About Avenue Z, Inc.

Avenue Z is the AI-first agency - a digital marketing and PR company engineered to move fast. Brands partner with us to drive revenue and reputation across all channels, from ChatGPT to The Wall Street Journal, Shopify to TikTok, Meta to Google. Trusted by leaders in consumer brands, tech, and finance, we power the earned, owned, and performance media channels driving influence.

Role summary

Avenue Z is looking for a sales focused individual contributor to open doors, create pipeline, and close high-value relationships across priority markets within the Shopify ecosystem of applications and ecommerce services.  This is a hands-on business development role for a first-hire builder who can source opportunities directly, convert executive conversations into qualified deals, and use partnerships as a force multiplier for revenue growth.

This role is not a people-manager role on day one. The mandate is to build the market, establish a repeatable outbound motion, and create a durable pipeline across priority verticals, strategic accounts, investors, founders, platforms, and ecosystem partners.

What this role owns

• Build and manage a consistent pipeline of qualified new business opportunities across target sectors, accounts, and partner channels.
• Develop sales referral relationships with founders, CMOs, growth leaders, platform partners and other high-value referral sources.
• Create and run a disciplined outbound motion across introductions, meetings, follow-up, and conversion.
• Turn ecommerce industry tools technologies, relationships, and market insight into revenue-producing sales opportunities.
• Identify, structure, and advance strategic partnerships that accelerate client acquisition, revenue expansion, and market access.
• Work closely with leadership to prioritize target accounts, sectors, and relationship pathways.
• Own the front end of the deal cycle from sourcing through early commercial discussions and handoff into contracting and delivery.
• Maintain strong CRM hygiene, pipeline tracking, forecasting, and next-step discipline.
• Represent the firm in high-value meetings, conferences and selective industry events where real business can be generated.
• Help refine the company’s business development playbook based on what is working in market.

Core responsibilities

New business origination

• Build a weekly cadence of prospecting, introductions, meetings, and follow-up activity based on overlapping segments with partners.
• Source opportunities through direct outreach, warm networks, channel partners, using partner tools such as crossbeam and partnerstack, and industry relationships.
• Develop account plans for high-priority targets and multi-thread relationships into decision-makers.
• Partner with internal leaders to shape outreach strategy, meeting narratives, and conversion plans.
• Be the main point of contact for inbound and outbound referral new business opportunities.

Partnership development

• Identify technology partnerships that can create distribution, referrals, co-selling opportunities, or strategic market credibility.
• Build relationships with platform partners, complementary service providers, founder communities, venture networks, and industry connectors.
• Evaluate partnership opportunities based on practical revenue impact rather than brand visibility alone.
• Drive partnership conversations forward with clear commercial intent, ownership, and follow-through.

Deal advancement

• Lead early-stage commercial conversations and help move opportunities from interest to active pipeline.
• Coordinate internal stakeholders around pitch preparation, capabilities positioning, and proposal strategy.
• Keep momentum across every live opportunity with clear next steps, timelines, and executive communication.
• Surface pipeline risks, stalled deals, and market feedback quickly and clearly.

Market presence and intelligence

• Represent the company externally with credibility, polish, and strong commercial instincts.
• Attend high-value industry events selectively and turn participation into meetings, introductions, and pipeline.
• Bring back market intelligence on buyer needs, competitive dynamics, and emerging opportunity areas.
• Help leadership refine go-to-market priorities based on real signals from the field.

What success looks like

• A consistent flow of qualified meetings with target accounts and high-value referral sources.
• A measurable pipeline tied to defined revenue targets.
• Strong conversion from first meeting to active opportunity.
• High-quality strategic partnerships that create real commercial leverage.
• Clean pipeline visibility, reliable forecasting, and strong operating discipline.
• A repeatable business development motion that can later be scaled with additional hires.

Ideal profile

• 4+ years of business development, partnerships, strategic sales, or growth experience.
• Proven ability to open doors and create pipeline through direct relationship-building.
• Experience selling strategic, consultative, or high-value service offerings.
• Demonstrated success turning networks, meetings, and market presence into revenue.
• Strong judgment on where to spend time and which opportunities are worth pursuing.
• Highly organized operator who can manage outreach, pipeline, and follow-through without heavy infrastructure.
• Comfortable building from scratch in an ambiguous environment.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.

Preferred experience

• Experience in agency, consulting, marketing services, media, digital transformation, or adjacent advisory businesses.
• Experience in ecommerce ecosystem including understanding the market leading tools such as Attentive, Klaviyo, Shopify, Gorgias, Rebuy, Recharge and other applications that drive revenue uplift for Shopify based websites.
• Experience with partnership platforms such as Euler, Partnerstack or Crossbeam.
• Established network across brands, growth-stage companies, investors, founders, or strategic partners.
• Familiarity with CRM management, pipeline reporting, and outbound business development systems.
• Exposure to partnership-led growth, channel development, or ecosystem strategy.

Compensation

• Job type: Full-time
• Base annual salary: $70,000 to $80,000 per year
• Total compensation potential: $125,000+ with commissions, equity incentives, and benefits

Benefits

• Medical, vision, and dental plan
• 401(k) with 4% employer match
• Unlimited paid time off
• Professional development stipend
• High-energy, collaborative environment