Hiring for paid media is high stakes. Don’t believe us?
The stats alone are enough to draw attention to this:
Massive Demand, Limited Talent:
- According to a 2024 LinkedIn Talent Trends report, paid media specialists are among the top 10 most in-demand marketing roles globally.
- Marketing job listings have surged across the board, with some reports noting up to a 76% year-over-year increase globally.
- At the same time, candidate supply increased by only 6%, creating a sharp imbalance.
Rising Salaries Reflect the Talent War
- Despite growing demand, the pipeline of skilled PPC and paid media specialists remains limited.
- Talent reports point to ongoing shortages in performance-focused roles, particularly at the mid-to-senior level, creating a bottleneck for agencies and brands hiring in 2025.
- Entry-level roles that used to start at $30k USD (2017) now average $50-60k.
High Cost of a Bad Hire
- Digital marketing salaries have steadily increased, with performance and paid media roles seeing the sharpest spikes in competitive markets.
While average marketing salaries grew ~3–5% YoY, roles in high-demand niches like PPC are seeing unofficial but observed increases closer to 10–15%+ in hubs like NYC and London — particularly for candidates with AI or automation experience.
- In performance-based roles like PPC, a misstep can burn through tens of thousands in ad spend in just weeks.
A great hire can scale campaigns, cut acquisition costs, and turn a brand into a growth engine.
A bad hire?
They burn budget, produce fluff, and stall momentum.
And the challenge is, most candidates can talk a good game.
They name-drop platforms, mention big budgets, and sprinkle in the latest acronyms. But none of that guarantees performance.
So how do you identify a true A-player, before wasting hours in interviews?
Here’s your playbook, backed by real data, expert insights, and what we’ve seen work across hundreds of agency and in-house hiring cycles.
A Portfolio That’s Results-Focused, Not Responsibility-Heavy
True A-players don’t just list what they did — they show what they achieved.
What to look for:
- Screenshots from Meta Ads Manager, Google Ads, TikTok Ads dashboards
- Before/after comparisons with spend vs ROAS or CPA metrics
- Campaign breakdowns with challenge → strategy → execution → result flow
- Loom videos or audit walk-throughs that demonstrate thinking, not just tactics
HubSpot’s 2024 Talent Trends Report found that 68% of hiring managers said a candidate’s ability to communicate past performance was the #1 indicator of future success.
Red flag:
Portfolios filled with vague responsibilities like “ran client campaigns” or “managed large budgets” with no outcome data. That’s executor energy, not growth-driving strategy.
Pro tip:
Ask to see anonymised campaign examples. A real operator will be proud to show their work, even with sensitive data redacted.
They Speak in Metrics, Not Marketing Jargon
A-players don’t hide behind fluff like “drove awareness” or “boosted performance.”
They speak in numbers that align with your bottom line.
The metrics they should know cold:
- ROAS
- CPA
- MER
- CTR / CVR
- LTV, AOV, CAC
- Incrementality and blended vs platform-reported metrics
Example response from a real A-player:
“We scaled Meta spend from $8K to $40K/month while maintaining a 4.2x ROAS and dropping blended CPA by 27% over 6 weeks.”
Red flag: Anyone who can’t tie metrics to business outcomes, or who leans solely on top-of-funnel stats like impressions or reach.
They Have a T-Shaped Skillset That Goes Beyond Ads Manager
Top paid media talent understands more than targeting and toggles. They think across the entire funnel.
A great candidate might go deep in:
- Meta Ads
- Google Performance Max
- TikTok or YouTube Ads
But they also understand:
- How ad creative impacts scroll-stopping power
- What a good landing page needs to convert
- Where attribution breaks down in tools like GA4 or Triple Whale
- How email, content, and CRO feed back into paid performance
According to LinkedIn’s 2023 Performance Marketing Survey, T-shaped marketers were 42% more likely to advance to leadership roles within 2 years than platform-only specialists.
These candidates don’t just run campaigns, they help architect ecosystems that convert.
They’re Proactive, Not Just Task-Driven
True A-players treat your hiring process like a client project.
They:
- Follow up promptly and professionally
- Come prepared with campaign ideas or critiques
- Ask strategic questions that show curiosity, not checkbox compliance
Want to test this? Ask:
“What’s a campaign you ran that didn’t go to plan, and how did you pivot?”
You’ll learn if they blame the algorithm or own the outcome.
PMJ Hiring Audit 2025: Candidates who shared proactive ideas during the hiring process were 67% more likely to receive offers.
This trait shows up on the job too. These hires won’t wait for permission, they’ll drive testing roadmaps, pitch new offers, and optimise for business goals.
They’ve Worked in Contexts That Match Yours
A high-performer in a venture-backed SaaS startup won’t always thrive in a fast-paced, multi-client agency. Context matters.
The best candidates will have experience with:
- Fast turnarounds
- Asynchronous feedback loops
- Switching between brands, offers, and objectives
- Tight budgets or high-stakes spending decisions
80% of hiring managers in our 2025 PMJ Pulse Survey said adaptability to internal workflows was more important than pedigree or brand-name experience.
Ask what kind of team structure they’ve worked in before. You’ll often discover cultural fit, and future red flags right there.
BONUS: Ask These 3 Pre-Interview Screening Questions
Save time by vetting asynchronously. Here’s what we recommend sending via email or a short video prompt:
- What are you looking for in your next position, and what excites you about this opportunity?
- Walk me through your biggest career accomplishment to date. What impact did it have and what lessons did you take away from the experience?
- Tell us about a time you took full ownership of an underperforming account and turned it around. What steps did you take?
Top candidates will treat this like an open brief, not a box-ticking exercise.
Final Thought: It’s About Outcomes, Not Optics
The best paid media specialists don’t have to shout. Their results speak.
They:
✅ Know their numbers
✅ Think beyond the ad account
✅ Collaborate across teams
✅ Communicate clearly and take initiative
If you’re tired of the hiring roulette: too many calls, not enough closers, it might be time to rethink your process.
At Paid Media Jobs, we help agencies and high-growth brands hire pre-vetted, performance-first talent who move the needle from day one.
