At FutureLearn, we’re passionate about the power of lifelong learning. We help learners from all over the world progress in their careers – and invest in their futures.
We truly believe that up-skilling is a worthy investment, and we hope to empower our learners to take control of their careers through personalised learning pathways – giving them progress at their fingertips.
Partnering with 260+ world-class educational partners, including prestigious universities, global brands and industry partners, we offer our 20 million-strong learner community the opportunity to discover and access flexible, high-quality online courses and degrees.
We’re not here just to teach new skills (although we do that well), we want to help transform lives. FutureLearn is looking to build our teams with people who share our passion for lifelong learning, career empowerment and education for all. If that sounds like you, get in touch. You could help us achieve our biggest goal yet – becoming the world’s best AI-powered, career-based learning platform and OPM.
What is the opportunity?
We’re looking for a data-driven, native Italian, digitally savvy Marketing Manager to lead multi-channel student acquisition campaigns for postgraduate online degrees in Italy.
This role is responsible for expanding and managing a full-funnel digital media mix, driving awareness, consideration, and enrolments across PPC, paid social, and upper-funnel brand channels such as programmatic display, CTV, DOOH, and radio.
You’ll combine performance marketing expertise with local market insight, ensuring our campaigns cut through a TV-heavy, price-driven Italian higher education market while positioning our offer as a premium, employability-led alternative.
What does success look like:
- Lead the planning, execution, and optimisation of Italy-focused digital campaigns across:
- Performance channels: Google Ads, Meta, LinkedIn, Microsoft Ads
- Brand channels: programmatic display, CTV, DOOH, and TV/audio/radio where relevant
- Ensure budget allocation balances awareness-building (e.g. CTV, YouTube) with conversion-focused PPC.
- Scale media spend in seasonal peaks (e.g. January, September intakes) and optimise for CPL, CPA, and CPE.
- Develop and localise Italian ad creatives, landing pages, and messaging to drive higher lead quality.
- Own the integration of new channels (programmatic, CTV, DOOH, radio) into the paid media mix.
- Coordinate with Italian media vendors and agencies to ensure competitive share of voice in a market dominated by TV investment.
- Test and evaluate incremental ROI of awareness channels on downstream lead quality and conversion rates.
- Localise and optimise Italian microsites and landing pages to reduce bounce and increase enquiry form completion.
- Lead A/B testing on messaging, UX, and creative to improve funnel metrics (lead → application → enrolment).
- Build audience segmentation and retargeting strategies across performance and brand campaigns.
- Work closely with CRM teams to implement Italian-language nurture sequences and remarketing journeys.
- Utilise lookalike audiences, dynamic ads, and lead scoring to prioritise high-intent prospects.
- Own Italian campaign measurement and attribution, ensuring full visibility from enquiry to enrolment.
- Implement and maintain tracking (GTM, GA4, UTM structures) for all channels, including programmatic buys and offline conversions for reach channels (CTV/radio).
- Provide weekly and monthly performance reports, translating results into actionable insights.
- Work cross-functionally with Sales, CRM, and BI to align Italian market goals with pan-European performance.
- Collaborate with external agencies, Italian media suppliers, and local freelancers for market insights and competitive positioning.
- Monitor competitor advertising trends (Pegaso, Mercatorum, San Raffaele, Marconi) to identify new opportunities in Italian media buying.
What you bring to the table:
- Proven experience in multi-channel performance marketing, with exposure to upper-funnel/brand channels (programmatic, CTV, DOOH).
- Strong expertise in Google Ads, Meta Ads, LinkedIn Ads, and campaign optimisation for lead gen.
- Knowledge of the Italian media ecosystem (digital + traditional) and user behavior in higher education.
- Experience with localisation of digital campaigns (language, UX, messaging).
- Data-driven mindset with ability to evaluate incremental ROI from awareness vs. conversion channels.
- Proficiency in analytics tools (GA4, Looker, PowerBI) and conversion tracking implementation (GTM).
- Native or fluent Italian speaker with deep understanding of cultural nuances, language tone, and local market expectations.
- Strong familiarity with Italian competitor strategies in distance learning and media investment trends (TV-heavy landscape).
- Strategic thinker, able to balance short-term lead targets with longer-term awareness building.
- Excellent communicator in Italian & English, able to collaborate with cross-border teams and external Italian agencies.
- Agile self-starter with a test-and-learn mindset and comfort working in a fast-paced, cross-functional environment.
What happens next?
Ready to go for it? Click 'Apply', include your CV and tell us why you'd like to become a FutureLearner, and how you’ll nail this role.
Recruitment Process
Please contact [email protected] if you require any reasonable adjustments or alterations to be made to support you through the recruitment process.
Diversity Statement
We value all the great benefits that diversity brings and encourage everyone to bring their whole self to work – At FutureLearn we are proud to have Diversity and Inclusion at the centre of everything we do. We are committed to Equal Employment Opportunity regardless of race, colour, national origin, ethnicity, gender, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or religion.
We can't wait to meet you! #FutureLearnCareers
