Lead Account Executive, Commerce Growth

Job description

About Darkroom Darkroom is the leading next-generation growth marketing firm engineering the brands of tomorrow. Founded in 2017, we set out to redefine what a modern agency could be, by replacing the inertia of legacy advertising behemoths with a model built for speed, intelligence, and measurable impact. At our core, Darkroom is a human services company powered by Shadow, a universal AI commerce layer that integrates executive-level strategy with proprietary agentic technology. This fusion enables our teams to deliver outsized returns by enhancing creative output, operational efficiency, and revenue generation across every stage of the customer journey. Our track record speaks for itself: billions in attributable revenue driven across e-commerce marketplaces, media networks, DTC ecosystems, and social commerce platforms. Every engagement feeds into our proprietary data infrastructure, enabling a continuous feedback loop that accelerates growth, improves margins, and compounds results across our client portfolio. What began as a boutique design studio has evolved into one of the fastest-growing private companies in America (Inc. 5000) and among the most effective performance media agencies of the 2020s (Varos). Our founders were recognized by Forbes 30 Under 30 for advancing the intersection of technology, marketing, and advertising, cementing Darkroom's role as a defining player in the future of media innovation. ABOUT THE ROLE The Account Executive, Commerce Growth owns a new-business revenue number across Darkroom's commerce practice: Amazon (marketplace management and retail media), TikTok Shop and social commerce, Retention Marketing (email, SMS, lifecycle), and Digital Products (GEO / AI-search, SEO, CRO, web builds, and web support). You lead with the marketplaces. Amazon and TikTok Shop are where your hunt starts - these are a couple of the highest-intent entry points in the market right now, and the fastest route into a brand's commerce P&L. Retention and Digital Products are how you widen the deal: once you are inside a brand's commerce operation, you are the person who sees that their email program is flat, their PDPs do not convert, and they are invisible in AI search - and who scopes and closes that work too. You are a commercial, closer-minded operator who builds a book through partnerships, industry events, and targeted outreach - and who also fields and closes the inbound that arrives in your practice. You will become the person the market associates with Darkroom's commerce offering: at the conferences, in the platform partner ecosystems, and in the rooms where these deals get done. You will also own the upsell and cross-sell motion for your departments - working the existing client base alongside our Managing Directors and Will Margaritis (SVP, Strategy) to identify and close expansion into your services. This is a high-accountability role with clear revenue KPIs and uncapped commission that rewards self-sourced pipeline. If you want to own the commerce practice, build a durable network, and close tech-enabled marketing services you believe in, this is the role for you. Location: NYC strongly preferred. YOUR PRACTICE You own new business and expansion across four service clusters. The first two lead; the second two attach. Lead with: - Amazon - marketplace strategy and management, catalog and content, Amazon Ads / retail media, and DSP. - TikTok Shop & Social Commerce - shop setup and operations, affiliate and creator-led selling, live and Spark Ads-driven commerce, and the adjacent social marketplaces as they mature. Attach and expand into: - Retention Marketing - email, SMS, and lifecycle (Klaviyo and the broader retention stack). - Digital Products - GEO / AI-search optimization, SEO, conversion-rate optimization, web builds, and ongoing web support. You will build deep fluency in all four, the platforms behind them, and the buyer in each - so that when a brand says "we're getting killed on Amazon," "we need to stand up TikTok Shop before Q4," or "our email program is flat," you are already scoping the deal. You will also carry the Shadow story into these conversations, since our AI commerce layer is a material part of why brands choose us over a category specialist. WHAT YOU'LL DO Primary - Source and close new business, marketplace-first - Own a quarterly new-business number across the commerce practice, led by Amazon and TikTok Shop. - Build and work a partner ecosystem as a durable referral engine - Amazon and TikTok Shop partner networks, Shopify Plus, aggregators and brand holdcos, 3PLs and logistics partners, marketplace tooling, plus Klaviyo, retention and CRO tech, and AI-search / SEO platforms for your attach services. - Represent Darkroom at industry events and conferences in your practice (Amazon Accelerate, Prosper Show, unBoxed, TikTok Shop and creator-commerce summits, Shoptalk, eTail, K:BOS, BrightonSEO / MozCon, MAICON and emerging GEO/AEO events), and build the local/in-market relationships that surface deals. - Develop and pursue a named target ("whale") list of brands that fit the commerce practice, alongside a category focus defined during your first 30 days (subscription, fashion, beauty, CPG, etc.). - Field and close inbound that arrives in your practice. - Run a deliberate attach motion on every new deal: land the marketplace engagement, then scope retention and digital products into the same relationship rather than leaving it for later. - Lead the full commercial process: scoping, pricing, proposal, and close. - Work with our marketing team to understand