Torchora
Back to Home

Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for a Media Director

💰 $130,000 - $195,000

MarketingAdvertisingMediaLeadership

🎯 Role Definition

The Media Director is the strategic architect and leader of our organization's media presence. This isn't just about buying ads; it's about owning the narrative and ensuring our brand's message connects with the right audience, at the right time, on the right platform. You are the conductor of a complex orchestra of paid, owned, and earned media channels, from robust digital campaigns to high-impact traditional placements. This role demands a unique blend of analytical rigor, creative thinking, and inspirational leadership. You will be responsible for translating high-level business goals into a sophisticated, multi-channel media strategy, managing significant budgets, and mentoring a high-performing team to execute with precision. Success in this position means measurably elevating brand visibility, driving customer acquisition, and maximizing the return on our media investment.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

  • Senior Media Planner / Supervisor
  • Associate Media Director
  • Digital Marketing Manager with a heavy media focus

Advancement To:

  • VP, Media
  • Head of Marketing / VP, Marketing
  • Chief Marketing Officer (CMO)

Lateral Moves:

  • Director of Marketing Strategy
  • Director of Growth Marketing

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

  • Architect and steer the overarching, integrated media strategy across all channels, including digital (programmatic, search, social, video) and traditional (TV, radio, print, OOH), to align with core business objectives and marketing goals.
  • Command the full lifecycle of media planning and buying, from initial research and strategic development to tactical execution, in-flight optimization, and post-campaign analysis.
  • Lead, mentor, and cultivate a talented team of media planners, buyers, and specialists, fostering a culture of innovation, accountability, and continuous professional growth.
  • Own and meticulously manage a multi-million dollar media budget, ensuring efficient allocation of resources, accurate forecasting, and the delivery of maximum return on investment (ROI).
  • Establish, monitor, and report on a comprehensive set of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), delivering insightful analysis and actionable recommendations to executive leadership.
  • Forge and nurture strong, strategic relationships with key media vendors, technology partners, and advertising agencies, serving as the primary point of contact and negotiation lead.
  • Spearhead high-stakes negotiations for media rates, value-add opportunities, and contractual terms to secure the most favorable and effective placements for the brand.
  • Serve as the organization's internal thought leader on the evolving media landscape, consistently evaluating emerging technologies, new platforms, and shifting consumer behaviors to keep our strategy ahead of the curve.
  • Drive a cohesive campaign narrative by collaborating deeply with creative, brand, PR, and analytics teams to ensure media plans and creative assets work in perfect harmony.
  • Translate complex data and campaign performance metrics into clear, compelling narratives and strategic presentations for the C-suite and other key stakeholders.
  • Oversee the strategic implementation and optimization of our ad-tech stack, including DSPs, DMPs, ad servers, and verification partners, to enhance targeting and efficiency.
  • Champion a data-first approach to audience intelligence, directing in-depth research and competitive analysis to uncover new opportunities for audience segmentation and engagement.
  • Cultivate a robust "test and learn" agenda within the team, designing and executing experiments to unlock new pockets of growth and improve media effectiveness.
  • Act as the final gatekeeper for brand safety and suitability, ensuring all media placements align with company values and industry best practices.
  • Direct and evaluate the performance of external agency partners, setting clear expectations, defining scopes of work, and holding them accountable for delivering exceptional results.

Secondary Functions

  • Develop and refine the foundational processes and workflows for media planning, buying, and reporting to drive operational excellence and team efficiency.
  • Guide the development of comprehensive audience profiles and segmentation strategies that inform both media targeting and creative messaging.
  • Lead insightful post-mortem analyses of major campaigns, synthesizing learnings to inform and improve future media strategies and investments.
  • Partner with the finance and analytics teams to develop and refine marketing mix models (MMM) and multi-touch attribution (MTA) frameworks.
  • Provide strategic counsel to other departments on media-related matters, acting as the subject matter expert for the entire organization.
  • Support ad-hoc data requests and exploratory data analysis to answer pressing business questions.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

  • Advanced Media Planning & Buying: Deep, hands-on expertise across both digital (Programmatic/DSPs, Paid Search, Paid Social) and traditional (TV, Radio, OOH) media channels.
  • Budget & Financial Management: Proven ability to manage large-scale, multi-million dollar media budgets with a strong focus on ROI, forecasting, and reconciliation.
  • Ad-Tech Proficiency: In-depth knowledge of the ad-tech ecosystem, including hands-on experience with platforms like Google Marketing Platform (DV360, SA360), The Trade Desk, and major social ad managers (Meta, LinkedIn, TikTok).
  • Data Analysis & Measurement: Expertise in using analytics tools (e.g., Google Analytics, Adobe Analytics) and data visualization platforms (e.g., Tableau, Looker) to derive actionable insights from campaign data.
  • Vendor Negotiation & Management: Demonstrable experience leading complex negotiations with media vendors and managing agency relationships to extract maximum value.
  • Research & Competitive Analysis Tools: Proficiency with syndicated research tools such as Comscore, Nielsen, MRI-Simmons, and competitive intelligence platforms like Pathmatics or Kantar Media.

Soft Skills

  • Inspirational Leadership: The ability to lead, mentor, and develop a team of media professionals, fostering a collaborative and high-performance environment.
  • Strategic & Critical Thinking: A talent for seeing the big picture, translating business challenges into media solutions, and making data-informed strategic decisions.
  • Executive Communication & Presence: Exceptional verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to present complex strategies and results to senior leadership in a clear and compelling manner.
  • Influential Negotiation: Superior negotiation skills that go beyond rates to include strategic partnerships, integrations, and value-add opportunities.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

  • Bachelor's Degree in a relevant field.

Preferred Education:

  • Master of Business Administration (MBA) or a Master's degree in Marketing or a related discipline.

Relevant Fields of Study:

  • Marketing
  • Advertising
  • Communications
  • Business Administration

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range:

  • 10-15+ years of progressive experience in media planning and/or buying.

Preferred:

  • A minimum of 5 years in a leadership role managing a team of media professionals.
  • A proven track record of developing and executing successful, large-scale, multi-channel media strategies with multi-million dollar budgets.
  • Experience on both the agency and client-side is highly desirable.
Explore More Careers