Sr. Media Strategist

Advance Local; Grand Rapids (MI); On-site; USD 70,000 - 94,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Healthcare

401k

Paid time off

Parental leave

Caregiver leave

Job summary

MV Digital Group is seeking a Sr. Media Strategist in the United States to own tier‑1 media planning, translate client goals into channel strategies, and mentor junior planners.

The role requires 5+ years in media planning or buying, experience presenting and defending plans to clients, and strong budgeting and forecasting skills. Base salary ranges from $70,000 to $75,000 with potential incentives bringing total compensation to $84,000–$94,200.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in marketing, communications, or related field preferred.
• Minimum 5 years in media planning or buying with full‑funnel experience.
• Confident owning planning math: budget allocation, forecasting, pacing, reconciliation.
• Experience building planning templates, trackers, or workflows.
• Track record of media plans, strategy decks, and client presentations.

Responsibilities

• Own media planning on tier‑1 campaigns and present plans.
• Define audience strategy based on client goals and budget.
• Advise on media mix across paid channels balancing reach and cost.
• Explain channel decisions in client conversations as the planning authority.
• Build plans, investment recommendations, and decks connecting audience, channel, budget, and KPI.
• Lead budgeting across channels, forecasting, pacing, and reconciliation.

Skills

Media planning

Budgeting

Audience strategy

Data sources

Segmentation logic

Media mix

Client communication

Mentoring

Planning math

Research

RFP responses

Measurement frameworks

Education

Bachelor's degree in marketing/communications

Tools

Bionic

Strata

LiveRamp

GWI

Job description

Job Description

Strengthening and empowering all of the communities we serve.

We're looking for a Sr. Media Strategist who’s genuinely curious about how media works. Someone who asks the kind of questions that reframe a problem, and who can translate a client’s goals into a channel strategy, audience approach, and budget framework that moves the needle.

You’ll own the media planning on tier-1 campaigns, partner with Account Managers and cross‑functional teams, and play a real role in how our junior planners develop. You’ll work with clients regularly (mostly digitally, occasionally in person), not as the relationship lead, but as the person in the room who can explain why the media plan is built the way it is.

You’ll get close partnership, direct feedback, and a manager who’s invested in your craft. We’re looking for someone who brings strong systems thinking, good judgment under ambiguity, and the kind of intellectual range that makes the room smarter.

Compensation for this position is comprised of a base salary plus incentive compensation. The base salary range is $70,000 to $75,000 per year. Additional incentives bring total potential compensation to $84,000 - $94,200.

What you’ll do

• You’ll own the media planning on tier-1 campaigns, from translating the brief into a channel strategy and budget framework through plan presentation and optimization guidance
• Define audience strategy for campaigns, identifying the right targeting approaches, data sources, and segmentation logic based on client goals and budget reality
• Advise on media mix across paid media channels, balancing reach, frequency, cost efficiency, and client objectives
• Partner with Account Managers in client conversations as the media planning authority, explaining channel decisions and pressure‑testing assumptions in real time
• Build media plans, investment recommendations, and strategy decks that connect audience to channel to budget to KPI in a clear narrative
• Own planning math: budget allocation across channels, forecasting, pacing models, and reconciliation
• Lead research inputs that inform planning decisions, including competitive landscape, audience data, platform capabilities, and market context, and turn them into actionable media recommendations
• Evaluate and recommend media partners, platforms, and inventory sources; lead RFP response development where appropriate
• Design measurement frameworks and test‑and‑learn structures so we can prove what’s working and optimize with intent
• Mentor junior planners by asking good questions, modeling strong process, and helping them level up
• Stay sharp on the media landscape, including new platforms, shifting audience behavior, vendor capabilities, and pricing trends, and bring that knowledge into planning decisions

The experience you’ll bring:

• Bachelor’s degree in marketing, communications, or related field preferred
• Minimum 5 years in media planning or buying, with hands‑on experience building and presenting full‑funnel media plans for complex campaigns. Coaching or mentoring experience is a plus.
• Confident owning planning math: budget allocation across channels, forecasting, pacing, and reconciliation
• Experience building planning templates, trackers, or workflows
• A track record of media plans, strategy decks, and investment recommendations you built and presented to clients
• Experience presenting and defending media plans to clients and stakeholders; you’re comfortable explaining the why behind channel and budget decisions, not just walking through the slides
• Experience mentoring or coaching junior planners
• Comfort across digital media platforms with hands‑on experience in search, social, and/or DSP a plus
• Familiarity with audience data platforms or third‑party data providers (LiveRamp, GWI, or similar) is a strong plus
• Experience with media planning tools (Bionic, Strata, or similar) preferred
• Experience in political, advocacy, higher ed, or utilities verticals is a plus.
• Sharp organizational and analytical instincts, comfortable juggling multiple campaigns on tight timelines without losing the details

Additional Information

MV Digital Group offers competitive pay and a comprehensive benefits package with affordable options for your healthcare including medical, dental and vision plans, flexible spending accounts, fertility assistance, a substantial 401k plan to help plan for your future, generous paid time off, paid parental and caregiver leave and an employee assistance program to support your work/life balance, optional legal assistance, life insurance options, as well as flexible holidays to honor cultural diversity.

MV Digital Group is a media planning and buying company providing services from end-to-end campaign strategy to execution, supporting you or your clients. We combine data and technology to connect you with the audiences that matter most during key moments of your campaigns. We are set apart by our relationship with premium publishers, providing a unique view of what people are reading and care about. We harness this powerful data, along with data from the world’s largest data providers, delivering targeted campaigns while measuring how your audiences react to your messages and whether your campaigns are having the desired impact. All in real‑time.

Your voice isn’t just about speaking, it’s about being heard. Our performance driven approach delivers the forward direction for your marketing campaigns, gaining the momentum to shift perception, change minds, and stimulate action.

MV Digital Group is proud to be an equal opportunity employer, encouraging applications from people of all backgrounds. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, genetic information, national origin, age, disability, sexual orientation, marital status, veteran status, or any other category protected under federal, state or local law.

If you need a reasonable accommodation because of a disability for any part of the employment process, please Human Resources and let us know the nature of your request and your contact information.

MV Digital Group does not provide sponsorship for work visas or employment authorization in the United States. Only candidates who are legally authorized to work in the U.S. will be considered for this position.