​Where to start with building a digital marketing career in Ad Operations or Programmatic?

Digital marketing has seen explosive growth in the past 10 years, estimates say that marketers spent £3.5bn in 2009 compared to £14.bn in 2019 in the UK on this form of advertising. This focus from marketers has been because consumers like you and I are spending more time on devices connected to the Internet each year, not to mention the transition to remote working since Covid-19.

It’s recognised that digital marketing is an industry which is lacking in talent (relative to other professions) and therefore it’s a great industry where if you apply yourself you can progress in terms of seniority and salary, quickly. It is a very fast and exciting moving industry that is in demand for candidates right now.

A good place to start in Digital Marketing is Advertising Operations or Ad Ops for short.

Ad Ops is essentially the technologies and processes that underpin the delivery of advertising on the Internet. It also allows for brands to measure how well their marketing is performing and allows them to tailor creative messaging. It’s technical, but you don’t need to be technical to get up to speed with it.

Even if you’re not technical, an Ad Ops role can work for you.

I found a great analogy online that puts this into perspective. Consider a scenario where someone wants to get into running, they don’t just start off by sprinting 5km in 15 minutes, they must start with shorter jogs and build up momentum. What you learn in those early stages of how to run, how to breathe when doing so, what equipment you need, etc, sets you up for being a great runner. It’s the exact same in digital marketing, a technical understanding early in your career really will set you up for success.

What is valued, would be your ability to understand how ads are served on the internet, the process between multiple stakeholders, technologies and how to implement tracking that allows you to report on campaign success.

It’ll then set you up for a role in so many different areas in digital marketing. Starting in Ad Ops is never a bad decision.

5 Top skills for Ad Ops/Programmatic include:

  1. Campaign management experience using programmatic and ad ops platforms/technologies. Good knowledge of these platforms is key to getting your foot in the door.

  2. A solid understanding of digital and media concepts and the industry. An interest in advertising and how it works can show that you have a passion for the media industry.

  3. Confident with data and excel. Working well with numbers, and how to analyse them is a skill that most digital marketers ought to practice.

  4. Strong communication skills, ideally comfortable in a consultative, client-facing environment. Being able to translate technical explanations to clients is a skill that is admired for agency roles.

  5. Able to identify strategic ad technology solutions, testing frameworks and recommendations. It’s great if you can prove your ability to spot opportunities for your clients and be proactive in helping them reach their goals.

For more advice or help to find your next Ad Ops or Programmatic role, email me at JoeG@weareaspire.com and browse Ad Ops and Programmatic roles here