Associate Director, Consumer Campaign Development Lead

Job Description

Associate Director, Consumer Campaign Development Lead (CDL) – New Asset

Our Consumer team translates breakthrough science into medicines that extend and improve patients’ lives. We prioritize meaningful patient engagement, access, and launch excellence through integrated, compliant, and data-driven consumer marketing.

The Associate Director, Consumer Campaign Development Lead (CDL) will lead DTC patient marketing and consumer engagement efforts in partnership with the marketing strategy team. This role will design, execute, and optimize integrated consumer campaigns across digital and traditional channels to support product launches and ongoing commercial objectives. The role works cross-functionally with Brand, Commercial, Medical, Legal/Regulatory, Analytics, Agencies, and Operations to deliver compliant, measurable patient-facing programs that drive awareness, education, intent, and engagement.

Key Responsibilities

• Serve as the embedded consumer / DTC patient marketing lead on the marketing strategy team and translate strategy into actionable consumer tactics.

• Develop, activate, and optimize integrated DTC patient campaigns across consumer channels, including:

  • Paid digital media

  • Social media and other consumer-facing media as appropriate

  • Search

  • Patient websites and landing pages

  • Consumer video and OLV (streaming)

  • CRM / email

  • Patient support and educational content

  • Broadcast and other consumer-facing media as appropriate

• Define campaign objectives, target consumer segments, channel mix, timelines, measurement plans, and success criteria in partnership with Analytics.

• Use patient insights, segmentation, journey mapping, and performance data to refine targeting, messaging, content, and campaign iteration.

• Ensure all consumer communications are accurate, patient-friendly, health literate, medically appropriate, and aligned with legal and regulatory requirements.

• Partner with media, digital, and agency teams to develop channel strategies, optimize performance, and run test-and-learn programs.

• Support media and channel budget planning and monitor spend versus performance.

• Manage asset development using agile workflows, including ideation, sprint planning, med-legal review, deployment, measurement, and revalidation.

• Oversee timelines, resource allocation, vendor deliverables, and production to ensure on-time, high-quality launch execution.

• Coordinate Promotional Review Team approvals and implement Safety Label Updates when required.

• Lead day-to-day agency relationships and manage digital scopes of work, timelines, and budgets.

• Partner with broader brand and patient experience teams to ensure a consistent, consumer-centric omnichannel experience.

Minimum Education

• Bachelor’s degree required; Master’s preferred.

Required Experience & Skills

• Minimum 4 years in pharmaceutical marketing, consumer marketing, or commercial communications with a strong focus on DTC patient marketing, patient engagement, or consumer-facing campaigns.

• Proven success in consumer campaign activation, DTC channel strategy, and asset production in regulated environments.

• Strong understanding of patient journey, consumer segmentation, and healthcare consumer behavior.

• Experience developing and optimizing patient-facing digital campaigns and content.

• Strong cross-functional collaboration and stakeholder management; ability to influence without authority.

• Data-driven; experience using consumer insights, patient data, and performance metrics to optimize campaigns.

• Project and vendor management experience; familiarity with agile/scrum preferred.

• Technical familiarity with Veeva/PromoMats, SAP, and common digital analytics tools preferred.

Preferred Experience & Skills

• Consumer pharmaceutical marketing or DTC launch planning experience.

• Experience leading patient education, awareness, or adherence/support campaigns.

• Media and channel budget planning and spend optimization.

• Experience with Integrated Profit Plan preparation and TBR processes.

• Expertise in consumer messaging, campaign measurement and optimization, and digital strategy.

• Regulatory/compliance awareness and strong stakeholder influence skills.

• Adaptability, initiative, and collaborative mindset.

• Experience integrating emerging digital capabilities into patient engagement strategies.

Additional Qualifications

• Independent, decisive thinker who performs well under ambiguity and tight timelines.

• Working knowledge of website/CMS best practices, landing-page conversion fundamentals, and applicable AI use cases for consumer engagement, such as:

  • Content personalization

  • AI-assisted analytics

  • Patient chat/virtual assistants

  • Automated content and insight generation

• Track record of integrating emerging digital capabilities into DTC patient marketing strategies.

• Strong ability to develop consumer-friendly messaging that balances brand goals, patient empathy, and compliance requirements.

Position Location

• Upper Gwynedd, PA

Required Skills:

Adaptability, Customer-Focused, Data Analysis, Digital Marketing Management, Market Development, Marketing Campaign Development, Marketing Strategy Implementation, Market Research, Oncology Marketing, Personal Initiative, Product Development, Product Launch Planning, Strategic Planning, Strategic Thinking, Vendor Management

Preferred Skills:

Current Employees apply HERE

Current Contingent Workers apply HERE

US and Puerto Rico Residents Only:

Our company is committed to inclusion, ensuring that candidates can engage in a hiring process that exhibits their true capabilities. Please click here if you need an accommodation during the application or hiring process.

As an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer, we provide equal opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, age, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status, disability status, or other applicable legally protected characteristics.  As a federal contractor, we comply with all affirmative action requirements for protected veterans and individuals with disabilities.  For more information about personal rights under the U.S. Equal Opportunity Employment laws, visit:

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We are proud to be a company that embraces the value of bringing together, talented, and committed people with diverse experiences, perspectives, skills and backgrounds. The fastest way to breakthrough innovation is when people with diverse ideas, broad experiences, backgrounds, and skills come together in an inclusive environment. We encourage our colleagues to respectfully challenge one another’s thinking and approach problems collectively.

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The salary range for this role is

$142,400.00 - $224,100.00

This is the lowest to highest salary we in good faith believe we would pay for this role at the time of this posting. An employee’s position within the salary range will be based on several factors including, but not limited to relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, geographic location, government requirements, and business or organizational needs.

The successful candidate will be eligible for annual bonus and long-term incentive, if applicable.

We offer a comprehensive package of benefits.  Available benefits include medical, dental, vision healthcare and other insurance benefits (for employee and family), retirement benefits, including 401(k), paid holidays, vacation, and compassionate and sick days. More information about benefits is available at https://jobs.merck.com/us/en/compensation-and-benefits.

You can apply for this role through https://jobs.merck.com/us/en (or via the Workday Jobs Hub if you are a current employee). The application deadline for this position is stated on this posting.

San Francisco Residents Only: We will consider qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records for employment in compliance with the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance

Los Angeles Residents Only: We will consider for employment all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable state and local laws, including the City of Los Angeles’ Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance

Search Firm Representatives Please Read Carefully 
Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA, also known as Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC, Rahway, NJ, USA, does not accept unsolicited assistance from search firms for employment opportunities. All CVs / resumes submitted by search firms to any employee at our company without a valid written search agreement in place for this position will be deemed the sole property of our company.  No fee will be paid in the event a candidate is hired by our company as a result of an agency referral where no pre-existing agreement is in place. Where agency agreements are in place, introductions are position specific. Please, no phone calls or emails. 

Employee Status:

Regular

Relocation:

Domestic

VISA Sponsorship:

No

Travel Requirements:

10%

Flexible Work Arrangements:

Hybrid

Shift:

1st - Day

Valid Driving License:

No

Hazardous Material(s):

N/A

Job Posting End Date:

06/6/2026

*A job posting is effective until 11:59:59PM on the day BEFORE the listed job posting end date. Please ensure you apply to a job posting no later than the day BEFORE the job posting end date.