Digital Media Buyer

Position Summary The Digital Media Buyer – Higher Education is responsible for planning, executing, optimizing, and scaling paid digital advertising campaigns that drive student inquiries, applications, and enrollments across multiple platforms, including Meta (Facebook & Instagram), Google Ads, TikTok, and other digital channels. This role requires deep experience in lead-generation marketing, audience targeting for prospective students, compliance-aware advertising, and conversion optimization across the enrollment funnel. The ideal candidate understands the nuances of higher education marketing, including academic program promotion, start dates, regulatory requirements, and attribution across long enrollment cycles. Key Responsibilities Enrollment-Focused Campaign Strategy Develop and manage paid media strategies aligned to enrollment goals, program start dates, and institutional priorities. Execute full-funnel campaigns supporting awareness, inquiry, application, and enrollment conversion stages. Partner with admissions, enrollment, and marketing teams to align messaging and targeting with recruitment objectives. Paid Media Execution & Optimization Launch, manage, and optimize campaigns across Meta, Google Ads (Search, Display, YouTube), TikTok, and other relevant platforms. Continuously test and refine creatives, audiences, placements, bidding strategies, and landing pages to improve CPL and enrollment yield. Scale high-performing campaigns while maintaining efficiency and lead quality. Budget & Performance Management Manage paid media budgets to maximize cost per lead (CPL), cost per application, and cost per enrollment. Monitor performance daily and make proactive optimizations based on data insights. Forecast performance and budget pacing around enrollment cycles and start dates. Audience Targeting & Creative Collaboration Build and manage audiences including prospective students, adult learners, career changers, and degree-completion candidates. Leverage first-party data, CRM integrations, lookalike audiences, and retargeting strategies. Collaborate with creative teams to produce compliant, high-performing ads aligned with institutional branding. Analytics, Reporting & Attribution Track performance using platform analytics, Google Analytics, and CRM/admissions data. Report on KPIs including CPL, CPA, conversion rate, lead quality, application starts, and enrollments. Analyze attribution across long consideration cycles common in higher education. Compliance & Platform Governance Ensure all advertising complies with institutional standards, accreditation requirements, and platform advertising policies. Maintain compliance with FERPA, privacy standards, and data governance best practices. Stay informed on platform updates impacting education advertisers. Required Qualifications 3+ years of hands-on paid media experience, preferably in higher education or lead-generation environments. Proven experience managing campaigns across Meta, Google Ads, and TikTok. Strong understanding of enrollment funnels and long conversion cycles. Experience with conversion tracking, pixels, tags, and CRM integrations. Proficiency in Google Analytics and native platform reporting tools. Strong analytical and communication skills. Preferred Qualifications Direct experience marketing academic programs (healthcare, nursing, technical, or career-focused education preferred). Familiarity with CRM platforms (Slate, Salesforce, HubSpot, or similar). Experience with enrollment forecasting and yield optimization. Agency experience supporting multiple academic programs or institutions. Knowledge of regulatory considerations in postsecondary education marketing. Key Competencies Enrollment Marketing & Lead Generation Paid Media Strategy & Optimization Budget Forecasting & ROI Analysis Audience Segmentation & Retargeting Creative Testing & Compliance Awareness Cross-Functional Collaboration