210: Ad Manager Career Path

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[00:00:00] 

Brandi: Have you ever wondered what the career paths of an ad manager even looks like? 

In corporate, before taking a job or at least very shortly after taking that job. Our brain usually goes to what's next. Can I advance here. What does my life at this career look like? What does advancement look like? What is the pay grade look like? How much can I actually make working? At this job on this career path. But for some reason, no one talks about this in the online space. 

Well, today we're changing that and I'm going to break down the ad managers career path, where all breakdown exactly the skills you need, how much you can make at each level. Where you'll be looking for clients and so much more. 

If you're not in this for the short game, but actually want to create a long-term sustainable career. This is your road map to that. So let's dive on in. 

[00:01:00] 

Brandi: Welcome back to the serve scale soar podcast, the go-to place. If you want to start grow scale, your ad management business, I'm Brandi Mowles and I'm your host. 

And today we're diving into the online career path 

of a meta ad manager. I'm going to break down each level, the earning potential where you'll find clients and the skills you need for each of these levels. But before we jump into that, I want to tell you about a story. When I found out what my potential career path was going to look like. So before having any businesses, I went straight from undergrad into law school. And I don't know if I ever really wanted to be an attorney, 

but I was a history and international studies major in college with an African studies minor. 

So unless I went to law school, the only other thing that I could do is go get a master's. And become [00:02:00] like someone in a museum or I could go teach. And none of those options really sounded like something I wanted to do, but being an attorney sounded challenging. So I was like, let's do the dang thing. And so I went to law school. And going into law school. 

I hustled, I studied. I did really well. I was in the top 10% of my class, my first year. And it got to a point where you had to interview. For summer interns. And here's the thing. It's a law. I don't know if it's a law, but it's a rule that your first year in law school, no, in the entire country. One ELLs are not allowed to work. And so crazy because law school is expensive. And unlike a lot of the people I was going to school with my parents weren't able to help support. 

So I had to live off loans. And so, and we lived frugal. And [00:03:00] so I had to take out loans, but I didn't want to continue to live off loans in the summer. So I needed to get a paid internship. So I did all the interviews. I was top of my class, everything tick the boxes. And I get into my last interview and I was so frustrated and this was the first woman to have interviewed me. And I saw it. 

She said, okay, we can offer you a unpaid internship. And I looked at her and I was like, I've interviewed. For so many positions and every single person has only offered me an unpaid internship. But I need to make money. I need a paid internship. What is going on? What am I doing wrong? And she said, I'm going to tell you something that no one else would have told you. 

Cause I've really liked you. She said your interview skills are great. Your resume is great. Like your scores for this year are great. [00:04:00] But those paid internship positions are really hard to get and they're even harder to get when you're a female. At living in the boys' world.

And I took that in. And I was so frustrated. And I remember saying, so you're telling me. Because I not a boy, not a man. I'm not going to get a paid internship this year, even though my grades are better than a lot of the guys. Who have already received paid internships. And she said, sweetie, unless, you know, someone. That's not going to happen so you can take a pay unpaid internship. Or you can go get a job. Like a summer job. But I'm going to suggest that you get . An unpaid internship because you need it for your resume. I was like, well, that's not a possibility for me. 

I got to make money. I don't want to live off loans. And so that's the first moment I saw that my career path. As an attorney was [00:05:00] not going to be what I wanted. I knew the pay gaps already. I knew that I was going to have to work 10 times harder than the guys in my class. And I knew that it was going to be a struggle even to become partner one day. 

And I was probably going to make class than all my male counterparts. And I was so beyond frustrated by that realization. 

And that's when I saw my career path. And that's when I decided this is not for me. There's gotta be a better way. So when we see our career path, It can really. Aluminate where we can go. What's possible and let us know, like, are we on the right track? Is this what I think I could do? Or is this just not for me? 