inbound strategy across content creators, SEO, and other deal sources. Primary - Own the upsell & cross-sell motion - Run a standing weekly expansion meeting with the Managing Directors of your departments and Will Margaritis (SVP, Strategy), where you work the client base for upsell and cross-sell opportunities and drive the flagged deals to close. - The MDs surface the opportunity from delivery insight; Will clears account health and capacity; you own the commercial motion and the close. - Proactively identify expansion through client conversations, performance data, and account signals - you are the person the account team calls when an opportunity emerges. Secondary - Practice fluency and onboarding - Maintain deep, current command of Darkroom's commerce service catalog - marketplaces, social commerce, retention, and digital - and the platforms behind it. - Be present on onboarding calls for new clients in your practice to establish the expansion relationship from day one. - Maintain clean pipeline documentation in HubSpot and Notion (Sourced By, Closed By, Origination, deal stages) - comp is calculated off these fields. WHAT YOU WILL NOT DO - High-volume cold prospecting for net-new logos outside your practice - that is the outbound BDR's function. You source through partnerships, events, and targeted relationships. - Deliver QBRs. - Execute campaign changes, marketplace operations, or optimizations - that is the account team's responsibility. YOU SHOULD APPLY IF THIS SOUNDS LIKE YOU - 5+ years in a full-cycle Account Executive or equivalent sales role with a documented closing track record. Agency, MarTech, marketplace/commerce, or SaaS experience strongly preferred. - Commerce credibility. You can hold your own with an Amazon or e-commerce lead - unit economics, retail media, marketplace mechanics, TikTok Shop and creator-led selling - and you can speak fluently enough about retention/lifecycle, SEO and the shift to AI-search / GEO, CRO, and web builds to earn a technical buyer's trust. - Closer DNA. You have carried a quota and closed new-business and expansion deals. You are energized by revenue outcomes, and you source your own pipeline rather than waiting for leads. - Multi-service instinct. You do not sell one line item. You see the whole commerce operation and build the deal accordingly. - Network-builder. You know how to turn platform partners and conferences into a durable pipeline, not one-off business cards. - Commercially instinctive. When you hear "we're launching on TikTok Shop next quarter" or "we're rebuilding our site next year," you are already scoping the deal. - Self-directed operator. Highly organized, proactive, fast-moving. You do not need to be managed into motion. - Tool-proficient. HubSpot (or equivalent CRM), Notion, Google Workspace, Slack; comfortable reading performance data and dashboards, including marketplace and ads reporting. - Polished communicator. Fluent English, strong video presence, comfortable presenting to founders, CMOs, and heads of e-commerce at growth-stage brands. HOW YOU'LL BE MEASURED - Quarterly new-business quota attainment (new MRR + variable, per the Sales Quota & Commission Plan). - Marketplace-led new business closed (Amazon, TikTok Shop). - Attach rate - share of new commerce deals that land with more than one service. - Upsell and cross-sell revenue closed. - Self-sourced pipeline generated (partnerships, events, outbound relationships). - Inbound deals closed in your practice. - Pipeline hygiene in HubSpot. What It's Like to Work at Darkroom Darkroom is not a typical agency. We are looking for A players who want to build something great. We move fast, think deeply, and expect every team member to bring insight and rigor to everything they touch. We hold a high bar for performance, creativity, and ownership - but we also support each other relentlessly. No egos, no red tape - just world-class talent building something remarkable. We believe in autonomy with accountability, truth over comfort, and outcomes over optics. - Unlimited PTO + US holidays: Rebooting is part of the work. Take the time you need to stay sharp. - Remote-First Culture: Many roles are fully remote. Employees based in or near our New York or Lisbon HQs are expected to work hybrid with weekly in-office time. Hub locations include the Brazil and Spain. - Health & Wellness: Company-sponsored medical, dental, and vision coverage. - Finances, growth, and retirement: Darkroom offers a robust 401(k) program with company match and profit-sharing opportunities to help you save and grow as the company grows. - Parental Leave: Flexible parental leave to support new parents during this important transition. - Growth: Our interdisciplinary model gives every Darkroomer exposure far beyond their core role. Grow your skills, expand your influence, and stay at the forefront of the industry. - Compensation Structure: The base salary range for this role is $90,000-$120,000 per year, plus uncapped commission on new-business, upsell, cross-sell, and inbound revenue, with accelerators that reward self-sourced pipeline (partnerships, events, and outbound relationships pay a higher origination bracket than inbound). Full mechanics shared during the interview process. EQUAL OPPORTUNITY STATEMENT Darkroom is an equal opportunity workplace-we are dedicated to equal employment opportunities regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national orientation, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity, or Veteran status. We also consider qualified applicants regardless of criminal histories, consistent with legal requirements.