Graphic Designer in North Carolina at Project Kitty Hawk

Project Kitty Hawk is seeking an experienced Graphic Designer with deep expertise in paid media, advertising creative, and performance-driven design. This role is responsible for developing compelling visual assets that support enrollment marketing, brand awareness, lead generation, and student engagement campaigns across digital channels.

The ideal candidate combines strong design fundamentals with a sophisticated understanding of advertising creative, audience targeting, and conversion-focused design. You'll work closely with creative and marketing strategists, media buyers, content writers, and university partners to create high-performing campaigns that help prospective students discover educational opportunities.

Experience designing for paid social, display advertising, landing pages, and digital marketing funnels is essential. Motion graphics, animation, and video editing capabilities are highly desirable. The ideal candidate is also comfortable in leveraging AI-powered creative tools and modern design platforms to improve efficiency, enhance creativity, and support rapid experimentation.

• Design and produce creative assets for paid media campaigns across platforms including Meta, LinkedIn, Google Display Network, YouTube, and emerging channels.

• Develop static and animated ad creative optimized for engagement, conversion, and enrollment goals.

• Create visual concepts that align with university brand standards while supporting campaign and business objectives.

• Design landing page graphics, email marketing assets, presentations, infographics, and digital campaign collateral.

• Conduct brand research on university partners to understand and accurately apply their visual identity systems, tone, and brand standards across all creative executions.

• Interpret, implement, and adhere to partner brand guidelines with precision, ensuring all creative assets feel native to the institution while supporting campaign performance goals.

• Collaborate with growth marketing teams to translate campaign strategies into effective creative executions.

• Analyze creative performance data and apply insights to improve campaign effectiveness and creative testing initiatives.

• Support A/B and multivariate testing efforts by creating multiple creative concepts and asset variations.

• Utilize AI-powered creative tools responsibly to accelerate ideation, concept development, asset production, and workflow efficiency while maintaining high standards of quality and brand integrity.

• Collaborate with cross-functional teams using Figma to develop concepts, design systems, campaign assets, and stakeholder presentations.

• Explore emerging creative technologies and recommend new tools, workflows, and best practices that improve team efficiency and campaign performance.

• Manage multiple projects simultaneously while maintaining exceptional attention to detail and meeting deadlines.

• Present creative concepts to stakeholders and incorporate feedback from internal teams and university partners.

• Maintain and evolve creative systems, templates, and asset libraries that support scalability and consistency.

• Bachelor's degree in Graphic Design, Visual Communication, Advertising, Marketing, or a related field, or equivalent professional experience.

• 4–7+ years of professional graphic design experience, with significant experience supporting paid media, digital advertising, or growth marketing campaigns.

• Strong portfolio demonstrating expertise in performance marketing, paid social advertising, digital campaigns, and conversion-focused design.

• Advanced proficiency in Adobe Creative Cloud, including Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign.

• Strong working knowledge of Figma for collaborative design, prototyping, asset management, and stakeholder review workflows.

• Experience designing for social media advertising, display advertising, email marketing, landing pages, and web-based campaigns.

• Demonstrated ability to research, interpret, and apply external brand guidelines from university or institutional partners, producing work that reflects authentic brand alignment while meeting campaign objectives.

• Demonstrated understanding of visual hierarchy, typography, color theory, brand systems, and user-centered design principles.

• AI literacy and experience leveraging generative AI and creative automation tools to support ideation, content creation, production workflows, and creative exploration.

• Ability to balance creative excellence with business objectives and performance outcomes.

• Strong communication, collaboration, presentation, and project management skills.

• Experience working in fast-paced environments with multiple stakeholders and competing priorities.

• Knowledge of accessibility standards, inclusive design practices, and responsive digital experiences.

Portfolio Requirement: Candidates must submit a portfolio showcasing paid media, digital advertising, campaign design, and other relevant work. Examples demonstrating performance-focused creative, motion graphics, animation, or video content are strongly encouraged.