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Job Title: Performance Biddable Specialist
Company: WPP Media South Africa
Location: Johannesburg, South Africa
Reports To: Biddable Lead
Role purpose: The Performance Biddable Specialist plans, builds, optimises and reports on Unilever sponsored search campaigns across South Africa's main retail media platforms: Takealot, Checkers Sixty60, Pick n Pay and Amazon. The role covers a large portfolio of brands across three Unilever business units (Beauty, Wellbeing & Personal Care; Home Care; and Foods). It requires daily, hands-on optimisation at keyword and SKU level, with tight control of client budgets.
Key responsibilities
Campaign management and optimisation
• Set up, run and optimise sponsored product and sponsored search campaigns across Takealot, Checkers Sixty60, Pick n Pay and Amazon.
• Manage keyword, SKU and placement-level bidding, adjusting bids and budgets daily based on performance, stock availability and retailer promotions.
• Carry out keyword research, negative keyword management and search term analysis to improve relevance, ROAS and share of search.
• Align campaigns with brand and retailer promotional calendars, launches and trade activations.
• Test and learn on bidding strategies, ad formats and new retailer platform features as they become available.
Budget pacing and financial control
• Track spend daily against client budgets by brand, business unit and platform, so campaigns deliver in full with no under- or overspend.
• Keep the team's DCom pacing tracker up to date with monthly platform data.
• Follow Unilever's billing process: confirm spend on the flowplan, check a PO has been issued, then raise CEs on time.
• Reconcile platform-reported spend against flowplans and invoices each month, and flag discrepancies early.
Reporting and insights
• Produce monthly and quarterly performance reports and contribute to post-campaign analyses (PCAs) for each brand.
• Turn platform data into clear insights and recommendations for brand teams and DCom budget owners.
• Monitor competitor activity and category trends on each retailer platform.
Governance and compliance
• Apply Accutics naming conventions to all campaigns and follow the requirements of Client's media audit (MediaSense) and the Digital Process Audit.
• Keep a clear change log for budget and asset changes briefed in by planners.
• Manage platform access, campaign ownership and documentation so work can be handed over or covered without disruption.
Stakeholder management
• Work closely with media planners on briefs, budgets and assets.
• Build strong working relationships with Client's DCom and ecommerce teams and with retailer media account managers.
• Back up the second Retail Media Specialist during leave and peak periods, so neither person is a single point of failure.
Requirements
Experience
• [2 to 4] years' experience in paid search, retail media or performance marketing, ideally at an agency.
• Hands-on experience running sponsored search on at least one retail media platform (Takealot, Checkers Sixty60, Pick n Pay, Amazon Ads or similar). Strong Google Ads search experience with a clear interest in retail media will also be considered.
• Experience managing multiple brands or clients with separate budgets at the same time.
• FMCG or ecommerce experience is an advantage.
Skills
• Strong understanding of search auctions, bidding, keyword match types and ROAS-led optimisation.
• Advanced Excel or Google Sheets skills (pivot tables, lookups, data cleaning across messy platform exports).
• Strong attention to detail and comfort with daily, granular optimisation and budget control.
• Able to turn data into clear, concise insights and recommendations.
• Organised, proactive, and able to manage competing deadlines across brands and platforms.
• Clear written and verbal communication with clients and internal teams.
Advantageous
• Amazon Ads or Google Ads certification.
• Experience with Power BI, Looker Studio or similar reporting tools.
• Familiarity with media billing processes (flowplans, POs, CEs) and media audit requirements.
• Interest in using automation and AI tools to improve campaign management and reporting.
Key performance indicators
• Budget delivery accuracy by brand and platform (spend within agreed tolerance of plan each month).
• Campaign performance against agreed ROAS, CPC and sales targets.
• On-time reporting, PCAs and CE submissions.
• Clean audit results: naming conventions, change logs and process compliance.
• Client satisfaction from Client DCom budget owners.
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