SearchTides Success
Rewriting the Playbook: CreditNinja's Path to AI- First Growth
Building on Fundamentals, Pioneering What’s Next
With SearchTides, CreditNinja evolved from traditional channels to AI-powered visibility: hitting 2025 loan goals months ahead of schedule.
About CreditNinja
CreditNinja is a digital lending platform competing in one of the most regulated (and most competitive) spaces in the U.S. financial sector. In consumer finance, visibility isn’t optional: if customers can’t find you, they’ll turn to better-known brands or affiliates backed by publishing giants like Forbes and LendingTree.
For Patrick Shipman, Director of Digital Marketing at CreditNinja, the stakes were clear. “We operate in a space where if you’re not visible, you don’t exist,” he explains. “And we’re not just competing against peers in lending. We’re competing against massive sites with enormous authority.”
That pressure made CreditNinja’s long-term partnership with SearchTides mission-critical. Since 2019, the two teams have worked together to evolve CreditNinja’s approach to growth: starting with traditional marketing and steadily advancing into the new frontier of AI-first visibility.
TL;DR Stats
SearchTides first came on board in April 2019. Six years later, the relationship has only deepened. Shipman doesn’t describe them as a vendor, but as an extension of his team.
“I don’t see you guys as a vendor. You’re in our Slack, I have your personal numbers. If anything comes up, we can have honest discussions. This is a true partnership”, says Patrick.
That tight integration has allowed both sides to move faster. The CreditNinja team knows that when SearchTides proposes something new, it comes from shared trust, not from an outsider trying to sell them something. “We’ve had the same faces on our account for years,” Shipman adds. “That consistency says a lot about how SearchTides operates as an organization. And it makes it easy for us to operate as one team.”
TL;DR Key Role Initiatives
- Grow the SearchTides audience across key channels (LinkedIn, YouTube, Reddit?, email)
- You’ll do this by owning content creation responsibilities (biz and individual profiles), platform management, and lifecycle marketing.
- Make SearchTides the go to agency recommendation across various niche marketing communities online, including Slack groups, LinkedIn groups, and Reddit forums
- You’ll do this by joining and being incredibly active in these marketing communities
- Provide value and serve as a resource to members by contributing insights and fostering conversations
- Approach communities leaders for formal partnerships and sponsorships
- You’ll do this by joining and being incredibly active in these marketing communities
The Ideal Candidate
- You have been part of a team who developed and grew social for an agency or martech organization, or as your own brand – and now you want to build with us
- Your focus is on social way more than written content
- You do lots of things that others consider ‘outside the box’ or unconventional
- You have accomplished growth or results in timeframes that others would consider impossible
- You’re probably killing it right now and feeling underappreciated or underpaid at your current role
We’re seeking a creative marketer to craft compelling content that resonates with marketers; and, to grow our brand presence both on social/nurture channels as well as in marketing communities. This is a unique, fun, and high-impact role, where you’ll market to marketers and drive business growth.
Full Responsibilities
Content Creation and Multimedia Production
- Develop and produce multimedia content, including articles, social media posts, short-form videos, infographics, and interactive elements such as polls or quizzes.
- Design and edit high-quality visuals and motion graphics using tools like Adobe, Canva, or similar platforms.
- Create thought leadership content collaborating with our client facing team, including case studies, explainers, and industry trends, to position the agency as an authority in SEO, paid media, and CRO.
Platform Management
- Manage and grow our presence on key platforms such as LinkedIn, YouTube, and emerging channels.
- Develop and execute a strategic content calendar, balancing evergreen and trending topics to engage the audience effectively.
- Actively engage with audiences by responding to comments, direct messages, and mentions to build relationships and maintain a consistent brand voice.
Community Engagement
- Build and nurture relationships within niche marketing communities, including Slack groups, LinkedIn groups, and Reddit forums, by contributing insights and fostering conversations.
- Organize interactive campaigns, such as live Q&A sessions, webinars, and AMAs, to engage and educate the audience.
- Identify and collaborate with influencers, micro-influencers, and brand advocates to amplify content and expand reach.
Lifecycle Marketing
- Create assets for newsletters, drip campaigns, and lead nurture flows.
- Connect thought leadership and content efforts with lead capture and CRM tracking.
- Run A/B tests on content formats, publishing times, and visuals to optimize performance and impact.
Analytics and Reporting
- Track and analyze performance metrics, such as engagement rates, video views, social shares, and lead conversions, to measure success.
- Prepare performance reports with actionable insights to refine and improve strategies.
- Conduct trend monitoring to stay ahead in the digital marketing landscape.
Requirements
Must-haves:
- Multimedia Content Production: Hands-on experience creating and editing high-quality visuals, videos, and graphics using tools like Adobe, Canva, or similar platforms.
- Marketing Channel Expertise: Strong familiarity with digital marketing channels, including SEO and paid media, and understanding of how to speak to and identify trends in these channels.
- Front-of-House Experience: Proven ability to represent a brand online, engage directly with audiences, and build authentic connections in marketing communities.
- Data-Driven Approach: Experience using analytics tools like Google Analytics, HubSpot, or Hootsuite to measure success and drive decision-making.
- Self-Starter: Thrives in a lean, fast-paced environment with minimal oversight and can independently manage projects from concept to execution.
- Marketing to Marketers: Skilled at engaging and resonating with a marketing-savvy audience!
nice-to-haves:
- Experience with AI-powered tools for content creation and editing, such as ChatGPT, Jasper, Descript, Perplexity, Canva AI.
- Experience collaborating on co-marketing initiatives or influencer campaigns.
- Active presence on social media platforms with a proven track record of building an engaged following.
Key Outcomes
What partnering with SearchTides Yields
Surpassed 2025 annual loan goals four months early
CreditNinja now competes directly with Forbes, LendingTree, and other affiliate giants in AI/LLMs
Fast implementation cycles: seeing results from a few days to 30–60 days
Full compliance confidence in a tightly regulated industry
Six years of partnership, evolving from traditional channels to AI-first visibility
Compensation
Salary for this role is $120k-150k and will be determined based on:
- Level, amount of experience, and success developing and growing social/community previously (at an agency/martech org, or as your own brand)
- Autonomous ability to produce content, including as a face and on backend via production
join our team
To Apply:
If you’re excited to have the central role in shaping the presence and marketing of a dynamic agency, we’d love to speak with you!
Please fill out the form to submit your application
Due to the volume of applications, we are likely not able to respond to everyone who has applied.