Media Planner / Buyer

Media Planner / Buyer

Thompson Spencer is an award-winning independent agency.

This Media Planner/Buyer role gives the senior team real support across our largest accounts, and takes full ownership of a smaller portfolio alongside it. That ownership expands as capability does.

The role runs the full cycle: take the brief, build the plan, negotiate the buy, run the campaign, report on it. It carries the confidence to put a point of view in front of a client and stand behind it. There is real involvement in new business and a clear path into senior planning and strategic ownership.

Key responsibilities

Owns day-to-day planning and buying decisions across an assigned portfolio of Tier 2 and Tier 3 clients, including:

• Building channel plans and recommending budget allocation
• Briefing and evaluating suppliers, and negotiating rates and added value
• Making and defending recommendations directly with clients
• Managing campaign delivery, budgets and timelines end to end

Supports the Strategic Media Planner/Buyer and Head of Media on Tier 1 clients, contributing planning components and taking full ownership of defined workstreams.

Escalates strategic direction, material budget shifts and client-sensitive decisions to the Head of Media.

Accountabilities

Planning & Investment

• Translate briefs into clear, well-reasoned channel plans for assigned clients
• Apply planning fundamentals (reach, frequency, timing, budget allocation) and articulate why each channel earns its place
• Build plans that hold up to scrutiny on the numbers and the logic
• Contribute planning components to Tier 1 clients led by senior team members

Buying & Supplier Management

• Brief suppliers clearly, with defined objectives, timelines and success measures
• Evaluate proposals against the plan and negotiate rates and added value
• Advocate for the plan with suppliers and hold them to what was agreed
• Maintain accurate records of bookings, rates and negotiated value

Client Leadership & Communication

• Act as a day-to-day contact for assigned clients
• Present plans, results and recommendations directly, in the room and on the phone, not only over email
• Explain the thinking behind a plan so clients trust it
• Bring proactive ideas and opportunities, filtered for relevance so client time is spent on what matters

Campaign Delivery & Performance

• Project manage integrated briefs across channels and internal specialists
• Manage bookings, budgets, specifications and deadlines through to completion
• Monitor delivery against objectives, flag risks early and recommend optimisations
• Produce clear reporting that connects performance back to the original objective

Team Contribution

• Carry enough of the day-to-day that the Head of Media and Strategic Media Planner/Buyer can hold their focus on strategy and growth
• Work alongside the Media Executive, sharing knowledge and reviewing work where appropriate
• Bring in performance, social, content and data specialists when a brief needs them
• Contribute to consistent planning standards and documentation across the team

Growth & New Business

• Support new business pitches with planning, research and investment thinking
• Track what is shifting in the category and the wider market, and tell the team about it
• Take on increasing portfolio ownership as capability builds

Your Skills and Experience

You must have a background in traditional media, and a minimum of 2 - 4 years industry experience in the NZ market. In addition to these qualifications, we prefer candidates who have the following skills:

• Persuasive, transparent, and confident.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Exceptional attention to detail and budgetary frameworks.
• Working knowledge or an understanding of Neilsen products (CMI, TAM etc), Google Analytics, Microsoft/Google Workspace products and other media/digital/metrics software.

What Success Looks Like

• Assigned clients are delivered on time, on budget and without surprises
• Plans and buys are high quality and well-reasoned, requiring refinement rather than rework
• Negotiations return rates and added value the client can see
• Clients are confident dealing with this role directly
• Proactive ideas are relevant, considered and worth the client’s attention
• The Head of Media and Strategic Media Planner/Buyer get time back