Build and scale our advertising monetization business from the ground up. You will own the full ad revenue stack—starting with programmatic demand management and evolving toward a balanced mix of programmatic and direct advertiser revenue over time.
This role sits on the Growth team alongside the Head of Commerce & Partner Growth. Commerce builds user engagement and transaction volume; you turn that audience and demand into advertising revenue. The path runs programmatic-first: establish yield infrastructure, prove the audience’s commercial value, and use that foundation to build direct CPG and retail advertiser relationships as the platform scales.
How We Think About Ad Revenue
We expect the ad business to follow a deliberate build sequence:
- Programmatic first (Year 1 priority): Stand up demand infrastructure, optimize yield, and establish private marketplace relationships with retail media networks. Programmatic will drive the majority of ad revenue in the near term—targeting a roughly 70/30 programmatic-to-direct mix at steady state.
- Direct advertiser development (Year 2+ growth motion): As audience scale and measurement story mature, layer in direct CPG and retailer partnerships that command premium CPMs and provide more control over ad experience and brand safety.
You will architect both layers—but your primary job in year one is getting the programmatic foundation right.
What You Own
- Total ad revenue across programmatic and direct channels.
- Demand infrastructure: SSP relationships, floor pricing strategy, inventory packaging, and private marketplace deal execution.
- Programmatic partner evaluation, onboarding, and optimization.
- Direct advertiser pipeline development and deal execution with CPG brands and retailers (growing motion).
- Advertiser-facing measurement, reporting, and ROI narrative.
- Ad quality, brand safety, and compliance with state and federal regulations.
Core Responsibilities
Programmatic Monetization & Demand Management (Primary)
- Own the programmatic revenue stack—SSP selection, floor pricing, header bidding strategy, and demand waterfall optimization.
- Build and manage private marketplace (PMP) deals with retail media networks (e.g., Walmart Connect, Kroger Precision Marketing, Instacart Ads) and brand-safe DSP partners.
- Continuously evaluate and onboard demand partners to diversify revenue sources and improve CPMs.
- Monitor and improve fill rates, eCPMs, and overall yield across all inventory.
- Own ad quality and brand safety standards—define what is and is not appropriate to serve to this audience.
Direct Advertiser Development (Growing Motion)
- Develop relationships with CPG brand teams and retail advertisers who want access to the SNAP/EBT audience.
- Build the go-to-market materials: audience data story, measurement methodology, case studies, and media kit.
- Sell, negotiate, and close direct IO deals and sponsored placements as the direct pipeline matures.
- Drive advertiser retention through clear, measurable ROI reporting.
Revenue Architecture & Strategy
- Own revenue targets, forecasting, and pipeline reporting across both channels.
- Define inventory strategy and ad product roadmap in partnership with Product.
- Optimize the demand mix over time—targeting a 70/30 programmatic-to-direct steady state.
Cross-Functional Alignment
- Partner with Commerce to align on which supply and demand signals should be monetized and how.
- Work with Product and Data to improve targeting, measurement, and reporting capabilities.
Qualifications
Required
- 8–10+ years in programmatic media, publisher monetization, or ad sales—with a supply-side or publisher-facing orientation.
- Demonstrated track record managing SSP relationships, floor pricing strategy, inventory packaging, and demand waterfall optimization.
- Experience structuring and executing private marketplace (PMP) deals with DSPs and retail media networks.
- Strong commercial instincts with the ability to build and close direct advertiser relationships.
- Deep fluency in ad tech fundamentals: CPMs, fill rates, eCPM, header bidding, PMPs, programmatic direct, and measurement.
Preferred
- Experience at a supply-side platform (SSP), publisher monetization team, or ad-supported platform that serves a value-oriented or price-sensitive audience.
- Existing relationships with retail media networks (Walmart Connect, Kroger Precision Marketing, Instacart Ads, or similar).
- Background in CPG marketing, shopper marketing, or trade marketing—or experience selling into those budget owners.
- Familiarity with benefits, healthcare, or government-adjacent audiences.
- Experience building media monetization capabilities in an earlier-stage or scaling environment.
What We Value
- A builder’s mentality—you thrive creating something from the ground up, not just managing what exists.
- Supply-side instincts—you think like a publisher optimizing yield, not just a buyer placing spend.
- Audience judgment—you understand that this is a low-income, often vulnerable population and bring genuine care to what gets served in our inventory. A bad actor advertiser is a reputational and regulatory risk, and you treat it that way.
- Revenue-first thinking paired with a user-centric approach to ad experience.
- Comfort navigating ambiguity and moving fast in a growing organization.
- Collaborative leadership that bridges sales, product, and data teams.