Media & MarTech sales recruitment in Manchester
Retained search for senior media, AdTech and MarTech commercial leaders. On the ground in Manchester and across the wider North West media & martech cluster.
Manchester is the dominant commercial centre in the North of England. The MediaCityUK campus in Salford anchors a national broadcast and digital media cluster. NOMA, Spinningfields and the Northern Quarter host a deep concentration of FinTech, B2B SaaS, MarTech and AdTech employers. The University of Manchester, Manchester Metropolitan and Salford produce one of the largest STEM and commercial graduate flows in the UK. Senior talent supply is national, with the city pulling regularly from London, Leeds, Birmingham and beyond.
Manchester's media and MarTech commercial market is the largest in the North outside Salford's MediaCityUK, with Reach plc, Auto Trader's MarTech adjacency, Mediaocean and a deep agency bench (Wavemaker, McCann) creating a genuinely competitive senior commercial talent pool. Manchester and Salford operate as a single media labour market for senior seats.
Reach plc (Manchester)
Media
Major Manchester-area commercial base for the listed national and regional newspaper group.
Auto Trader (MarTech adjacency)
Marketplace / MarTech
Manchester-headquartered FTSE 100 marketplace with a substantial enterprise MarTech commercial bench.
Mediaocean (Manchester)
AdTech
Manchester-area commercial team for the global advertising-technology business.
Wavemaker (Manchester)
MarTech / Media planning
Major Manchester commercial team for the global media-planning agency.
Media and MarTech commercial supply is concentrated around Salford, Manchester and Leeds. Senior AdTech and broadcast commercial leadership is heavily passive and tends to be approached on warm referrals.
Media and MarTech commercial salaries broadly track SaaS for equivalent seats, with broadcast and major-platform partnerships roles attracting a mild premium.
Manchester salary nuance
Manchester media and MarTech commercial salaries match Salford for equivalent seats and pull above for enterprise MarTech and AdTech roles where Auto Trader and the wider Manchester scale-up community set the local floor.
Manchester Piccadilly and Victoria provide direct national rail. The Metrolink tram network connects MediaCityUK, Spinningfields, the Northern Quarter and Trafford. Manchester Airport gives the city national and international reach unique among UK regions.
How we work
01
We start with a structured kick-off that captures the commercial objective, not just the title. Reporting line, comp envelope, the deal sizes the person will sell, the buyers they will sell to, and the behaviours that will succeed in your environment.
02
We map where the right people actually sit, across direct competitors, adjacent industries and proven environments in your region. This becomes the long-list of candidates we approach, not just whoever is on the job boards this week.
03
Candidates are approached with a clear commercial narrative, not a job advert. We communicate the opportunity, the leadership environment, the expectations and the growth path, so only genuinely relevant people move forward.
04
Two structured commercial screens before a candidate ever reaches you. Track record validation, deal-stage probing, motivation, and a credibility check on the numbers they have actually delivered.
05
You receive a considered shortlist, not a CV flood. Each candidate is presented with strengths, potential risks and a fit assessment. We then support the process through to offer, acceptance and the first 90 days.
FAQs
Yes. Senior commercial leaders for AdTech, MarTech and broadcast-tech businesses are a recurring part of our work, particularly across Salford, Manchester and Leeds.
A typical Sales Director search in Manchester runs 8 to 12 weeks. The market is competitive, the best candidates are passive, and counter-offers from current employers are common, which lengthens the close phase.
A Sales Director in Manchester typically earns £130k-£185k base with on-target earnings of £220k-£310k. FinTech, MarTech and PE-backed SaaS sit at the top of the range.
Related
Email Rachel Lunn and the team. We will reply within one working day with a Manchester-specific media & martech market read for the role you have in mind.
Email Rachel Lunn/sales-recruitment/manchester/media-martech
Sales recruitment, GTM recruitment and revenue advisory for SMEs UK-wide. We reply within one working day.
Email Rachel Lunn