Associate Director, Performance Media

Swell Media; Kansas City (MO); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid work schedule

401(k) retirement plan with match

Paid holidays

Mental health and wellbeing support

Flexible time off policy

Job summary

Swell Media is seeking a senior, hands-on performance media professional to lead paid search and paid social across key client accounts. You will translate client goals into media strategies, manage budgets, and drive performance with hands-on execution when needed.

You will mentor or manage members of the performance media team and serve as a trusted strategic partner to clients, elevating platform and strategic expertise across the agency.

Qualifications

• 7+ years of performance media experience.
• Strong, hands-on experience with paid search and paid social.
• Deep expertise in Google Ads and Meta; additional platform experience is a plus.
• Proven experience developing and executing paid media strategy.
• Experience managing significant media budgets.
• Strong client-facing and account management experience.
• Ability to analyze performance data and turn insights into action.

Responsibilities

• Develop and oversee paid search and paid social strategies.
• Translate client business goals into actionable media strategies.
• Manage media budgets, pacing, and overall account performance.
• Analyze performance and identify opportunities for growth.
• Present performance, insights, and recommendations to clients.
• Build strong, trusted client relationships.

Skills

Paid search

Paid social

Google Ads

Meta Ads

Client leadership

Tools

GA4

Facebook Business Manager

Job description

Remote Position (Must be in the US)

Visa sponsorship is not available for this position, now or in the future. Applicants must be legally authorized to work in the United States on a permanent basis without requiring employer sponsorship.

Overview

Swell Media is looking for an experienced performance media professional who brings a strong combination of strategy, platform expertise, and client leadership. This is a senior, hands‑on role for someone who knows paid search and paid social deeply and can move seamlessly between developing media strategy, managing client relationships, analyzing performance, and getting into the platforms to execute when needed. You’ll lead performance media strategy across key client accounts, manage media budgets, and serve as a trusted strategic partner to clients. You may also mentor or manage members of the performance media team.

Essential Duties And Responsibilities (Other Duties May Be Assigned)

Strategy & Account Leadership

• Develop and oversee paid search and paid social strategies
• Translate client business goals into actionable media strategies
• Manage media budgets, pacing, and overall account performance
• Analyze performance and identify opportunities for growth
• Present performance, insights, and recommendations to clients
• Build strong, trusted client relationships
• Identify opportunities to improve and grow client partnerships

Platform Expertise

Paid Search

• Google Ads:
  • Search
  • Shopping
  • Performance Max / AI Max
  • Demand Gen
  • YouTube

Paid Social

• Meta
• LinkedIn
• TikTok
• Reddit
• Snapchat

You understand campaign structure, bidding, audiences, creative testing, conversion tracking, optimization, and scaling.

Most importantly, you can develop the strategy and execute it yourself when needed.

Client & Team Leadership

• Serve as a senior strategic partner to clients
• Lead performance and strategy conversations
• Translate media data into clear business recommendations
• Mentor and develop team members
• Potentially manage direct reports
• Help elevate the team's platform and strategic expertise

What Success Looks Like

• Clients trust you as a strategic performance media partner.
• Media strategies drive measurable business results.
• Budgets are managed thoughtfully and efficiently.
• Priorities, opportunities, and performance challenges are identified early and proactively moved toward action and resolution.
• You can move comfortably between strategy, client conversations, and platform execution.
• The team becomes stronger because of your expertise and leadership.

Who Thrives Here

• Hands‑on performance media professionals who still love working in the platforms.
• Strategic thinkers who know how to turn strategy into execution.
• Strong communicators who enjoy working directly with clients.
• Curious media professionals who challenge assumptions and look for better answers.
• Leaders who enjoy mentoring others while remaining close to the work.

Qualifications -

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• 7+ years of performance media experience
• Strong, recent hands‑on experience with both paid search and paid social.
• Deep expertise in Google Ads and Meta; additional platform experience is a plus.
• Proven experience developing and executing paid media strategy.
• Experience managing significant media budgets.
• Strong client‑facing and account management experience.
• Ability to analyze performance data and turn insights into action.
• Experience with ecommerce, lead generation, B2B, or other performance‑driven businesses.
• Strong communication and presentation skills.

Bonus Points

• Experience managing or mentoring team members.
• Experience with Google Merchant Center, feed optimization, or offline conversion tracking.
• Experience with automation, scripts, or AI tools.
• Experience with incrementality or lift testing.

Location & Travel

This role can be based anywhere in the United States. This is a remote‑friendly position, with periodic travel for client meetings and agency gatherings, including an annual all‑hands meeting.

Total Perks Package

• The chance to be a part of a growing company and the next success story
• Amazing opportunities for career development
• Recognition programs
• Employee referral bonus
• Hybrid work schedule; 2 days in the office, 3 days working from home
• Fun and collaborative work environmentCasual dress code
• Insurance Coverage (medical, dental, vision, life, and disability)
• 401(k) retirement plan, with employer 4% match
• Work/life benefits, including mental health and wellbeing support
• Flexible Time Off Policy
• Paid holidays, including agency soft closing Christmas Eve-New Year's Day
• Paid leave options, including sick leave, medical leave for self and family, and parental leave

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