Combining the art and science of media buying to tell compelling stories
What is your role here at ROI MEDIA 360?
I am a Senior Media Buyer, working on the buying side for accounts like PrizePicks and Revolve. Beyond the tactical day-to-day work of managing campaigns and vetting new opportunities, I view my role as building authentic relationships between consumers and brands. It is bigger than just capitalism. We all use goods and services, so I use my position as a buyer to create something compelling and genuinely valuable for the audience rather than just pushing a product.
How did you first get into media buying? Did you always plan on an advertising career?
Like most people in this space, I completely fell into it! I had no idea media buying even existed. In college, my undergraduate degree was in kinesiology and exercise science. My parents wanted me to get a degree in a traditional health or law path, but I’ve always been deeply creative.
I went straight from undergrad into graduate school to pursue my passion for media, writing, poetry, and literacy, earning my master’s degree in journalism. When I finished grad school, I had a lot of education but no formal work experience, so nobody hired me! I moved back home to Houston, connected with a creative agency that placed creatives in semi-professional industries, and landed at Ad Results Media. They were hiring a radio buyer, and even though I didn’t even know what that meant at the time, the rest is history.
You started in radio during the mid-2010s. What was it like seeing podcasting evolve from a niche experiment into a dominant force?
When I started around late 2015 or 2016, radio was the main focus, and podcasting was seen as this futuristic medium where you had to be really cool to be into it. Back then, the idea of brands putting real money behind hosts freestyling a show in their living room was wild, especially coming from traditional radio with strict, rigid station guidelines. It really spoke to the evolution of audience trust and free speech. Over my seven years at Ad Results, I got to watch podcasting completely take over and dominate the media landscape.
You often say media buying is both an art and a science, but you lean heavily toward the art. What does that mean in practice?
Everyone loves to talk about data, but I like to look at what story the data is telling us about people and trends. Audiences aren’t monolithic. Different communities have different vernaculars and cultural contexts, so a standardized script isn’t going to resonate with everyone.
I use data to find underserved or underrepresented audiences, or to look for lookalike shows across different ethnicities, genders, and interests that haven’t been saturated with 30 competing advertisers. Whenever an account feels stale, I love coming in to ask: “What audiences are we overlooking? What can we do with the creative to make this fresh again?” The best ads don’t sound like ads—they sound like authentic experiences and personal testimonials.
What brought you to ROI MEDIA 360 after your time at larger agencies like Ad Results and Veritone?
After spending years in high-volume agency environments, I hit a massive point of burnout during the pandemic. I took a step back to figure out what I wanted, tried freelancing for a bit, and was eventually connected with Patrick Lennon.
The moment I talked to Patrick, the burnout completely eliminated itself. He had built a small, highly focused agency driven by authentic principles, with zero red tape, and no corporate hierarchy. Joining ROI MEDIA 360 allowed me to reconnect with colleagues I respected, like Tyler and Amanda, in an environment where we can bring our full, creative selves to the work. In big agencies, junior buyers often aren’t even allowed on client calls. Here, the inclusion is so refreshing because you are actually collaborating directly with clients as a true partner.
Outside of media buying, you have a deep passion for physical media and archival work. Tell us about that!
It’s funny because my day job is in digital media, but my personal passion is physical media and preserving artifacts. I DJ parties and events, I’ve published a book of poetry, and right now I am heavily into archival work preserving physical CDs.
In the streaming era on Spotify or Apple Music, you lose all the liner notes: you don’t see who produced, composed, or wrote the tracks. So I’ve been on a quest to build up my CD collection, scanning the liner booklets to preserve that history. I even host community listening sessions where people bring their CDs, vinyl, or cassettes to share stories about what that music meant to their lives. For me, everything comes back to story, connection, and community.