Director of Paid Social

Realdefense-LL; Los Angeles (CA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 250,000; Full time

Job summary

RealDefense LLC in Los Angeles is seeking a Director of Paid Social to own and scale our paid social program, with primary focus on Meta and broader responsibility across TikTok, Snap, Pinterest, Reddit, etc. You will be hands-on in Ads Manager, directing creative partners and building forecasting models for leadership reviews.

This role demands 10+ years in paid social, managing multi-million budgets, and a proven ability to create testing frameworks, partner with internal creatives or

Qualifications

• 10+ years of hands-on paid social buying/management with Meta expertise.
• Experience managing annual paid social budgets of $5M+.
• Experience briefing production to internal or external creatives.
• Strong track record of scaling campaigns with ROAS/CPA improvements.
• Deep knowledge of Meta Ads Manager, iOS/privacy updates, and post-iOS14.5 measurement.
• Familiarity with secondary platforms (TikTok, Snap, Pinterest, Reddit).
• Excellent communication and executive presentation skills.

Responsibilities

• Own paid social strategy and execution with primary emphasis on Meta Ads Manager.
• Build budgets, pacing, and monthly/quarterly spend plans across campaigns and channels.
• Drive full-funnel strategy: audience targeting, bidding, structure, and budget allocation.
• Monitor performance daily and diagnose CPMs, CPCs, and conversions.
• Stay current on Meta platform changes and adjust strategy proactively.
• Own the creative pipeline with internal or external teams and ensure timely production.
• Create and maintain creative briefs translating data into clear direction.
• Manage creative production cadence and asset volume (static, video, UGC).
• Run structured testing programs and translate results into scale decisions.
• Evaluate creative performance and provide actionable feedback.
• Manage agency relationships, scope, and cadence with cross-functional partners.
• Ensure all creative meets platform policy, usage rights, and brand guidelines.
• Present results and recommendations to senior leadership.
• Collaborate with analytics/BI on attribution and reporting infrastructure.
• Mentor or manage junior media buyers/coordinators, when applicable.

Skills

Meta Ads Manager

Paid social strategy

Budget management

Forecasting

Creative briefing

Agency management

Analytics dashboards

Tools

Domo

Databricks

Triple Whale

Northbeam

Job description

We're looking for a Director of Paid Social to own and scale our paid social program, with a primary focus on Meta (Facebook/Instagram) and secondary responsibility across other paid social channels (TikTok, Snap, Pinterest, Reddit, etc.). This person will manage a significant annual media budget, drive performance against acquisition and efficiency targets, and own the end-to-end creative pipeline that feeds the program — partnering with an internal creative team and/or external agency to brief, test, and iterate on creative at scale.

This is a hands-on, strategic role — you'll be in the Ads Manager daily, directing creative partners toward what's working, and also expected to build forecasting models, present results to leadership, and manage relationships with Meta partner teams and any supporting agencies.

Key Responsibilities

Media Strategy & Budget Management

• Own paid social strategy and execution with primary emphasis on Meta Ads Manager.
• Build and manage budget pacing, forecasts, and monthly/quarterly spend plans across campaigns and channels.
• Drive full-funnel campaign strategy: audience targeting, bidding strategy, campaign structure, and budget allocation to maximize ROAS/CPA targets.
• Monitor performance daily; diagnose fluctuations in CPMs, CPCs, conversion rates, and account health.
• Stay current on Meta platform changes (iOS/privacy updates, Advantage+ campaigns, algorithm shifts) and adjust strategy proactively.
• Own the creative pipeline that feeds the paid social program, directing the work of an internal creative/content team and/or external creative agency (this role does not source creators directly).
• Build and maintain a creative brief process that translates performance data and testing insights into clear direction for the internal team or agency partner.
• Manage creative production cadence and timelines in partnership with the internal team/agency to ensure a consistent volume of fresh, testable assets (static, video, UGC).
• Run structured testing programs (creative, audience, offer, placement) and translate results into scaling decisions and future creative briefs.
• Evaluate creative performance and provide feedback to the internal team/agency to continuously improve output quality and testing velocity.
• Manage the agency relationship where applicable (scope, deliverables, cadence, cost) in partnership with brand/legal/finance as needed.
• Ensure all creative meets platform policy, usage rights, and brand guidelines.

Reporting & Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Manage relationships with Meta account/partner reps and any external media agencies.
• Present performance results, budget recommendations, and creative pipeline health to senior leadership.
• Collaborate with analytics/BI teams on attribution, tracking (CAPI, pixel), and reporting infrastructure.
• Mentor or manage junior media buyers/coordinators, if applicable.

Required Qualifications

• 10+ years of hands-on experience in paid social media buying/management, with deep specialization in Meta Ads Manager.
• Proven experience managing annual paid social/media budgets of $5M or more.
• Demonstrated experience managing a creative pipeline in partnership with an internal creative team and/or external creative agency (briefing, feedback, production cadence).
• Strong track record of scaling campaigns while maintaining or improving efficiency (ROAS, CPA, CAC).
• Deep understanding of Meta's ad auction, campaign structures (CBO/ABO), Advantage+ suite, and post-iOS14.5 measurement landscape (CAPI, aggregated event measurement).
• Experience with creative testing frameworks and translating creative performance data into actionable briefs.
• Strong analytical skills — comfortable building/interpreting pacing models, forecasts, and performance dashboards.
• Excellent communication skills; experience presenting to senior/executive stakeholders.
• Experience with secondary paid social platforms (TikTok, Snap, Pinterest, Reddit) a plus.
• Familiarity with attribution/analytics platforms (e.g., Domo, Databricks, Triple Whale, Northbeam) a plus.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in subscription, DTC, or cybersecurity industries.
• Experience managing or mentoring a small team of media buyers.
• Agency-side and in-house experience.

What Success Looks Like in the First 6–12 Months

• Full ownership and optimization of the Meta media budget with clear pacing cadence established.
• A functioning creative pipeline with a defined cadence for briefing, feedback, and production with the internal team/agency.
• Documented testing roadmap (creative, audience, offer) with measurable impact on efficiency.
• Established reporting cadence with leadership on spend, performance, and creative pipeline health vs. forecast/actuals.
• Strong working relationship with Meta partner team and creative partners.

About RealDefense – Join a Team That's Making an Impact

Headquartered in Los Angeles, CA, RealDefense LLC is an award-winning software development company known for its flagship product brands, including iolo System Mechanic® and SUPERAntiSpyware®. With a commitment to innovation, RealDefense has consistently earned top ratings from PC Magazine and protects over 3 million customers. The RealDefense portfolio also features renowned privacy and security software brands, including MyCleanID, MyCleanPC, USTechSupport, ioloVPN, GetMyDrivers, WarrantyStar, and Support.com.

RealDefense partners with leading consumer brands in the cybersecurity and PC manufacturing sectors to deliver telemetry-enabled monetization solutions. For more information, please visit www.realdefen.se .

How We Work – Our Core Values

• We Get It Done.
• We Ask Questions.
• We Like Our Job.
• We Over-Communicate.
• We Prove Ourselves Every Day.

Equal Opportunity Employer

RealDefense is an equal opportunity employer. We make employment decisions based on qualifications, merit, and business needs, and we do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, ancestry, age, disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, military or veteran status, reproductive health decision-making, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law.

We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities. If you need an accommodation at any point during the application or interview process, please let your recruiter or hiring contact know.