Programmatic Media Buyer/Trader

ABOUT US DNA&STONE is what happens when trust and disruption collide. Born in January 2025 from the merger of DNA—an independent agency with 26 years of earned results—and Little Hands of Stone—an aggressively creative, founder-led micro-agency—we exist to break barriers, challenge conventions, and create work that makes the world jealous. We are The Creative Agency That Doesn’t Flinch for Brands That Go There. We deal in real, high-stakes emotion—grief, joy, fear, hope—and embrace the hard truths most turn away from. Our core strategic and creative approach is Radical Empathy—deep emotional intelligence for the consumer, the client, and the business. It’s about killing bias and allowing ourselves to feel what our audience feels. And taking on the pressure our clients feel as our own, then turning that into work that moves people and businesses. A STARTUP CULTURE WITH A PROVEN FOUNDATION As a newly merged agency, DNA&STONE carries the ambition and approach of a startup. This is a pivotal moment, and the right candidate will help shape the agency’s next chapter—bringing operational maturity to creative momentum. You’ll thrive in complexity, help formalize repeatable processes, bridge leadership gaps, and drive growth as we transform visibility into velocity. DEPARTMENT OVERVIEW We turn emotion into presence by placing ideas where connection actually happens. Guided by Radical Empathy, our media approach ensures powerful ideas don’t just exist—they show up in the right cultural moments, platforms, and contexts to drive memory, action, and growth. Because emotion without presence is wasted, we optimize every dollar to work harder by reaching people in ways that feel undeniable. HOW YOU’LL MAKE AN IMPACT Media isn’t just a department—it’s a force multiplier. It’s where creative ambition becomes measurable momentum. Our media team doesn’t just place ads—we build moments that move people, spark conversation, and unlock lasting value. We bring Radical Empathy into every aspect of media—from understanding the emotional truths that drive attention to negotiating the kind of value that satisfies both consumers and CFOs. We’re built differently: an integrated crew of strategists, buyers, analysts, and storytellers who connect brand goals to human moments. We thrive in complexity. The landscape is fragmented, the signals are noisy, and consumers move fast—but that’s where we shine. When others flinch, we lean in. WHAT YOU’LL DO • Execute and manage day-to-day programmatic buying/trading across DSPs (e.g., The Trade Desk, Amazon DSP, DV360, or similar) • Develop campaign setup and creation, bidding strategies, launch activation, and optimization across: Connected TV (CTV), Online Video (OLV), Streaming Audio, Display for both prospecting and retargeting tactics • Manage day-to-day programmatic campaign performance, including pacing, spend, and ongoing optimizations across exchanges, publishers/sites, creatives, channels and audience strategies, optimizing toward spend targets, channel-appropriate media KPIs (CPM, CTR, VCR, completion rate, frequency, reach), and performance signals such as site visitors, key page views, event or “Join Now” button clicks, and application starts. • Apply audience strategies across channels, including prospecting, retargeting, and sequential messaging, while understanding seasonality, creative weighting, and rotations supported by evergreen, seasonal and tentpole campaigns • Manage first-party data and audience activation, including the secure upload of hashed CRM lists to build targetable segments, apply exclusion rules, and support lookalike and suppression strategies across programmatic channels. • Analyze campaign data to surface insights, optimize performance, and inform strategic recommendations • Build and maintain campaign tracking (e.g., UTM parameters), tagging (e.g., Floodlight, GTM), and reporting infrastructure. • Communicate proactively with internal teams to align campaign execution with broader marketing goals and timelines • Support testing strategies (creative, audience, channel) and performance documentation. • Assist with Private Marketplace (PMP) deal setup and management across applicable channels • Monitor deal performance and troubleshoot delivery or performance issues WHAT YOU’LL BRING • 2-3 years of hands-on keyboard experience in digital media buying/trading, with specific expertise in The Trade Desk while managing $200K+ in monthly media spend, launching and scaling cross-platform campaigns with a strong performance focus. • Proven ability to launch, manage, and scale campaigns across platforms with a performance mindset. • Strong analytical skills and experience with performance reporting, Excel/Sheets, and basic data visualization. • Familiarity with tracking and tagging implementation, including UTM parameters, Google Tag Manager, and Floodlight. Trafficking ads between adserver and dsp platforms is required in this role. • Experience managing budgets and pacing across multiple campaigns and objectives across a variety of clients. • Clear, concise communicator with strong time management skills and attention to detail. Required to be available for internal status and performance reviews with key stakeholders and during agency working hours. COMPENSATION • Contract Terms: • Hours: 35-40+ hours per week • Engagement: 03/05/2026-05/31/2026 LOCATION Seattle Office: DNA & STONE is working a Hybrid schedule; required in-office days are Tuesday and Thursday of each week for employees who live in the Seattle metro region. Currently, we are open to this role being fully REMOTE for qualified candidates. Must be willing to work West Coast (PT) hours. We are looking for a talented Media Buyer to join us on a contract basis. This is a great opportunity for someone who wants to contribute meaningful work from day one while exploring a long-term fit with our team. High-performing contractors will be considered for full-time employment. OUR COMMITMENT DNA&STONE is an equal opportunity employer. We welcome applicants of all backgrounds and identities and are deeply committed to building a culture of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging.