Senior Paid Media Strategist

Vested is a world-leading integrated marketing and communications consultancy focused exclusively on the financial services industry. We were founded in 2015 with a mission to help shape a better financial services system that is more accessible, transparent, and sustainable. Today, Vested is the world's fourth-largest financial services agency, comprising over 100 employees widely recognized for their industry expertise, creativity, and passion for financial services. Our team is proud to do work that drives our mission forward - from uncomplicating finance through creative advertising campaigns to raising awareness of fintech disrupters working to make finance more accessible. From branding to social to creative to PR and more, we’re in the business of solving problems for the world’s most important financial brands.

Group Vested encompasses a prestigious portfolio of companies, including the cutting-edge tech platform Qwoted, the global network of 1,000+ senior financial marcomms leaders, Financial Narrative, investment fund Vested Ventures, and our content and design hub, Finance Studio. Recognized as one of the industry's Best Places to Work, our unwavering goal is to become the most valued and sought-after brand in financial marketing and communications. With our own in-house Chief Economist and proprietary educational program, VestED, every team member, at any level, has continuous learning and up-skilling opportunities. As a “Vestie”, you become an owner, an entrepreneur, a builder, and a value creator.

At Vested, we are proud to do the right thing, even when it's hard. We are relentlessly curious and consistently challenge the status quo. Join us as we lead the way in transforming the industry and delivering exceptional results for our clients.

The Senior Paid Media Strategist owns paid media strategy, execution, and performance reporting for a portfolio of accounts across Vested Digital’s global client base. You will turn client business goals into media plans, brief and quality-control our global execution team when relevant, and report performance to clients in business terms.

This is a consulting role as much as a planning one. Externally, you will lead paid media conversations with marketing directors and CMOs at asset managers, banks, fintechs, and insurers. Internally, you will be a lead paid media voice in working sessions with account leads, creative, PR, and the other Vested Digital disciplines. The role reports to the VP, Head of Paid Media, and includes team leadership, with the potential for direct reports as the practice grows.

Key Responsibilities:

• Media Strategy & Planning: Build paid media strategies and plans for assigned accounts within Vested’s planning frameworks. Define channel mix, audience strategy, budget allocation, flighting, and KPIs that tie to the client’s business goals. Translate client briefs and RFP requirements into media recommendations and scopes of work.

• Global & Multi-Market Campaigns: Plan and run campaigns for a global client base across the US, EMEA, and LatAm. Decide where a single global structure works and where markets need their own budgets, audiences, languages, or creative. Account for local platform availability, regional compliance review (FINRA, SEC Marketing Rule, FCA financial promotions), currency, and time zones when planning launches and reporting. Partner with global Account Leads on new business pitches and best-in-class paid media programs for existing clients.

• Client Consulting & Communication: Act as the paid media lead in client meetings, QBRs, and planning sessions. Present strategy, performance, and recommendations with a clear point of view, and defend them with data. Write concise recaps, performance narratives, and decision memos. Raise dependencies and underperformance early, along with the plan to fix them.

• Internal Consulting & Collaboration: Serve as a paid media expert for Account, Creative, PR, Organic, Content, and MarTech teams on integrated engagements. Shape creative briefs and landing page recommendations using channel and audience performance. Ensure paid media plans support the earned and owned programs for Vested’s integrated accounts.

• Execution Briefing & Quality Control: When execution falls to our global execution team, brief them on campaign builds, trafficking, tracking, and in-flight adjustments using Vested’s paid media SOPs and standards that you will help refine. Review setups before launch and audit live campaigns against delivery standards. You are accountable for the quality of what ships on your accounts.

• Measurement & Reporting: Define measurement plans covering conversion tracking (GA4, Google Tag Manager, platform pixels, CRM integration) and confirm data integrity before launch. Build attribution models and apply media mix modeling (MMM) to guide budget allocation across channels and markets, using lift and incrementality tests to validate the outputs. Run structured tests on audiences, creative, bidding, and landing pages. Turn reporting into a clear account of what happened, why it matters, and what comes next.

• Budget Management & Pacing: Manage client budgets across channels and markets. Monitor pacing, re-forecast as performance and priorities shift, and reconcile spend against approved media plans.

• Practice Development: Contribute to the SOPs, briefing templates, reporting frameworks, and QA checklists owned by the VP, Head of Paid Media. Test new platforms, formats, partners, and buying tools, then bring back recommendations backed by results. Share what you learn through Integrated Digital Meet-ups and VestED sessions.

• Commercial Support: Support new business and client growth with paid media audits, scoping, draft media plans, and pitch materials. Identify where existing clients would benefit from new or expanded paid media scopes.

• Team Leadership: Lead and develop the paid media team members on your accounts, with the potential for direct reports as the practice grows. Set priorities, review work, and give regular feedback on strategy and execution quality.

Qualified Candidates will have:

• 6+ years of hands-on, in-platform, paid media experience, with at least 3 years in a strategist or senior manager role at an agency

• US and global paid media experience, managing campaigns across multiple markets for a global client base, including regional budget splits, localization, and cross-time-zone coordination

• EMEA and LatAm campaign experience preferred, including familiarity with regional platforms, regulations, and buying practices

• Hands-on expertise in paid search, paid social, and programmatic, including display, CTV, audio, native, and OOH/DOOH

• Experience managing six- and seven-figure media budgets across several clients at the same time

• Strong consulting and presentation skills; comfortable leading conversations with marketing stakeholders and holding a position when the data supports it

• A clear, concise communicator who can turn performance data into a business story for non-specialists

• Experience briefing and quality-controlling distributed execution teams

• Experience leading and developing paid media team members, including direct reports

• Proficiency with major ad platforms (Google Ads, Microsoft Advertising, Meta Ads Manager, LinkedIn Campaign Manager, DV360, The Trade Desk, StackAdapt, Reddit, etc.) and measurement tools (GA4, Google Tag Manager, Looker Studio, NinjaCat, Funnel.io, etc.)

• Financial services industry experience preferred; familiarity with compliance review, regulated claims, and platform ad policies for financial products

• Experience with multi-touch attribution and media mix modeling (MMM), including using model outputs to set and defend budget recommendations

• Search / SEM / PPC (Google, Microsoft Advertising, ChatGPT, etc.)

• Paid Social (Meta, LinkedIn, X, TikTok, Reddit, etc.)

• Programmatic Display, CTV, Streaming, and OOH/DOOH

• Native, Video, and Audio Advertising

• Conversion tracking and measurement setup (GA4, GTM)

• Attribution and media mix modeling (MTA, MMM, etc.)

• Global media planning (US, EMEA, LatAm, etc.), budget pacing, and performance reporting

• Client and internal stakeholder consulting

Vested US is a fully flexible company, with headquarters in New York and an office in Iowa. Vested does not require a minimum number of days in a local office, but we believe in-person collaboration is important for professional development, building relationships with clients, and working with other Vested team members. Our offices are open 5 days a week and working hours are Monday through Friday, starting at 9 am EST.

Benefits Include:

• Medical & Dental & Vision
• 401K Profit Sharing
• Annual Performance Bonus
• Unlimited PTO
• 12 paid holidays (10 additional Vested Rested)
• Tech Package & Monthly Reimbursement

Vested is committed to providing jobs for all without discrimination based on race, color, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, or veteran status.