What does a media buyer do?
A media buyer plans, launches and scales paid campaigns on platforms like Meta, TikTok and Snapchat, and decides where each part of the budget goes. A performance media buyer is measured on sales and cost per purchase, so the work also covers creative testing, tracking, and what happens between the click and the sale.
7 questions to ask before you hire
1. Can you show results from real ad accounts?
Ask for Ads Manager screenshots with dates. Client names can be hidden under NDA, but spend, results and the time window should be visible. Every case on this site shows the account screenshots for that reason.
2. What did you change to get that result?
A result only helps you if the method behind it can repeat. A good answer names the decisions: which creatives were tested, where budget moved, and what changed on the landing page or in the sales process.
3. Which number do you judge a campaign by?
For a store it should be sales and cost per purchase. For click-to-WhatsApp it should be revenue per conversation. Be careful with anyone who reports only clicks, CTR or cost per conversation. I read signals in order, hook rate, then CTR, then cost per purchase, and I scale on the last one.
4. How do you make sure the tracking is right?
Ask how the Pixel and the Conversions API are set up, and how sales in Ads Manager are checked against real orders. When the dashboard and the bank account disagree, the bank is right, and the tracking needs fixing before any budget decision.
5. Which platforms fit my product?
Meta, TikTok and Snapchat reach different buyers at different costs, and a good media buyer tests before committing budget. In my fashion case, the same product ran on Meta and TikTok side by side and reached 12.31x and 12.06x ROAS.
6. What happens after the click?
Ads bring the traffic. The landing page, the checkout and the sales team turn it into revenue. In my online course case, rebuilding the webinar funnel and training the sales team were part of reaching EGP 1.8M. Ask whether the media buyer works on that part too.
7. How many accounts do you run at the same time?
Attention is limited, and someone running too many accounts at once cannot watch each one closely. I take a limited number of accounts each quarter for that reason.
Red flags
- A guaranteed ROAS before they have seen your account, your product or your margins.
- Reports built only on clicks, reach or cost per conversation.
- Percentages with no screenshots from real accounts.
- No clear answer to what they changed and why.
Questions about hiring a media buyer
What should I prepare before talking to a media buyer?
Your product and its price, your monthly ad budget, where you sell (a store, WhatsApp or sales calls), and any past results from Ads Manager. The short form on this site asks what you sell and your monthly ad spend.
What results can I expect?
It depends on the product, the offer and the margin. My four documented cases range from 4.6x ROAS on click-to-WhatsApp in the Gulf to 12.31x on Meta for a fashion brand, each with screenshots from the real account.