Royal Canin (Mars), London

Who are we?

At EssenceMediaom, we run both planning and buying assignments for Royal Canin following the pitch win in 2017, working closely with the global team based in Southern France. The strategy and global direction is set together with the global team, and local RC clients work with our colleagues in EssenceMediacom offices all over the world and our role is to coordinate this network. We are also working with RC European markets directly with our central team located in London as our Central to Local model. In our Central to Local assignment, we have both planning and buying remit.

Our account team is made up of 6 people, working across strategy, planning and implementation. Execution is run with the support of our Connected Execution teams mostly in search and social.

The Global EssenceMediacom team are an integral part of RC teams; global, local and central. We have a deep understanding of their business and regularly assist them and work together on their business objectives through the strategic framework we have created for them. We see ourselves as an extended part of their team just as much as an external agency partner.

Our ambition is to:

• Deliver gold-standard brilliant basics,
• Consistently look to raise the standard of our planning product,
• Help shape the best practices and re-apply them in different markets,
• Be the trusted partners to our clients.

Who are Royal Canin?

Founded in France in 1967 by a veterinarian, the Royal Canin Brand is a global leader in pet health nutrition. Unknown to many, Royal Canin belongs to Mars Inc. Mars is one of the biggest family-owned companies in the world, with more than $35 billion in annual sales. Their biggest business is pet care and Royal Canin is their biggest brand together with Pedigree. In an industry that continues to adapt to popular trends, RC has the mission to be known as the reference in health nutrition in pet care. It is a knowledge-based premium brand, that provides the most precise nutritional solution for cats’ and dogs’ health needs. The brand is a global brand that is present in more than 40 markets, reaching premium cat and dog owners as well as partnering in B2B with vets and breeders.

The role

This role is to work within a centralised European planning team across the Royal Canin brand in 14 markets.

The team’s main role is to develop appropriate media plans based on globally defined strategy for each of our markets and deliver that brief for deployment, supporting them in seeing that through to successful execution.

This is a key client facing position that requires strong relationships and communication skills as well as excellent organizational approach to infrastructure and managing a team with direct reports and also cross functional teams that work together in harmony.

Given Royal Canin are a digital only brand, we are looking for a communications planner who has a strong digital background, with experience across search, display and social in particular.

As the Senior Planner, you will be working with the team managing and implementing our digital transformation agenda, ensuring RC are getting the most value out of their digital business partnerships.

We also expect the candidate to have comms planning experience and strategic thinking capability: the candidate should be motivated by creating smart and forward thinking connected digital communications plans to help solve problems.

Success will require the ability to toggle between seeing the bigger picture – for strategy and guidelines development – and the forensic detail of multiple market campaign management.

The Senior Planner will work with the team to ensure that global strategic guidelines are appropriately applied in local plans, while ensuring local nuances are reflected across plans.

The Senior Planner will have direct client contact and is responsible for work coordination with the Planner and Account Executive in the team. The Senior Planner will report into the Global Manager and work closely with the entire team on the planning processes from brief to execution to reporting with local buying teams for the clients in each market.

3 best things about the job

1. You’ll be at the cutting edge of the most advanced, best in class digital planning in the media industry.
2. You’ll be working in a close knit friendly team who are there to support you at every stage of your career. We truly work as a team!
3. You’ll be constantly learning and challenged. No two days will ever be the same, and every day there an opportunity to improve on everything that has gone before.

Responsibilities of the role

Client Management

• Participate in calls and meetings with clients to understand their business, and discuss performance and future strategies
• Support the creation of rationale for a media plan, any optimisation decisions and their outcomes
• Support in delivery of post-campaign analysis and insights
• Deliver reconciliation information regarding media delivery

