Associate Director, Paid Search​/Paid Media

Impression Digital

Impression is a multi-award winning, high growth digital marketing agency based in Nottingham, London and Manchester.

Our agency wouldn’t be what it is today without our incredible people. Our diverse team encompasses expertise across the digital landscape which enables us to accelerate change and results, driving business growth faster. Our collaborative, creative and inclusive culture helps build our reputation as a leading digital employer and we are committed to nurturing and developing people to their full potential.

We're looking for an ambitious Associate Director, Paid Search / Paid Media to join the team and help us continue to deliver award-winning results for our clients.

Impression were recently ranked fourth in UK's Best Workplaces™ for Wellbeing (medium‑size companies), and we continuously strive to ensure the best possible work‑life balance for our team.

As a successful candidate, you will be given a clear progression path. We want talent to grow with us and there is ample opportunity for you to progress to the next level.

We are also very proud to have been listed on the “Flexa 100” most flexible companies to work for and to be officially recognised as a Great Place to Work®.

We are seeking an ambitious, enthusiastic, and highly experienced Paid Search leader to join our multi‑award‑winning agency. This pivotal role is a direct support to the Head of PPC and is responsible for a portfolio of flagship client accounts.

You will actively lead the strategy for larger or more complex, typically top‑tier accounts, while contributing significantly to the continued development and growth of Impression’s Paid Search offering. This is an opportunity to transform challenges into technical solutions and commercial opportunities, and work alongside like‑minded and supportive individuals within an agency that truly puts its people first.

Given the senior nature of this role, we are looking for candidates who can demonstrate established team leadership experience focused on strategic guidance and inspiration.

To be considered for the Associate Director, Paid Search role, you will need to demonstrate:

• Innovation: You proactively challenge established best practices and legacy processes, designing new, evidence‑based methodologies that unlock performance gains where standard tactics have plateaued.
• Commercial Storytelling: You go beyond simply defining strategy; you expertly structure complex data and multi‑channel insights into a persuasive story that links technical execution directly to the client's bottom line.
• Adaptive Resilience: You apply adaptive thinking strategically across team and client challenges, acting as a steadying influence to guide teams through complex circumstances with calm, focus, and clarity.
• Cross‑Channel Fluency: You can speak to how other Paid Media channels contribute to meeting overall client goals. You lead decision‑making when it comes to integrating Search with Social and Programmatic, compiling clear frameworks to bring clients on a growth journey.
• Ownership and accountability: You demonstrate accountability over the quality and performance of complex media accounts, acting as the definitive problem solver. You apply your technical expertise to resolve risks independently.

The Associate Director is the escalation point for all clients within their portfolio. You will act as the "Guardian of Quality" for the team, ensuring that every piece of work is treated with deep professional care.

• Account Leadership: Assume full accountability for flagship client partnerships, navigating conflicting stakeholder priorities to secure long‑term retention and investment.
• Performance Ownership: You will take full accountability for the commercial performance and trajectory of your portfolio. You are responsible for constructing detailed growth plans (12‑month+), setting rigorous KPI frameworks, and tracking delivery against these targets to ensure we consistently drive commercial value and hold the team to account on results.
• Integrated Solutions: Work collaboratively with other channel owners (Paid…