Commerce Strategist

Position Summary 

The eCommerce Strategist will foster relationships with CQL’s clients and successfully deliver strategic direction throughout various engagements with a holistic view and understanding of the eCommerce ecosystem. You will represent the CQL brand, values, and culture both internally and externally and be tasked with identifying strategic business opportunities with prospective and existing clients. 

We are looking for someone with a strong consulting skill set, capable of scaling engagements between mid-market and enterprise clients, who is well-versed in the eCommerce industry, omnichannel commerce, digital marketing channels, and POS, and who can work alongside UX, design, and development teams. This position will report to the VP of Strategy. 

Organizational Values

Our Core Values are the foundation of our team.  We expect our team members to uphold these values at work and within the community.

• Relentlessly Client-Centric - We prioritize our clients' results ahead of everything. We make decisions from our clients' POV.
• Trusted and Consultative - We earn our clients' trust by guiding and consulting them through difficult decisions. We do what we say we're going to do, internally and externally.
• Collaborative, Approachable, and Authentic - We operate as one team, internally and externally. We're empathetic with one another and our clients. We're kind in all circumstances. 
• Adaptable and Constantly Learning - And have fun doing it. We deliver work we're proud of with excellence and care. We constantly strive for our clients and team members.
• Passionate to Achieve and Win - We learn quickly and create positive change.

Accountable For:

• Provide subject matter expertise on eCommerce strategy at CQL. 
  • Knowledge of Shopify Online Store and POS admin as well as 3rd party commerce technologies and partners in the Shopify ecosystem for small, mid-sized, and enterprise brands
  • Stay current on what’s happening in the eCommerce and Shopify ecosystem, including platform upgrades, enhancements, and Shopify releases, and advise clients on how to best leverage Shopify and adjacent platforms.
  • Provide 3rd party app consulting, helping clients evaluate, select, and optimize the apps and integrations that support their commerce stack.
  • Strong understanding of best practices for site merchandising and store optimization, including website analytics, testing and conversion rate optimization (‘CRO’), content, and platform configuration
  • Advise clients on AI visibility to ensure their brands and products are discoverable, represented, and recommended across AI-driven search and shopping experiences.
  • Support thought leadership by providing perspectives and best practices through blogs, panel discussions, white papers, and other mediums
• Expand digital and ecommerce services with CQL clients particularly for analytics, CRO, SEO/GEO, AI visibility, content, and ecommerce consulting as a part of ongoing client growth.
• Provide consulting leadership in support/retainer engagements by driving delivery team focus and priority, and ensuring strategic alignment between client business goals and day-to-day execution
• Develop a holistic view and understanding of the eCommerce Ecosystem
  • Customer Touch Points (web, app, social, email/SMS, in-store, phone, etc)
  • Commerce Platform Functionality (products, stores & locales, discounts, search & merch, content management, personalization, AI )
  • Commerce Partners & Integrations (loyalty, payment gateways, fraud, UCG, etc.)
  • Enterprise Systems (ERP, OMS, PIM, CRM/CDP)

Client-Facing Responsibilities

• Provide consulting to and share expertise with CQL clients regarding store management and merchandizing best practices
  • Perform site audits and leverage shopper insights to develop recommendations for opportunities to improve store traffic, revenues/AOV, and conversion through site optimizations and testing, features and content, SEO, promotions and discounting, personalization, and other digital solutions
  • Measure and report on performance impacts of site updates and optimizations through analytics reporting and dashboards.
  • Provide proactive monitoring of site and business performance, surfacing opportunities and risks to clients to help clients grow their businesses
• Lead discovery efforts focused on understanding the landscape and client goals and collaborating with the CQL team to present findings, recommendations, and vision.
  • Create pre-workshop questionnaires 
  • Identify and lead necessary workshops and activities to understand client business goals and gather high-level requirements and feature sets
  • Lead CQL team through synthesis of findings and brainstorming recommendations
  • Conduct client checkpoints to ensure alignment
  • Conduct research, competitive benchmarking, and site analysis, as necessary
  • Develop deliverables such as user personas, feature sets, and road maps
  • Collaborate on and approve final client presentation deck
  • Estimate and scope recommendations
• Provide oversight/consultation to client and CQL project teams during CQL delivery phases. Help ensure that recommendations and vision are adhered to in the final delivery.
• Support sales and CSM roles with new and existing clients to identify opportunities and recommendations for our clients as a trusted partner.

Education & Experience Requirements 

• Four (4)+ years of experience in Ecommerce either in consulting or client-side management
• Exposure and understanding of digital marketing channels (PPC, SEO, Email, SMS, Social, Agentic platforms, Marketplaces) and back of house product, inventory, and order management systems
• Identify and develop KPIs and supporting measurement plans

Other Knowledge, Skills & Abilities

• Understanding of Site Analysis Tools such as Google Analytics, Looker Data Studio, HotJar, and Crazy Egg
• Understanding of A/B testing and CRO tools such as Shoplift and Intelligems
• Standard agency deliverables such as wireframes, comps, tech specs, etc.
• Familiar with common Shopify integrations and eCommerce partners
• Other duties as assigned 

Core Competencies

• Strategic Thinking: Ability to offer advice and create a plan based on analysis of issues and trends, develop a vision for the future, and create a culture in which the long-range goals can be achieved
• Relationship Building: Ability to establish and maintain a good rapport and cooperative relationship with customers and co-workers 
• Presentation:  Ability to effectively present information to a group 
• Decision Making: Ability to select an effective course of action by understanding issues, comparing solutions, and drawing conclusions to resolve problems.