Paid Media Manager (Contractor)

Job Description:

Paid Media Manager (Contractor)

Location: US remote

Rakuten International oversees 7 businesses with over 4,000 employees globally. The brand is recognized for its leadership and innovation in e-commerce, digital content, advertising, entertainment and communications, bringing the joy of discovery and access to more than 1 billion members across the world. Our teams deliver on the company's mission to delight merchants and customers through innovation, optimism, and teamwork.

Rakuten Advertising provides advertising technology and consumer insights to the world's leading brands and retailers. Working with agencies and brands around the world, Rakuten Advertising unites technology, client strategy and consumer insights to deliver advertising experiences that drive increased brand awareness and marketing performance. With access to Rakuten's diverse media properties and audiences, combined with an award-winning performance network and proprietary consumer research, Rakuten Advertising creates the right conditions to reach new customers and sustain long-lasting loyalty.

Overview

We are seeking a highly skilled and experienced Paid Media Manager to join our team on a contract basis. The ideal candidate will focus on the strategy, execution, and optimization of our paid media campaigns across various channels and globally.

This role reports to the VP of marketing at Rakuten Advertising and requires a deep understanding of digital advertising, demand generation, data analysis, and a strong ability to drive results through paid media initiatives.

Key Responsibilities

• Strategy & Execution: Develop, implement, and manage country-specific digital acquisition programs, focusing on paid media channels.
• Campaign Management: Produce and manage campaign calendars, making adjustments based on regional market trends and performance data.
• Channel Administration: Oversee the day-to-day management of all paid channels (e.g., Google Ads, Meta Ads, LinkedIn Ads, display networks), identifying growth opportunities and ensuring optimal performance.
• Budget Management: Manage digital marketing spend efficiently, focusing on maximizing campaign performance and achieving the best possible results through meticulous tracking and reporting.
• Performance Reporting: Provide comprehensive performance reports to management, offering actionable insights and recommendations to optimize campaigns.
• Process Alignment: Support the alignment of best practices across existing and new markets, ensuring consistency and efficiency in campaign execution.
• Testing & Optimization: Implement an experimental approach to testing new ad formats, audience segments, and messages, continuously optimizing for better performance.
• Collaboration: Work closely with marketing and sales teams to develop and execute lead generation and nurturing tactics.
• Content Amplification: Partner with content teams to effectively amplify content through paid and owned channels, ensuring a cohesive and impactful digital presence.

Abilities and Experience

• Proven Experience: Demonstrated success in managing and optimizing paid media campaigns across various digital channels.
• Analytical Skills: Strong ability to analyze data, interpret performance metrics, and derive actionable insights to drive campaign improvements.
• Technical Proficiency: Familiarity with digital advertising platforms (e.g., Google Ads, Meta Ads Manager, LinkedIn Ads), analytics tools (e.g., GA4), and other relevant technologies.
• Strategic Thinking: Ability to develop and execute comprehensive paid media strategies that align with overall business goals.
• Creative Skills: Capability to contribute to the creation of compelling ad copy and creative assets that resonate with target audiences.
• Project Management: Excellent organizational skills to manage multiple campaigns and projects simultaneously, ensuring timely delivery and high-quality results.
• Communication Skills: Strong written and verbal communication skills to effectively collaborate with cross-functional teams and present findings to stakeholders.
• Adaptability: Ability to adjust strategies and tactics based on market trends, performance data, and business needs.

Additional Desired Skills

• Cultural Sensitivity: Experience working with global teams and understanding of cultural nuances in different markets.
• Global Experience: Proven track record of managing global campaigns and executing regional campaigns to meet the regionalized needs of local teams.
• Continuous Learning: A proactive approach to staying updated with the latest trends and best practices in digital marketing and paid media.
• Team Player: A collaborative mindset with the ability to work effectively in an evolving, agile, and results-driven environment.

Five Principles for Success

Our worldwide practices describe specific behaviors that make Rakuten unique and united across the world. We expect Rakuten employees to model these 5 Shugi Principles of Success.

Always improve, Always Advance

• Only be satisfied with complete success - Kaizen

Passionately Professional - Take an uncompromising approach to your work and be determined to be the best
Hypothesize - Practice - Validate - Shikumika

• Use the Rakuten Cycle to succeed in unknown territory

Maximize Customer Satisfaction

• The greatest satisfaction for our teams is seeing their customers smile

Speed!! Speed!! Speed!!

• Always be conscious of time - take charge, set clear goals, and engage your team

Rakuten provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type. Rakuten considers applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetic information, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, provincial or local laws.