Paid Search Manager

Purpose: We’re looking for an analytical, results-driven Paid Search Manager with deep experience in performance marketing and high-value lead generation. This person will own paid search strategy, execution, and performance across multiple brands and DMAs; balancing hands-on account management with oversight of two external paid search agencies.

The ideal candidate understands not only how to optimize the accounts, but how those metrics ladder up to meaningful business outcomes (qualified intakes but ultimately signed clients). Experience with Local Services Ads (LSA) is required, along with a strong understanding of how search, LSA, and paid social interplay within a multi-channel performance ecosystem.

This is a full-time, in-person position in our Chicago office working a hybrid schedule of 3 days per week in the office and 2 days remote per week.  The compensation for the position, depending on experience, is an annual base salary of $90,000 to $120,000 per year, plus a year-end discretionary bonus and benefits. 

Key Responsibilities: 

• Strategy & Execution
  
  
• Own end-to-end paid search strategy across Google Ads, LSAs and Bing Ads for multiple brands and markets
  
  
• Build, monitor, and optimize campaigns to achieve lead volume, cost-per-lead, and signed-case efficiency goals
  
  
• Leverage keyword, audience, and creative testing frameworks to improve quality and conversion performance
  
  
• Develop and maintain robust negative keyword lists and segmentation strategies across brands
  
  
• Manage and optimize Local Services Ads (LSAs) — including profile health, dispute management, and budget pacing
  
  
• Agency Management
  
  
• Oversee two paid search agencies; hold them accountable to performance goals, testing cadence, and spend efficiency
  
  
• Audit campaigns regularly to ensure strategic alignment and technical excellence (bidding, ad copy, extensions, tracking)
  
  
• Facilitate weekly performance reviews and quarterly business reviews with agency partners
  
  
• Consolidate insights across agencies into unified dashboards and performance reports
  
  
• Cross-Channel & Analytics Integration
  
  
• Collaborate with analytics, BI, and marketing teams to align attribution, tracking, and offline conversion imports
  
  
• Partner with the creative team to develop ad copy and landing page variants optimized for lead quality
  
  
• Contribute to budgeting, forecasting, and media-mix planning across DMAs and practice areas
  
  
• Identify and implement automation or AI-driven bidding solutions that improve performance consistency

Qualifications:

• 5+ years of experience in Paid Search or Performance Marketing (agency or in-house)
  
  
• Proven success managing high-value lead gen campaigns (legal, financial, healthcare, or other high-CPL verticals preferred)
  
  
• Expert-level proficiency in Google Ads, Bing Ads, and Local Services Ads
  
  
• Deep familiarity with tracking, attribution, and CRM integrations (GA4, CallRail, Salesforce, HubSpot, or similar)
  
  
• Strong analytical and Excel/Sheets skills; experience with Sigma, Looker, or other BI tools a plus
  
  
• Exceptional communication and vendor-management skills
  
  
• Google Ads and/or Bing Ads certifications strongly preferred
  
  

What Success in the Role Looks Like:

• Continuous improvement in cost-per-lead and signed-client efficiency
  
  
• Clear accountability and transparency in agency performance
  
  
• Well-documented testing and optimization roadmap with measurable outcomes
  
  
• Integration of offline and downstream metrics into paid search optimization