Email Marketing Specialist

elk Marketing is a performance marketing agency helping brands grow in an increasingly AI-first digital landscape. Our team specializes in SEO, AI Search, paid media, website development, content marketing, creative strategy, and email marketing. We’re looking for a talented Email Marketing Specialist to join our team as a Canadian-based contractor. This person will play a hands-on role in executing email marketing strategies for our clients while serving as an internal email expert who can quickly jump into projects, audits, campaigns, flows, reporting, and other one-off email needs. The ideal candidate is both strategic and execution-oriented — someone who can look at an account and identify opportunities, develop a plan, design and build the emails, launch campaigns, analyze performance, and communicate actionable recommendations. The Role As an Email Marketing Specialist, you will own email marketing across assigned projects — from initial audits and strategy through creative development, platform build, campaign execution, and reporting. You’ll work closely with the broader elk team to support both ongoing client email programs and one-off projects that require specialized email expertise or a faster turnaround than external partners can provide. This role is ideal for someone who enjoys being hands-on and can confidently move between strategy, creative, technical execution, and analytics. Key Responsibilities Email Strategy & Planning Develop and execute email marketing strategies aligned with client goals, audiences, and business objectives. Conduct email marketing audits and identify opportunities for optimization and growth. Develop campaign strategies and recommendations based on performance data, customer behavior, and business priorities. Build and maintain creative and campaign calendars outlining what campaigns should run, when they should run, and why. Develop recommendations for email cadence, segmentation, messaging, and overall customer journey strategy. Campaign Creation & Execution Own the end-to-end creation of email campaigns, including: Campaign strategy and planning Copy and content direction Email design Email development/build QA and testing Scheduling and deployment Performance reporting Design and build engaging, on-brand emails that align with client goals and brand guidelines. Translate creative concepts and marketing strategies into effective email experiences. Ensure emails are optimized for mobile, usability, deliverability, and conversion. Manage one-off email projects from initial brief through final execution. Flow & Automation Strategy Build, optimize, and manage automated email flows and customer journeys. Develop flow strategies based on customer lifecycle, purchasing behavior, engagement, and business objectives. Audit existing flows and recommend improvements to timing, segmentation, messaging, creative, and conversion opportunities. Identify opportunities for additional automations and lifecycle marketing initiatives. Monitor flow performance and make data-driven recommendations for ongoing optimization. Analytics & Reporting Monitor and analyze email campaign and flow performance. Build recurring and ad hoc email marketing reports. Evaluate key performance indicators such as open rates, click-through rates, conversion rates, revenue, engagement, and unsubscribe rates. Translate performance data into clear insights and actionable recommendations. Identify trends, opportunities, and areas for improvement across email programs. Communicate results and recommendations to internal teams and clients as needed. Internal Email Expertise Serve as an internal email marketing subject-matter expert for the elk team. Provide hands-on support for email projects that are not outsourced to external partners. Jump into urgent or time-sensitive email needs when additional support is required. Partner with team members to troubleshoot email strategy, creative, platform, or execution challenges. Help elevate elk’s overall email marketing capabilities, processes, and best practices. Collaborate with creative, account, strategy, and marketing team members to ensure email initiatives are aligned across channels. Platforms & Tools Experience working in the following platforms is preferred: Klaviyo ActiveCampaign HubSpot Figma Asana Strong proficiency in at least one major email marketing platform is expected, with the ability and willingness to work across multiple platforms. Qualifications & Experience 1–3 years of professional experience in an agency email marketing role. Hands-on experience developing and executing email marketing campaigns. Experience building automated email flows and customer journeys. Experience with email marketing strategy, creative development, and reporting. Strong understanding of email marketing best practices, including segmentation, personalization, testing, deliverability, and optimization. Experience designing and/or building emails within an email marketing platform. Comfortable interpreting email performance data and turning insights into recommendations. Experience working with multiple clients, brands, or projects in an agency environment is strongly preferred. Strong attention to detail and commitment to quality assurance. Ability to manage multiple projects and deadlines independently. Strong written and verbal communication skills. Ability to work collaboratively while also taking ownership of projects from start to finish. Contractor Expectations Work as an independent Canadian-based contractor supporting elk Marketing and its clients. Manage assigned projects and deadlines with a high degree of ownership and accountability. Maintain clear communication with internal elk team members regarding project status, priorities, timelines, and potential blockers. Track work and project progress within elk’s established systems and processes. Maintain confidentiality of elk Marketing and client information. Follow applicable elk Marketing policies, processes, and client-specific requirements.