Ecommerce Editor

The Independent is an online news publisher that was established in 1986 as a national newspaper independent of party political affiliations or proprietorial influence. In 2016, The Independent became a fully digital publisher, moving away from print in pursuit of sustainability, and to safeguard its values and journalism for the future.

The Independent has always thrived through innovation and change. It was the first British newspaper to add a Saturday magazine; the first to give photography the same prestige as a news copy; the first to challenge the Westminster lobby system of closed briefings; the first broadsheet to move to the more compact ‘tabloid’ format; the first to launch a concise quality compact paper; and the first – and only – major newspaper to pull off a successful transformation to fully digital publishing.

Through The Independent, Independent TV, eCommerce, indy100, subscriptions and other ‘reader revenues’, The Independent plans to continue the work of many decades, bringing much-needed independent journalism to over 100 million unique global visitors a month, make its voice ever louder and more insistent the world over.

We have an international editorial team with our main offices in London and New York.

The team

The eCommerce team is one of the fastest-growing teams in our company and is composed of Editorial, Audience and Commercial divisions. The latter, where this role sits, is made up of commercial specialists tasked with growing performance revenue through affiliates and eCommerce partnerships on The Independent and Evening Standard. These range anywhere from marketing financial products to generating holiday bookings or sales from our product recommendations platforms, IndyBest and ESBest. Our goal is to grow our eCommerce business by improving and optimising the current strategy, diversifying revenue, and securing successful long term eCommerce partnerships.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

We champion diversity in our teams and in our reporting. As a growing and global brand, we must have a workforce that’s more representative of our readers, viewers, clients and partners, and a workplace that creates a sense of belonging for everyone.
We are committed to hiring and developing a diverse workforce regardless of background, and we support our people to thrive in their careers here.
The Independent is an equal opportunities employer, if you require any reasonable adjustments to complete your application, please do not hesitate to advise us accordingly.

About you

You will be an experienced editor with a passion for shopping content and extensive knowledge of how ecommerce in relation to digital publishing. You will be comfortable working across a range of sections including fashion and beauty, tech, travel, home and lifestyle. As eCommerce editor, you will lead a team of journalists to produce and optimise content for our highly successful IndyBest section and beyond. You will work closely with our audience team to ensure that our eCommerce content is performing to its potential, reaching as wide an audience as possible and aligns with The Independent as a brand.

Job purpose

The Independent is looking for an eCommerce Editor to oversee all eCommerce content at The Independent, covering everything from home and garden to tech, travel and fashion. The eCommerce Editor will work with our IndyBest team and other sections of The Independent to ensure ecommerce reaches its full potential.

The successful candidate will have extensive experience of working in eCommerce at a digital publication, have a strong digital news sense, and exhibit imagination and creativity when approaching shopping content.

They will have a thorough understanding of SEO and be adept at recognising stories that resonate with The Independent’s audience. The candidate will also have a passion for social media and an understanding of how this works alongside eCommerce.

We are looking for someone who will be unflustered working in a fast-paced environment. Energy and enthusiasm are key in this fast-paced role; we’re looking for someone who’s excited to step up to the challenge.

Key responsibilities and accountabilities

Lead and manage the IndyBest editorial team
Edit shopping and other eCommerce content
Help build and develop a successful eCommerce strategy
Work closely with other sections to maximise eCommerce reach
Monitor and analyse eCommerce performance

Skills

Extensive experience editing an eCommerce section on a digital publication
A proven track record of leading a team of journalists
Extensive knowledge of affiliate marketing
Organised and unflappable
First-rate understanding of SEO and social media across all platforms
A knowledge and understanding of The Independent brand, and how eCommerce fits into the title’s vision
Familiarity with using a CMS and working with tools such as Google Analytics, Adobe, Trackonomics and affiliate platforms