General Purpose of Job: 

The primary role of the Sr Associate, Media Planning is to develop, maintain and manage media plans for assigned clients. This includes all plan recommendations with allocated budgets, flowcharts, buying guidelines and recommendations to the Media Investment teams. The successful Sr Associate provides a high level of service to assigned accounts by creating insightful, data-driven media plans within budget, working collaboratively with assigned client(s) and internal stakeholder(s), and stewarding approved media plans through to completion. 

Key Responsibilities: 

• Aids in the creation of client communication plan objectives and strategies through collaboration with cross-functional teams and client(s) 
• Conduct research via media tools and resources to develop audience and landscape insights to inform strategies and tactics 
• Develop reach and frequency scenarios to determine effective media mix 
• Work with activation teams to understand marketplace trends including planning rates, inventory constraints, new programs/initiatives, etc., and develop top level cost-outs 
• Creates and maintains media plans, flowcharts, buying guidelines, testing plans & results analysis, budget summaries, plan delivery and competitive reports   
• Draft and present media recommendations, reports, and POVs to internal and external stakeholders 
• Manage plan reconciliation across all forms of media and integrate with department subject matter experts when needed 
• Collaborate on ongoing media optimizations throughout the campaigns through campaign analyses and reporting 
• Analyze metrics and media competitive data to draw meaningful insights and implications 
• Manage clients’ budgets throughout the entire cycle of a campaign and maintain accurate records 
• Foster and maintain positive client and vendor relationships through written and verbal communications 
• Provide clear, concise, accurate implementation documents that are routed to internal account teams and media vendors as required by Supervisor or other departments 
• Maintain appropriate records of all written directions, work orders, recommendations, and media contracts, which result in client decisions or approvals, particularly authorizations to proceed with chargeable services  
• Keep all members of account and media teams informed of problems or opportunities that could impact a client’s media plan outcomes or budgets 
• Ensure best practices and agency processes are being followed on behalf of assigned client(s) 
• Attend and participate in internal meetings, as necessary 
• Perform other related duties as required or assigned 

Job Requirements:

Education:

• Bachelor’s degree (communications, marketing, or advertising) or equivalent

Experience: 

• 2-4 years of relevant work experience in media planning or buying at an agency or client

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities:

• Proficient with Microsoft Office applications 
• Participation in at least one full planning cycle and development/implementation of at least two media plans  
• Thorough understanding of the media process, media department and inter-department relationships  
• Detail oriented, with exceptional organizational and multi-tasking skills 
• Strong verbal and written communication skills to effectively interact with clients, vendors and at all levels of the internal organization 
• Ability to “tell a story” and present well-considered ideas and solutions through well-thought-out presentations with meaningful facts, insights and visuals  
• Ability to work well within a fast-paced, team-oriented environment 
• Ability to adapt plans due to changes in client objectives, priorities or budgets while minimizing impact on project momentum  
• Strong analytical skills, ability to relate results to client business objectives  
• Experience with traditional and digital media required 
• Experience with the following preferred:  MediaOcean, Nielsen, MRI, Scarborough, Media Radar, DoubleClick