Media Planning

• Review brief and strategic guidance from the client and with the BD and Manager translate it into an implementational media plan
• Work with BD/Manager to research audience, media touchpoints and source of growth opportunities
• Interrogate historic performance data (where available) to determine or optimise the existing opportunity and key variables which might improve the effectiveness of our media plan.
• Create media plans via planning templates and manage booking sign off
• Ensure media plans contain direct links to KPIs detailed in the media strategy, with a “test and learn” strategy in place
• Monitor performance of live campaigns to identify key wins/challenges
• Carry out research on competitive analysis, audience profiling and market trends and key audience touchpoints
• Access key 1st/3rd party data to maximise insight and targeting strategy
• Work with media specialists to create media plan which contains core KPIs linked to business objectives, with a “test and learn” strategy in place
• Meet regularly with (offline and online) publishers and digital partners to discuss the brief and generate relevant and innovative ideas, understand available tactics, e.g. use of data, technology, creative and trading techniques to drive volume and efficiency
• Understand and apply key tech stack solutions to delivery maximum ROI and sales uplift
• Provide media specialists in market with their brief – budget, audience, phasing, targets and any other relevant information to support their detailed in-channel planning
• Manage output from media specialists – planning; reporting; insight/analysis
• Manage reconciliations of delivery across the plan from each media owner/media specialist

Execution

• Manage operational execution in appropriate systems e.g. ad server, brand safety
• Support in aggregation of output from media specialists – planning; reporting; insight/analysis
• Supply reconciliations of delivery across the plan from each media owner/media specialist which the Planners directly booked
•  

Reporting & Optimisation

• Work with the buying teams, and Media Executive to interpret performance data and decide on optimisation opportunities
• Generate key charts/slides which demonstrate performance, test learnings and next steps
• Ensure strong commentary that gives insight and action (not just saying what the result/trend is)
• Deliver regular reconciliation reports where appropriate
   

Team Management

• Work with and develop the Exec, making sure they understand the targets, media solutions and analysis techniques required to maximise effectiveness of our plans, and we are providing strong media delivery and financial reconciliation
• Manage the media specialists to ensure they are correctly briefed and supported in their scope of work
• Work with Finance team to reconcile and deliver efficient PO to invoicing process

What you will need

The successful candidate will be highly ambitious, collaborative and thought provoking. They will want to embrace the culture at EssenceMediacom and likewise on RC and strive to create exciting and business changing communications plans.
 

Summary of requirements;

• Experience in a media agency in a variety of roles
• Experience in client management and servicing skills
• Experience managing a media budget for clients
• It is essential that the candidate has a strong understanding of the digital landscape and can harness the opportunities for brand growth
• Excellent communications planning skills and knowledge across all media
• Excellent presentation skills (writing and delivery)
• Strong communication and ability to hold a room in all situations
• The ability to challenge clients in a structured and well thought through way
• Experience managing global media partners

Personal attributes

• Strong team player, shows relevant initiative and pro-activity.
• Positive and passionate approach that motivates the team & champions team successes
• Winning mentality, striving to exceed expectations
• Self-driven, passionate for new ideas and solutions
• Works effectively with other agency partners
• Effective and calm under pressure
• Ability to respect deadlines and project manage team, inter agency partners and clients against a clear plan
• Able to multitask and change priorities rapidly, flexible
• Numerate, analytical, and administratively competent with strong attention to detail
• Possess the skills to solve problems promptly. If facing challenges, raise them with line manager/team lead in an effective way
• Analytical capabilities – comfortable with data to provide strategic recommendations by using all available data
• Sends positive vibes across teams, works with can-do attitude
• Focussed on creating solutions rather than getting stuck on problems

About EssenceMediacom

We are a global communications agency leading with breakthrough thinking, building explosive growth for brands, and helping our clients see the bigger picture. Our daring global network of 10,000 influencers help our clients breach traditional boundaries in media, uncover novel ideas, and unleash exponential growth. EssenceMediacom challenges conventional thinking to build, propel, and supercharge our clients’ businesses at scale and lead our industry in critical areas such as diversity, equity, inclusion, and sustainability.  

EssenceMediacom understands that our people are tasked with big goals: building breakthrough growth for brands and leading with breakthrough thinking in our industry. Our people are at the heart of this work because their ideas will enable us to decode the intersections of people, content, and technology to bring our aspirations to life. Our success is down to our eclectic, diverse, and talented people. EssenceMediacom is a place for us to grow our careers and expand our horizons. EssenceMediacom is committed to building an agency culture that supports our people, puts diversity at the forefront of our operations, and creates opportunity for all. This collective culture will be our “new power” where ideas are freely exchanged, and collaboration is actively encouraged in a place where you can innovate in our hyperconnected world.  

*Although we cannot make guarantees, we welcome conversations about flexible working for all roles at EssenceMediacom London*