WPP Media | (MFG) Associate Planning Director (6-month contract)

Overview of job

We are looking for a highly motivated and experienced Associate Planning Director to join the MFG Cloud Team in the Planning discipline. As an important point of contact for Google’s Cloud account, you will manage their media planning needs across all channels, maintaining strong relationships with clients, understanding their business goals, and translating these into effective advertising strategies and media plan deliveries. We are the owners of the day-to-day relationship ensuring excellent quality and flawless delivery against client objectives on each and every campaign.

You will be managing communication, expectations, and processes smoothly and efficiently between both client and internal teams. Your role is crucial in ensuring that campaigns are delivered on time, within budget, and meet or exceed client expectations. You will demonstrate excellence through meticulous planning, strategic thinking, timely connection and continuous performance analysis, in order to drive successful incremental outcomes and deliver exceptional value to our clients.

 Key Responsibilities:

1. a) Client Relationship:

• • Proactively communicate with clients, providing timely updates on campaign performance, industry trends, and new opportunities. Manage client expectations effectively and ensure their satisfaction with our services.

b) Strategic Planning:

• • Data-Driven Approach: You will leverage a data-driven approach to optimize campaign performance and drive client success. This involves utilizing advanced analytics and data insights to inform strategy, planning, and execution. You will analyze key performance metrics, identify trends, and make data-backed decisions to enhance the effectiveness of advertising campaigns.
  • Strategic Insight: Develop a deep understanding of client businesses, target audiences, competitive landscapes, and industry trends.
  • Goal-Oriented Planning: Collaborate with clients to define clear and measurable campaign objectives, aligning advertising strategies with overall business goals to ensure we meet or exceed these goals.
  • Cross-Channel Expertise: Develop comprehensive advertising strategies and media plans across all relevant channels, devising a channel mix that satisfies market and channel level objectives.
  • Budget Allocation: Determine appropriate budgets and allocate resources effectively across different channels to optimize campaign performance.

c) Implementation & Operations:

• • Seamless Execution: Implementation of advertising campaigns across all channels, ensuring timely launch and accurate setup.
  • Budget Control: Manage campaign budgets and track spending meticulously to ensure optimal to goals and client transparency.
  • Team Collaboration: Collaborate effectively with internal teams (e.g., creative, analytics) to ensure seamless campaign execution and alignment with client expectations.
  • Performance Monitoring: Monitor and Optimize campaign performance closely, using analytics tools to track key metrics and identify areas for improvement.

d) Optimization & Reporting:

• • Data-Driven Optimization: Regularly analyze data to uncover insights, adjust strategies, and implement changes that enhance campaign performance.
  • A/B Testing: Understand A/B testing to identify the most effective campaign elements and optimize for conversions, engagement, and other key performance indicators.
  • Insightful Reporting: Generate regular/timely reports that clearly communicate campaign performance (and reasons why) while delivering important insights, and recommendations to clients in a digestible and actionable format.
  • Optimization & opportunities: Analyze campaign data to identify trends, opportunities, and areas for improvement, providing strategic recommendations to clients for future campaigns.

About Yourself/Required Skills:

• 8-10 years of experience in media planning/digital marketing.
• Ability to work independently and be a strong team player in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment.
• Solid grasp of digital marketing, especially a deep knowledge of digital media.
• Ability to forecast outcomes of DR campaigns and manage spend well.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills include the desire to progress.
• Strong organizational skills, detail-oriented and capable of multi-tasking.
• Proficient in Excel and spreadsheet skills including automated formulas, pivot tables, graphs and charts.
• Strong communication, presentation, and interpersonal skills, with the ability to build strong relationships with clients and internal stakeholders.
• Strong understanding and hands-on experience with across search, social and programmatic.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving abilities, with a data-driven approach to campaign planning, management and optimization.
• Strong and demonstrable knowledge of the campaign delivery process and experience of managing campaigns from brief to live across biddable, programmatic and/or digital display channels
• Experience of managing day-to-day client relationships and coordinating internal agency teams
• Good understanding of the digital media landscape with experience of executing campaigns and a passion for all things digital
• Self-starting and proactive attitude to work

Bonus:

• Familiar with or had prior brand planning experience
• Understands incrementality and the relevance of it to digital marketing strategies.

About Media Futures Group

The Media Futures Group (MFG) is a bespoke team within WPP Media that delivers on our commitment to Google for a more strategic, creative and integrated media approach established to drive better business results.

The MFG team is made up of best in class digital, offline, and integrated media experts who work together to enhance media’s contribution to Google’s business. MFG is powered by EssenceMediacom and other constituent parts of WPP Media around the world. The MFG team operates in a seamlessly integrated way across strategy, planning, investment, creative, business sciences and analytics, data and technology. The profile of people who work in MFG are world class, committed to establishing a new high-water mark in the media industry.

MFG is committed to the growth of our people to unleash the potential of Google’s business. We are invested in whole-person wellbeing, values and behaviors that reflect our mission and purpose, and providing the tools and systems needed to do the best work of your career. This is a team empowered by limitless possibilities.