Director of Paid Media (Remote, Houston)

Remote (USA, Canada or South Africa) – Full‑time.

About the Role

Blacksmith Agency runs PPC and SEO for clients across multifamily, B2B and technical verticals. As Director of Paid Media you lead that department. The PPC strategist and the SEO strategist report to you and are the specialists in their channels. Currently nobody owns this function, which is why the seat is open. This is a management seat, not a senior individual contributor role. You will not be building campaigns, and on technical SEO your strategist will know more than you do. You carry channel strategy and budget allocation as accounts scale, while the strategists handle execution and you ensure the department delivers.

What You Own

• Quality bar, development, performance reviews, and escalation decisions for the PPC and SEO strategists.
• Defining standards for audits, pre‑delivery checks, and account reporting; writing and enforcing those standards.
• Overall client results for the function, including honest reporting and attribution/GA4 accuracy.
• Escalation handling when an account is at risk: diagnosing issues, directing the strategist to fix them, and joining the client call.
• Channel strategy and budget allocation as accounts scale.
• Communicating credible deliverables to sales before they are sold.
• Hiring plan for the department and conducting first‑round interviews for new team members within about a quarter.

What You Need

• 7+ years of experience across paid media and SEO, with responsibility for managing specialists.
• Deep knowledge of Google Ads, GA4, Search Console, Meta, and Microsoft Ads sufficient to evaluate work quality.
• Demonstrated ability to turn around an account, including before/after metrics and the reasoning behind the change.
• Comfortable being the client‑facing owner when an account underperforms.
• Agency experience handling multiple accounts simultaneously.
• Prior experience owning performance reviews, development plans, and performance‑managing team members.
• Must not have only ever reported to no one, only managed a single channel, or worked exclusively in‑house on a single brand.
• Desire to manage a team rather than continue building campaigns yourself.

Process

Three conversations, then a decision: a 30‑minute screen with our recruiter, a first‑round interview with the founder to whom this seat reports, and a final interview. No take‑home project and no panel interview.

How to Apply

• Complete the four fields at the provided link.
• Take a short 6‑minute Predictive Index assessment.
• Use the same email address throughout.
• No cover letter is required.