Three Sales Planners behind Disney Advertising’s Programmatic Team
Meet three sales planners from the Programmatic team! Learn all about their experiences working for Disney Advertising and how they get to contribute to Disney’s iconic brands and storytelling.
Avery, Programmatic Sales Planner (She/Her)
1. What made you want to join Disney Advertising and the Programmatic team?
“What drew me to programmatic, specifically for Disney Advertising, is that programmatic is the future of automated media buying, and Disney is growing and adapting to reflect that. Working in Disney Advertising and on the Programmatic team comes with a lot of self-ownership and room to grow, both personally and professionally, which is something I’ve really valued over my past year on the team.”
2. How did you get your start with Disney? How has your leadership assisted with your professional development?
“I was working in ad operations at another company when a Disney recruiter reached out on LinkedIn. That’s how I got my start! From the beginning, my leader has always supported my growth and encouraged me to learn about other departments. She’s gone above and beyond to recommend trainings, and she has invited guest speakers, from within the Programmatic team and other teams, to our meetings. It’s motivating to know that my leaders and team encourage growth and present opportunities to do so.”
3. What is your favorite programmatic project you’ve worked on?
“Recently I was tasked with building out six new campaigns from scratch with a relatively quick due date, multiple layers of targeting, and all during the end of quarter, an extremely busy time of the year. Communication played a huge role here, as I worked with the Data team to reach the advertiser’s desired audience and the Yield team to accurately forecast scale. Internally, we’re fortunate to have so many resources at our fingertips that easily allow us to learn about Disney’s newest offerings. It’s so seamless to have access to libraries of data and research that highlight how we can best match what the client is looking for.”
Nick, Programmatic Sales Planner (He/Him)
1. Tell me about your role and your day-to-day responsibilities!
“My day-to-day responsibilities as a programmatic sales planner include collaborating with many teams here at Disney. Once our sales team receives a request for proposal, my role is to create a custom media plan based on the client’s wants and needs. Being a programmatic planner, I work brand-agnostically. This means that I work on all Disney properties, such as Hulu, Disney+, and ESPN. To do this, I work closely with teams like Ad Operations, Inventory, Billing, Data Activation, and all the other necessary teams that are needed to put together a plan for the client. From there, I work with our clients to ensure that all of their deals are fully optimized at all times, as well as make all updates and adjustments to all of our orders.”
2. How do you collaborate with other departments and teams to fulfill client requests?
“Being brand agnostic affords us the luxury of being able to offer all our properties here at Disney; however, it also means that we need to collaborate with a number of teams in order to fulfill our clients’ requests. It is crucial for us to reach out and confirm the details of our deals with the appropriate team before communicating the most accurate information to clients. Communicating with these teams before going back to the client ensures that we are sharing the most accurate information and the best possible set-up for what their goals are.”
3. What advice would you give to someone looking to start a career with Disney Advertising?
“The best advice that I would give to someone looking to start a career with Disney Advertising would be to stay informed on advertising news and trends, as well as network as much as possible. People at Disney are always very open to speaking with new people who are interested in their space. Staying up-to-date on the most recent news and trends will only make you stand out more when starting those relationships!”
Liv, Programmatic Sales Planner (She/Her)
1. What made you want to join Disney Advertising and the Programmatic team?
“Being part of a company that is synonymous with excellence and innovation made Disney the ideal choice for me. The opportunity to work on Disney’s iconic brands in an innovative field like programmatic appealed to my ambitions and curiosities! Additionally, working for Disney affords some pretty cool opportunities and perks! Regularly, there are open calls for staffers in NYC to attend live tapings of our daytime programs like LIVE With Kelly & Mark, The View, and Tamron Hall.”
2. How did you get your start with Disney? How has your leadership assisted with your professional development?
“I joined Disney in 2021 as an Ad Operations Account Manager for linear advertising on broadcast television. With every leader I’ve ever had at Disney, I’ve always made sure to clearly communicate my personal goals and progress. If you want to be more challenged, ask for stretch projects or shadowing opportunities to explore areas of interest.”
3. What is your favorite programmatic project you’ve worked on?
“Currently, I’m consulting with the Product, Operations, and Engineering teams as the Programmatic Planning subject matter expert selected to test and troubleshoot new Hulu and Disney+ ad products in a sandbox environment. The ongoing special assignment has allowed me to contribute to senior initiatives and work more closely with the other teams! It has been a highly insightful experience as I’ve been able to learn more about our back-end product design and ad tech.”
Interested in learning more about opportunities with Disney Advertising? Visit Disney Careers to view open roles and apply today!
