Associate Director of Paid Media

Optimal is hiring an Associate Director of Paid Media to join our dynamic digital media team. In this role, you’ll be a central figure in developing and executing media strategies that exceed client expectations, deliver measurable impact, and drive client satisfaction. You’ll be accountable not only for leading media strategy but also for guiding performance presentations, shaping client communication, and fostering trust with clients and stakeholders.

As a seasoned leader with a robust understanding of paid media, you’ll leverage strategic insight and communication skills to consistently align our team’s efforts with client goals and KPIs. You will proactively incorporate client feedback, seek innovative opportunities for account growth, and collaborate seamlessly with internal and external teams to optimize client results.

Who Are We?

Optimal is a media company on a mission, bringing together the best data, technology, and people to achieve our clients’ marketing goals. Brand, campaign, or cause: we maximize performance at every moment. We strive to make a difference for our clients, the individuals we reach, and the world around us.

Our team of mission-driven doers is leading the digital media charge. From shaping opinions and winning elections to driving growth and connecting consumers with the products and services they need to live healthier, happier lives.

We’re always looking for exceptional people to join our team. If this sounds like you, please apply!

Essential Functions, Duties, & Responsibilities:

• Lead Media Strategy & Execution: Partner with team leads to ideate, implement, and optimize innovative media strategies, identifying and seizing opportunities to elevate performance and client satisfaction.
• Drive Performance Analysis & Optimization: Conduct detailed analysis across omnichannel paid media campaigns, identifying trends and opportunities for optimization that drive strategic success and meet client KPIs.
• Budget Ownership & Optimization: Own budget allocation, forecasting, and tracking, ensuring efficient media spend and maximizing value toward client objectives.
• Client KPI Accountability: Take full ownership of client KPIs, ensuring strategic alignment across media teams and accountability for achieving and exceeding these metrics.
• Client Relationship Building & Presentation: Serve as the trusted client partner, leading strategic presentations and performance updates with clarity, transparency, and insight. Build trust through proactive communication and by incorporating client feedback into actionable improvements.
• Team Communication & Alignment: Ensure that the media team and account teams have a clear understanding of client goals and are equipped to meet them. Work collaboratively across teams to align paid media strategies with broader client objectives.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Coordinate with internal and external teams, including creative agencies, to deliver cohesive and high-impact results aligned with client goals.
• Client Presentation Leadership: Lead preparation and execution of key client presentations, including routine reports, monthly recaps and quarterly business reviews, offering feedback to account teams to ensure presentations are clear, logical, and digestible while providing strategic insights.
• Creative & Media Collaboration: Participate in key discussions regarding creative and media performance, ensuring alignment and effective communication with creative teams.
• Project Management & Goal Setting: Utilize project management tools to centralize project goals, deliverables, and timelines on a monthly or quarterly basis, ensuring clear tracking and measurable success.
• Stakeholder Communication & Issue Resolution: Engage fluidly with stakeholders to troubleshoot issues and keep deliverables on track, balancing shifting priorities and maintaining transparent communication.
• Client Reporting & Performance Measurement: Oversee client reporting, ensuring that metrics are presented clearly, demonstrate value, and highlight Optimal’s impact on client success.
• Meeting Preparation & Expectations Management: Set clear expectations for each client meeting, coordinating with teams to ensure material is prepared accurately and in a timely fashion.
• Exceed Client Expectations: Uphold Optimal’s standards of excellence, consistently delivering beyond expectations for key account stakeholders.

Minimum Qualifications & Skill Requirements:

• 7+ years of full-time, professional paid media experience, including 5+ years of hands-on campaign buildout & optimization
• Consistent track record and hands-on experience handling high campaign volume, large budgets, and complex omni-channel strategies across paid search, paid social, display, and programmatic
• Demonstrated ability to produce actionable insights that drive value for the end client
• Superior ability to analyze data in Google Analytics, Google Ads, Meta Ads or other analytics platforms
• Experience in Adobe Analytics is a plus
• Outstanding analytical skills 
• Proficient in Excel and PowerPoint
• Best-in-class communication and presentation skills, both written and verbal
• 4-year Bachelor’s degree in business, marketing, advertising, statistics, analytics, or a related field is a plus
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills

Optimal is proud to offer the following:

• The base salary ranges from $100,000 to $130,000 annually depending upon factors including, but not limited to, experience, skill level, education and location.
• Open leave (paid time off)
• Paid Leave for new parents
• Health insurance (including dental and vision)
• Flex Spending Plan
• Employee Assistance Program
• 401K with company matching
• Student Loan Repayment Program
• Professional development opportunities
• Rewards and recognition programs
• Mobile phone & internet reimbursement and much more!

Office Hours

This role is based out of our Austin office. Our Austin team works on a hybrid basis, with three days per week working in the office and two days per week working from home. Work hours are consistently 9:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M., Monday - Friday, with the expectation that evening and weekend work will be required as necessary.