So there's a lot of beauty and clarity around seeing what this career path could look like. So let's jump in and actually find out what your ad manager career path could possibly look like. I want to [00:06:00] first preface this by this is your ad manager career path. So I'm going to go over what the levels of that could look like. But this is not your online business career paths. So maybe down the road, you decide to put out a digital product. Uh, shop physical products, anything like that? That's not what I'm talking about. 

The world is your oyster. When it comes to the online business today, though, I want to talk about what is your. Career path look like as an ad manager. And I'll tell you my business. Has two elements. I have my career path as an ad manager and I have my career path is an online educator. And so those are two very different career paths. 

And so today I do want to focus on, this is not your online business career path, but this is specifically your ad management. Career path. So first off one more talking about the levels I like to look at. Is it a ladder? Like you're climbing the ladder. Of your ad manager [00:07:00] success. So on that bottom level, when you're just starting out, you're dipping your toes in your getting started. That the first level is an ad manager. And ad managers are managing ad campaigns. 

They're optimizing ads for performance they're reporting results to clients. And in a lot of cases, they're creating the ad copy and the creative. This is where most people start. This is what most people spend. The majority of their ad career level at, because they don't know that there's another level. 

So this is where they're really concentrated. And if you're brand new, this is where you're going to start. We all start somewhere. And this is where we all start. So ad managers can typically charge between a thousand and $2,000 per month per client. Now you could have some project based, but most of these are on retainer services. 

So every single month. They're getting paid a thousand to $2,000. I will say that the starting rate for ad [00:08:00] managers in 2024. Most of you should be starting at 1500. That's a really good starting rate. That's where most people are starting nowadays. Um, it used to be way lower than that, but now a good starting point is 1500. But we do have some ad managers that started a thousand because they feel more comfortable. With that number. But our goal is to get you to 2000 as soon as possible. So after you've had three clients, that's what I want to see your numbers move up to 2000 and that's usually were ad managers cap out at. And you can 100% to get to a hundred thousand dollars a year by being an ad manager without hustle 24 7. What that looks like is inside conversions for clients. 

We teach the five clients to a hundred K. And that's the method for getting five clients per month to get you to a hundred K per year. So when we think about. That, [00:09:00] that seems really exciting because at five clients you may be working 10 hours per week. We put in some, um, marketing and things like that. It may be your 15 hours per week to make a hundred thousand at 15 to 20 hours per week. That's freaking fantastic. Like that's exciting to me. And so it is 100% possible to make six figures. As an ad manager. With five clients per month and at a thousand to $2,000 per month. So where do ad managers typically find their clients? 

Usually through all the ways. So direct outreach that can be social media, DMS, cold calling, cold emailing. Searching Facebook groups for people posting job ops, freelancing platforms, referrals, networking events, really the world's, your oyster and inside conversions for clients. We have the 10 ways to find. Your first or next client. And so [00:10:00] picking one of those ways and going all in on it for about 45 days is going to be really, really effective inviting your first or next client. But when you're an ad manager, you can pretty much use all the methods in order to find clients. So the qualities and skills that are required is one. 

You have to know how to run Mehta ads. And so we all start somewhere. None of us are experts when we first start. But one thing I don't want you to wait around and do is think that you have to know everything before you start running meta ads. We talk about this a lot in conversions for clients. Where do you find clients first? 

Or do you learn how to run ads? First? You start looking for clients first and then you learn ads as you're doing that. And then you don't truly ever know how to run ads until you actually run one. So it's better to get a client sooner than waiting around, just consuming content. You want to have some good communication skills? 

How do you communicate with your clients? You do want to be detail oriented. And I would say I'm [00:11:00] not naturally a detail oriented person. So having a tool like a project management tool, as you heard in last week's episode, we switched to a sauna having something like that is going to be really, really effective if you're not detailed oriented naturally, because you can create checklist and make sure everything's getting done. And that's something I have to do. Willingness to market your services. 

