offer:

• Enhanced holiday allowance (25 days + Bank Holidays + Birthday Off).
• Enhanced company sick pay (2 weeks full pay).
• 12 Month Rolling Pension Contributions (5% Employer).
• Enhanced Family Friendly leave.
• Private Healthcare - Sole Cover.
• Optional Electric Vehicle Salary Sacrifice Scheme.
• Travel: 55p per mileage allowance.
• Company Laptop & Phone.
• Bonus Base of 20% with Stretch Opportunity!
• LTIP from Day 1 of Employment.
• 20-50% Employee discount when dining with Friends & Family.
• Access to our Benefits platform – Lifestyle savings, Recognition & Well‑being.

Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion

We celebrate individuality and are dedicated to fostering a diverse and inclusive workplace. As an equal‑opportunity employer, we are committed to creating a supportive environment for all. If you require any adjustments during the recruitment process to perform at your best, please let us know - we're here to assist you. If this opportunity aligns with your skills and career goals, we encourage you to apply. Join us in bringing the flavour and making a real impact.

AI Disclaimer

AI can be a useful tool and we understand many candidates use it for support. That said, we're really interested in you, not an AI‑generated version of you. We want to hear your voice and understand your real experience. Applications or interview tasks that rely heavily on AI may not give us an accurate picture of who you are. Bring your authentic self to the process - that's who we're excited to meet.