Job Description:
Full-time · Rotterdam, Amsterdam
Are you a dynamic, result-driven sales professional ready to take your career to the next level in customer experience? Do you have passion for driving business growth, building strong client relationships, and leading high-impact sales initiatives? If so, we want to hear from you!
About Merkle
Merkle is a leading data-driven customer experience management (CXM) company that specializes in the delivery of unique, personalized customer experiences across platforms and devices for leading brands. The company’s heritage in data, technology, and analytics forms the foundation for its unmatched skills in understanding consumer insights that drive hyper-personalized marketing strategies. Merkle is an integrated part of dentsu, a global agency network, with more than 65,000 employees in 145 markets.
In Amsterdam and Rotterdam, more than 130 Merkle employees work with customers such as Albert Heijn, VodafoneZiggo and Marktplaats. Merkle Netherlands is a strategic partner of Google, Adobe, Salesforce and Selligent, among others.
Role Summary
As a Sales Lead with 5+ years of experience, you and the Executive Business Director are the key persons for the growth and sustainable development of our new logo sales pipeline. Working closely with our client leadership team and other specialist, you will open the door to net new logo accounts in the Netherlands, contribute to our marketing efforts (events & campaigns) and proactively seek new services clients through your own outreach and network.
You will help Merkle sell more efficiently and effectively and understand the prospective client decision-making process and organizational map. Thanks to your proactive way of approaching people, you will have no inhibitions about making the first telephone contact and getting into a conversation and following up on qualified leads. With a curious mind and good knowledge of our market, it is also easy for you to understand customer needs and to align these to the services Merkle can deliver, using business outcomes & ROI insights as a primary conversation point.
You will report into Executive Business Director.

What you’ll do

• Identify and develop new business opportunities in line with Merkle’s scope of work and capabilities;
• Work closely with other local dentsu practices (Media, Creative) on leveraging cross and upsell opportunities, integrated solutions;
• Build and nurture strong relationships with potential clients, partners and stakeholders;
• Manage pitches and pro-actively work on leads;
• Develop and implement strategic sales plans to achieve and exceed revenue targets;
• Lead negotiations and close high-value deals;
• Collaborate with internal teams to ensure seamless onboarding and client satisfaction;
• Stay ahead of market trends, competitor activities and industry developments and translate them to the benefit of prospecting.

Key Activities:

• Develop and manage the sales pipeline and lead tenders/RFPs;
• Active part in pre-sales activities;
• Full responsibility for the processing of all Request for Information (RFI) and Request for Proposal (RFP) documents related to your assigned vertical, whether sourced from Alliance partners or personally. This includes direct integration into the sales process or initiation of a qualification process, accompanied by comprehensive documentation and execution in accordance with established best practices;
• Working closely with the Alliance Managers, Merkle solutions, strategy and practice leaders to help define and position vertical specific Go-To-Market Salesforce propositions;
• Tracking the movement of decision-makers through organisations that are aligned to Merkle based solutions;
• Analysing and mapping our competitors’ customer landscape and understand our win-themes as Merkle;
• Accumulate the latest trends and developments in Marketing technology and the digital marketing industry in general through an inquisitive and self-motivated approach;
• Nurturing the engaged leads through engaging and curated content relevant to the prospects’ business needs and our offerings.

Skills and Experience

• 5 years business development/consultative sales experience in the digital/CX agency, CRM and/or commerce technology space in the Netherlands;
• Background in marketing and digital technology, professional services or digital agency (Experience of any of Salesforce, Adobe, Braze, CRM, CMS, Commerce, marketing automation, CDP’s, or CX desirable);
• Knowledge of the inner workings of software alliance partnerships a big plus;
• Self-starter with the ability to think quickly and adapt to client needs;
• Viewed as a thought leader in sales and well connected/networked in the Netherlands;
• Excellent communication and presentation skills;
• A team player with a strong, confident personality and a positive attitude with great dedication;
• Highly motivated, well-organized and driven;
• Fluent in Dutch & English.

What do we offer

We offer a culture of innovation and radical collaboration, a great place to work with focus on the well-being of our people. We enjoy hybrid ways of working, additional well being and social impact days, as well as flexible public holidays. We are a certified Great Place to Work.

• In addition to 25 annual vacation days, we offer 3 Well-being Days where dentsu employees collectively take personal time off with a focus on well-being and 2 extra days that company is closed;
• 2 Social Impact Days where you can volunteer for the charity of your choice;
• A hybrid work model with 3 days in the office (or at clients) and 2 days at home;
• Extensive learning and development opportunities; we offer a wide range of personal and online training;
• Clear career development; in close collaboration with your manager, you create a personal development plan that helps you grow within the wide range of growth opportunities that Merkle offers;
• Plenty of room for fun and other cool things outside of work, such as afternoon drinks, boot camps, karaoke, a game of FIFA or table tennis, and the well-known dentsu & Merkle parties;
• And of course, a good salary and excellent secondary benefits.

Our commitment to Diversity & Inclusion
Dentsu is an equal opportunity employer. We strive for an inclusive and safe workplace with equitable opportunities and treatment for all, where everyone is empowered to speak out. We are committed to inclusivity and fairness in all aspects of our policies, practices, and daily operations. We do not discriminate based on age, ethnicity, gender, nationality, religion or beliefs, sexual orientation, (dis/)ability, appearance or (socio-economic) position, and encourage candidates from all backgrounds and identities to apply.
We put our people at the center, creating space for growth, understanding, and learning so they can thrive. We foster an inclusive culture that values the unique strengths, perspectives, and experiences of each employee, in which diversity is valued in both our employees and our ideas. We believe that our diverse backgrounds contribute to the strength of our teams, enhancing our ability to make informed decisions, foster innovation, and achieve better business outcomes for our clients.
Not sure if you meet all of the requirements for this role? Please don’t hesitate to get in touch, as some of the specifications are not pre-requisites.

LI-ED3

• Identify and develop new business opportunities in line with Merkle’s scope of work and capabilities;
• Work closely with other local dentsu practices (Media, Creative) on leveraging cross and upsell opportunities, integrated solutions;
• Build and nurture strong relationships with potential clients, partners and stakeholders;
• Manage pitches and pro-actively work on leads;
• Develop and implement strategic sales plans to achieve and exceed revenue targets;
• Lead negotiations and close high-value deals;
• Collaborate with internal teams to ensure seamless onboarding and client satisfaction;
• Stay ahead of market trends, competitor activities and industry developments and translate them to the benefit of prospecting