I mean, you have to be able to say like, I'm going to market my services because you have to find clients. Clients is the bedrock of your business. You have to be willing to look for clients. And then also you're going to want to have bounce back ability because bounce-back ability is when something is wrong and you're able to bounce back from it. The thing is you will have out accounts. That don't go well, you will have ads that break. You will have disabled ad accounts that you need to get in and fix. And so all these things are going to happen. And if you're someone who melts down the moment, one of these things happens and you're not willing to work through it. 

Then add [00:12:00] management is not going to be for you. You have to be able to roll with the punches. That is really what an ad manager is, where they find their clients are typical pay. And so that's where all of us typically start our career.

Let's move on to an ad strategist. What do they do? Exactly. So it, as shortages is an evolution, her managing ads to strategizing. If they do comprehensive campaign planning, strategic insights over the entire funnel. And ability to give higher level strategies and insights. They focus on in-depth analysis and strategic recommendations to achieve client business goals. And they're really in tune with what's working now for clients. So as an ad strategist. You can move into this position really, really quick with the right tools in place. And this is where I would encourage the most of you to go. As quickly as possible and [00:13:00] learn how to really become a strategist. 

Because once you do this, you get a major pay bump. So ad strategists typically charged between 2000 and 5,000 per month. This could be a flat rate fee, or it could be a flat rate fee plus a percentage of ad spit because typically when you're an ad strategist, You're working with clients who have a higher budget. 

They're spending more on ads. And here you can get to 10 K months, much quicker with less clients. 

You get to work less and make more. So I love this point because it takes a lot less clients, which means a lot less. Work. And this is where you, I got to 250,000 a year. My first year. Without any team members and working about 20 hours per week.

And I was able to do that because I quickly moved into ad strategists very, very quickly and was charging 2000 plus per month. So once you get here, It's much easier to hit the multi six figure years. [00:14:00] And you don't even have to have an agency at this point if you don't want. So this is a great place to get to as quick as possible. Here you also may have project-based retainer base, or you may be doing some VIP days or intensives with your clients because it's a much higher focused on strategy than implementation now as at strategists, you are still going to be doing the implementing. 

You are going to be running the ads. For your clients, but you're also going to be coming up with the strategy. This is really where we focus in my program certified, which certifies you to become an ad strategist. We focus on that ad strategy octagon, which is a step-by-step plan on how you actually create strategy for clients. So, where do I strategist typically find clients? Now you can look in all the places that we did as an ad manager. But typically you need some clients who are going to spend a little bit more money and they're not [00:15:00] typically always in Facebook groups searching. Now if it's like a paid Facebook group that you join, that could be a possibility cause people are there to network or they have a higher level of skill, but the free Facebook groups probably aren't going to be the best place to find these type of clients. 

However, you can still find these clients with direct outreach and on LinkedIn. So if we're charging the 2000 to $5,000 per month, we're going to be looking at all those places, but you're probably going to lean heavily on referrals. And directory listings, referrals and directory listings are going to be really, really impactful. When it comes to strategists, this is where I send everyone who asked me, Hey, do you have an ad manager? This is where I send them is to our directory because they then know that they've been certified by me. 

They have my name behind them. And it's a referral kind of concept. And so these places or client [00:16:00] referrals, 

all of these are going to be really crucial as an ad strategist, but that doesn't mean we're not using our other methods as well, but we are going to lean on these as well. Networking events are also another great place. People who are out networking, they usually have higher level businesses, which usually means more money to spend on ads. 

So I would highly encourage you to get out. Locally or, for online businesses, you can go anywhere in the world and network. But also in your local community, that's a great way to get out and meet people who are going to have the budget to work with you. 

So then when we think about the qualities and skills required, of course, you're going to have all the skills from the first one, these all build on each other, but this one's all about elevating your expert knowledge, not only in ads, but also in funnels. 

This is what we teach in certified. As we really dive into the funnel strategies. And it doesn't mean you're building funnels. It means, [00:17:00] you know how to identify the gaps in the holes in funnels. So you know how they're affecting your ad strategy. You're also going to want to bring in ideas, creative ideas, new strategies, and you're bringing things to the table. 

