Communications Specialist III

Texas A&M University System•College Station, TX

1d•Onsite

About The Position

The Paid Media Strategist leads the college's paid media strategy and execution across digital advertising channels to support enrollment, reputation, engagement and other strategic marketing objectives. This position develops integrated paid media plans, manages advertising investments, oversees campaign execution and optimization, and uses performance data to continually improve audience reach, engagement and conversion. The position serves as the college's subject-matter expert for paid media and partners closely with the Associate Director of Marketing Strategy and Visibility, Marketing Campaigns Manager, Marketing Analytics and central Engineering Communications teams to translate marketing objectives into effective, measurable paid media strategies.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree or equivalent combination of education and experience.
Four years of related experience.

Nice To Haves

Five years of professional experience in digital advertising, paid media, performance marketing or a related field.
Demonstrated experience independently developing and managing paid media strategies.
Experience managing paid campaigns across multiple digital advertising platforms.
Experience managing or making recommendations for paid media budgets.
Experience analyzing campaign performance and using data to optimize campaigns.
Demonstrated ability to translate organizational goals into measurable digital marketing strategies.
Seven or more years of relevant experience, particularly for someone expected to immediately establish and own the college's paid media function.
Experience in higher education, enrollment marketing, nonprofit, government, or another complex institutional environment.
Google Ads certification and/or relevant platform certifications.
Experience with Meta Ads Manager, and LinkedIn Campaign Manager.
Experience with recruitment or enrollment marketing.
Experience managing significant advertising budgets.
Experience developing paid media testing frameworks and performance benchmarks.

Responsibilities

Develop and execute paid media strategies aligned with college marketing and campaign objectives.
Translate campaign goals, audiences and messaging into channel and media strategies.
Recommend appropriate platforms, audiences, placements, budgets, and flighting based on campaign objectives.
Develop media plans and budget recommendations for recruitment, reputation, awareness, and other priority campaigns.
Identify opportunities to expand or refine paid media capabilities as platforms and audience behaviors evolve.
Serve as the Texas A&M Engineering's primary subject-matter expert and strategic advisor on paid media.
Manage paid campaigns across platforms such as Google Ads, Meta and LinkedIn, as appropriate.
Build, launch, monitor and optimize campaigns throughout their lifecycle.
Manage audience targeting, retargeting, bidding, budgets, placements, and creative rotation.
Conduct ongoing testing of audiences, messaging, creative, placements, and campaign strategies.
Identify performance issues and proactively recommend adjustments.
Ensure campaigns are implemented accurately and consistently with institutional brand and marketing standards.
Manage relationships with advertising platforms and external vendors when applicable.
Partner with Marketing Analytics to establish campaign KPIs, conversion goals, and measurement strategies.
Monitor campaign performance and identify trends, opportunities, and areas for improvement.
Analyze performance across platforms and audiences to inform optimization and future campaign planning.
Translate paid media data into actionable recommendations for marketing and campaign stakeholders.
Contribute to campaign reporting and presentations for college leadership and other stakeholders.
Develop benchmarks and continually improve the college's paid media measurement practices.
Partner with the Campaign Manager to develop integrated campaign strategies and media plans.
Collaborate with creative, social media, web, analytics, and other Engineering Communications partners to ensure paid media supports broader campaign objectives.
Provide paid media expertise during campaign planning, creative development, and post-campaign evaluation.
Advise on landing-page experiences, audience journeys, and conversion opportunities when relevant to paid campaigns.
Stay informed about emerging advertising technologies, privacy changes, platform developments, and higher education marketing trends.
Establish and maintain paid media best practices, documentation, and standards.
Ensure appropriate use of tracking parameters, conversion events, and audience data in partnership with Analytics.
Maintain knowledge of platform policies, privacy requirements, and institutional guidelines.
Evaluate new platforms, tools, and advertising opportunities and make recommendations based on strategic value and anticipated return.

Benefits

Competitive medical insurance benefits through Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas and Prescription coverage by Express Scripts.
Options for Vision, Dental, Life, and Long-Term Disability insurance.
A defined benefit retirement plan with the Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS) with 8.25% employer contribution.
Additional Voluntary Retirement Programs: Tax Deferred Account 403(b) and a Deferred Compensation Program 457(b).
Flexible spending account options for medical and childcare expenses
Generous paid time off with holidays, vacation and sick leave.
Robust free training access through LinkedIn Learning plus professional development opportunities.
Tuition assistance and Educational release time to further your academic pursuits.
Access to Engineer Your Wellness programs that provide opportunities for employees to engage in health and fitness.
Wellness release time offered to employees to promote work/life balance.