Carter Baker Adventures and Portfolio

Hi, my name is Carter.

I am

Hi, my name is Carter.

I am

I am a digital advertising expert residing in Los Angeles, CA. Professionally (and personally), I seek to connect people with ideas, constantly exploring the synthesis between culture and the ever-changing media landscape.

Work Experience

EssenceMediacom | January 2022 to December 2022

 

Director, Media Activation | January 2023 – Present

Associate Director, Media Activation  | January 2022 – December 2022

Los Angeles, CA

Universal Pictures programmatic lead and digital center of excellence focused on progressing overall digital strategy, driving digital transformation and re-scaling operations.

  • Leads a growing team of 7, managing $70MM+ annual budgets across streaming, video, display, and YouTube
  • Cultivates a client/agency taskforce centered on digital evolution and activation strategies Focuses: audience approach & overlap, measurement & verification, inventory optimization & quality, linear and digital relationships, privacy & cookieless, and tech stack

Results:

  • Doubled programmatic investment and executions YoY through continued education and successful initiatives
  • Extended films’ reach, averaging 30%+ incremental uniques by reinvesting dollars through wholistic media management and consolidation
  • Established processes and best practices across portfolio to ensure quality execution, future proofing, and to support the increased scale of operations
  • Spearheaded CTV/OTT buying initiatives driving over 35% incremental reach including key partnerships with digital upfronts and linear incrementality

the many | July 2019 to Present

 

Associate Director, Digital Media | March 2021 – Present

Media Supervisor, Programmatic and Social  | April 2019 – Feb 2021

Santa Monica, CA

Brought on to kick start the in-house digital marketing & activation practice.

  • Verticals: CPG, Health/Healthtech, Financial Services, eComm
  • Created a high functioning, results-oriented team from the ground-up across digital marketing needs including social, programmatic, search, analytics, and data privacy
  • Introduced processes and strategic approaches that established consistency and strong performance across the team and portfolio
  • Established agency relationships with digital partners across various disciplines
  • Grew FinServ client investment by over 118% while driving down incremental acquisition by 86%
  • Successfully launched first DTC efforts for Healthtech company with $3MM+ quarterly investment
  • Minimized impact and consulted on organization-wide landscape changes included CCPA and iOS14.5+
  • Focuses: DR, Brand Awareness, Category Awareness, SoV Growth

rpa | January 2017 to July 2019

Senior Digital Media Specialist | Santa Monica, CA | April 2019 – Present

Digital Media Specialist | Santa Monica, CA | January 2018 – March 2019

  • Supervise Digital Media team of 4 on self-serve channels including 58 accounts across Social, Programmatic, and YouTube for 38 clients for the Honda and Acura Dealership Associations
  • Collaborate cross-functionally with internal Media Planning, Account and AdOps teams as well as communicated externally with clients regarding recommendations, reporting, ad-hoc requests, education, and overall project management
  • Implemented new team structure and more clearly defined roles and responsibilities, all while ensuring attainment of individual and overall team success
  • Directly impacted growth of self-serve media budgets including 705% increase in social and 544% in YouTube over a two-year period
  • Spearheaded automation of tools and processes as it relates to reporting, daily/weekly pacing, media optimizations, and billing/reconciliation
  • Coordinated a revamped tag strategy leveraging non-traditional deployment of pixels resulting in a 68% improvement in CPA and cut reporting time in half

Digital Marketing Coordinator |Santa Monica, CA | January 2017 – December 2017

  • Activated and supported self-serve platforms including Facebook, Google Ads (YouTube, Display, Search), DPSs (TheTradeDesk, DV360), and Twitter with tests in Snapchat and Pinterest
  • Drove strong direct-resonse, CPA performance in the auto vertical and brand awareness in the gas vertical
  • Introduced in-house programmatic display to Honda and Acura Dealership Association launching in 21 markets
  • Orchestrated restructuring of audience targeting and objectives across multiple channels garnering 75% CPA improvement in Facebook campaigns, doubling VCRs on YouTube efforts, and advancing display efforts to the top performing tactic in the majority of markets
  • Coordinated beta-tests with agency partners including location-based targeting and measurement tests through Facebook and programmatic display vendors
  • Redesigned billing, pacing, trafficking and reporting processes reducing required workload by 10X
  • Prepared weekly, monthly and quarterly reporting numbers and analysis, POVs and other requests for external and internal distribution
  • Conducted intern training and management of day-to-day workload
  • Clients Experience: Honda and Acura Dealership Associations, AHM, ARCO

 

The Richards Group | June 2016 to August 2016

Brand Media Planning Intern |Dallas, TX

  • Engaged in weekly digital reporting and optimization for Ruth’s Chris as well as composing larger monthly and quarterly reports for client review
  • Developed media proposals for GameStop and negotiated unique offerings with digital vendors
  • Generated recommendations and mediated with print publishers across Richards Group clients – Other clients: SMU, National Vision, Scottish Rite Hospital, Andersen Windows, Sea Island Hotel, Biltmore

Broad Street Co. | January 2016 to May 2016

Digital Media Intern | Austin, TX

  • Managed digital campaigns for Whole Foods, CORT furniture, Euphoria Music Festival and SharpeVision
  • Conducted Google Search and AdWords campaign for Euphoria Music Festival garnering over 1000% return on ad spend

Saatchi & Saatchi X | May 2015 to August 2015

Digital Media Intern | Fayetteville, AR

  • Conducted research and developed digital strategies for large CPG brand campaigns
  • Assisted with the production and buying of digital placements from client to vendor
  • Clients: Proctor & Gamble, Coca-Cola, Hershey’s, Walmart & Sam’s Club

Skills & Software

  • Programmatic: TheTradeDesk, Google DV360, Amazon DSP / Advertising Platform Google Ads (Search, Display, YouTube)
  • Social: Meta (Facebook) and X (Twitter), with exposure to Pinterest, Linkedin, TikTok and Snapchat
  • Supporting Platforms: Google Campaign Manager, Prisma, IAS, MOAT, WhiteOps, Google Tag Manager, BigQuery, Google Analytics
  • Software: Google Ads Editor, Microsoft Office (Excel, SharePoint, Word, PowerPoint, Outlook), Google Suite, Adobe Creative Suite (Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Premiere, Lightroom)
  • Research Tools: MRI, Nielsons, Simmons, SRDS, Stradegy
  • Other: Coding: (HTML, CSS, PHP minor SQL), Analytics, Tracking Tags, Pixel Strategy

Education

The University of Texas at Austin, 2016

  • B.S. Advertising | TexasMedia
  • B.S. Radio / TV / Film
  • Business Foundations Certificate
  • UT3D Certificate