You're not just someone who's passively sitting back, just running the ads. You're adding. To the conversation you're adding to the strategy, the marketing plan. So you're kind of like that partner, but you're not building or implementing all those. You're just bringing the ideas in them, running the ads to them. 

And someone who's done such a fantastic job of this is crystal. 

She's one of our certified as strategists. She was able to land an $18,000 contract. Paid in full because she was in our program certified. She went through, she got certified. She was added to our directory. And then when someone reached out to me, I said, here, let me send you to the directory. 

And that's where she was able to land the client. After implementing the 15 [00:18:00] minute discovery call method that we teach, show up as the expert on that call. And then she was able to spring her case study that we complete during certified. 

And she was able to show up differently because she had strategy in her back pocket. She knew how to implement the strategy octagon. And she was able to show the client that she was going to bring so much more to the table than what her current ad manager was doing. Cause her current ad manager. I was an ad manager. 

They weren't bringing the strategy. They weren't testing new ideas 

and crystal was. able to show up and show how she's going to perform differently because she's an ad strategist, not an ad manager. There's so much power in that.

So now we're onto the third wrong of your career ladder as an ad manager. And this is a growth consultant. So a growth consultant is the level that I'm at. And this is where my ad [00:19:00] manager journey is currently. Again, Soltan on the, and. And what Griffith consultants do is they consult on the overall growth plan. And keeps the business moving forward by focusing on what actually makes the company more. Revenue. And grows the business. So as a growth consultant, you are there to consult, not implement. 

That's the big differences. This is where you move into. I'm here to give you the strategy, the ideas, but I'm not the one implementing. And so charging per this is you make sniffing recently more revenue. So as a growth consultant, you start typically about $5,000 a month. On up from there. My typical rates right now are about nine to $10,000, depending if they pay him for do a payment plan. $10,000 per month. With a three-month commitment. So it's a $30,000 contract for three [00:20:00] months. Where I'm not actually running ads for people, but I'm giving strategy. So that typically looks like we have one call each week. 

That's 90 minutes and I'm going over all the strategy. What our goals, what are we working towards? We have a whole episode on growth marketing was Laura Myers on the podcast. So we'll make sure to link up to that. In this episode, so you can check that out. But really it's about, I'm going to do consulting. 

I'm not implementing any more. And so they can charge way more that five to 10 to $15,000 per month per client. And this is really based on your reputation, your expertise in your ability to deliver transformative results by getting clients to focus on the things that move the needle forward. And not by doing all the things. This year would just my consulting services, which I only have one to two clients per month. I'll do over 250 [00:21:00] K working less than 10 hours. Per week. So, this is really where you start to make anywhere between 500 and a thousand dollars per hour for your expert knowledge. 

Now, where are you finding clients is going to be very, very different. 

This is not where you're finding them in Facebook groups. This is where you're speaking at different events. Summits. You show up as the expert. You're in masterminds where you build relationships with people. This is where a lot of my consulting clients come from is from the masterminds I'm in. They hire me from there. Also networking event and referrals. 

I will say that the majority of my clients come from my masterminds, that I'm in and the referrals that I get after those clients are with me. So when we think about that, I pay $30,000 a year to be in one of my masterminds in 20,000 to be in another. So I'm paying $50,000 per [00:22:00] year. But last year, that $30,000 one. I ended up making me $200,000. So it's kind of one of those things where I'm okay with that. 

And that's just from direct clients. That's not with my other parts of my business. So when we're talking about this, you have to make sure it makes financial sense, but also as a consultant, you typically are bringing in enough revenue where spending 30,000 on a mastermind, isn't a big deal, but here's the thing. You don't start there. You move into this. 

Once you have the speaking gigs, once you've been an expert in your field. Once you have the reputation behind you. So let's not try to jump here right away when you haven't had the experience to get here. Now one thing I will say is if you're already doing marketing at your current corporate career and you are a [00:23:00] high level marketer, you could come in and jump directly to this.. They're coming in at a different level. So the qualities and skills required are expert level knowledge of digital marketing and the advertising ecosystem, a strong personal brand and professional network, exceptional communication and boundaries. And ability to see the big picture and keep people focused on only doing things that move the needle forward. And so this is if you're like, oh my gosh goals, then get there. 

But you have to climb the ladder. This isn't like a get rich quick. I can skip there. This is about building your network, getting into rooms with people that you want to work with. Paying your dues, having the expert knowledge, always leaning in to educating yourself and becoming better at your craft. And then that's when consultant happens. 

So this is like the ultimate level. [00:24:00] So those are three wrongs that you move up. As an ad manager, we have ad managers and strategists and growth consultants. Now some of you smart cookies are probably like, well, brandi, how does agency model fall into this? And so agency model can typically fall under any of these. But you're going to wait, want to wait until you're at least at an ad strategist before you say, like, I want to start growing maybe a small agency or a big agency, whatever it is. 

Or maybe just hire a few people because the thing is you have to be charging. Uh, enough in order to make it work financially. So at a thousand to $2,000 a month, typically you don't have the price point where it really makes sense. Profitability-wise. For you to be an agency. So you want to get to that 2,500 plus per month. And watch her expenses in order to add an agency. You can also have the ad. [00:25:00] The agency model as a growth consultant, which is where you would typically charge way more than because you would be the consultant, but then your agency would actually start implementing. So how I have it is I'm just the consultant. 

I don't provide the done for you part adjust, consult, but then I have friends that are growth consultants. Or they have the agency models. So you pay for their consulting, but then their team actually implements what you're doing. And so you could also do an agency model there. But the big thing to know with agencies is you have to have enough revenue. Bringing in and profit margins, foreign agency to work. So that is where agency fits in. So, whew. 

We just went through our ad manager career. Path. So let's just do a quick recap. So Mehta ad manager career ladder starts with ad managers. They handle campaigns and execution, [00:26:00] and they can earn up to a thousand to $2,000 per month per client. Then we moved up to ad strategists. This is ad strategic insights. Deep knowledge of how not only ads work, but how funnels work as well. And they're earning potentials between 2000 and $5,000 per month per client. And maybe they also add on some one-off VIP days in here. And then we go to the very top of the ladder with our growth consultant. Focus on. Business growth strategies. And consulting and they can earn up to $500. Are, they can earn up to $5,000 per month per client. We also discuss how the agency model fits into all of this. Particularly for strategists and Seeking to scale their offerings even more. And what I really want you to remember. Is all three of these can get you to a hundred K per month. [00:27:00] With five clients or less. 

Holy bananas. Y'all. That is why ad management is the most profitable, quickest, and most flexible. Way. To scale to consistent 10 K months in a hundred K years. As a freelancer. So if you're not running ads, 100%, you should be. It is the best and highest paid service you can offer online. So I'd love to hear where are you? 

Where are your goals? Where are you going? And if you want to know more about, Hey, I just need to get started. I want to be an ad manager, then head to brandimowles.com/adtraining, and sign up for one of our free trainings. If you're like Brandy, I want to know if I'm right for ad strategists. I want to start charging more. 

I want to get a deeper learning for funnels. I want to know how to bode strategy. What I want you to do is send me a DM @brandimowles. On Instagram and [00:28:00] let's chat. About what this looks like for you. So just. Send me strategist. And then DM and I want to talk to you about, is this the right move for you? We can brainstorm what that looks like and what your next step should be to make that happen. 

I can't wait to see you hit your hundred K year or more, no matter where you are on this ladder. That's what I freaking love is that you can stay in ad manager, make a hundred K you can move up. To an ad strategist, and maybe you only want one or two clients and make a hundred K or you can make a hundred K with one client. As a growth strategist. 

So no matter where you are, you're exactly where you should be. And you're offering the most profitable and highest paid skill as a freelancer on the market. So until next week, go out, serve your clients, scale your business, and sort into the success. You [00:29:00] deserve.