UK

United Kingdom · Marketing · Mid-Level (2-5 years)

Performance Marketing Executive

Here is the whole job, in plain words. What it is, what you decide, how you're judged, how people get here and where they go next. Then the part no course gives you: twelve AI tutors who learn your work.

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As a Performance Marketing Executive, a good place to start on Prompt Engineering & LLM Integration is Using and Checking AI Tools in Daily Work, a free Future Fluency module at Level 3. You'd practise using everyday AI tools on real tasks from your own week, and checking what they produce before you use it.

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One email: what AI is changing in this job, the new skills it asks for, where it leads, and where to start free. With a link back here. Nothing else follows unless you confirm your address.

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  • Experience bandMid-Level (2-5 years)
  • Direct reportsNo direct reports
  • Reports toSenior Performance Marketing Executive or Performance Marketing Manager
  • UK framework levelUsually a coordinator, or early in a professional job

Also advertised as Paid Media Specialist · Digital Acquisition Executive · Marketing Executive (Paid Media)

Built on 43,079 real UK job descriptions we analysed · grounded in what real qualifications cover

Two short quizzes about you

1From this job to a course

The qualifications matched to this job

OCNLR Level 4 Diploma in Digital Marketing OCN London · Level 4 · covers 4 of 11 standards
OCNLR Level 4 Certificate in Digital Marketing OCN London · Level 4 · covers 2 of 11 standards
ATHE Level 4 Extended Diploma in Digital Marketing ATHE Ltd · Level 4 · covers 2 of 11 standards
City & Guilds Level 3 Diploma in Digital Marketing City and Guilds of London Institute · Level 3 · covers 2 of 11 standards
Pearson BTEC Level 4 Higher National Certificate in Marketing Management for England Pearson Education Ltd · Level 4 · covers 1 of 11 standards
OCNLR Level 4 Award in Digital Analytics OCN London · Level 4 · covers 1 of 11 standards

Matched from the standards this job is measured against: a suggestion, not an official ruling.

The units you would start with

Digital Analytics OCNLR Level 4 Diploma in Digital Marketing
Digital Business, Marketing Metrics and Analytics ATHE Level 4 Extended Diploma in Digital Marketing
Digital marketing metrics and analytics City & Guilds Level 3 Diploma in Digital Marketing
Managing Marketing and Digital Communications Pearson BTEC Level 4 Higher National Certificate in Marketing Management for England

The future skills this job leans on

AI Fluency working with AI as a thinking partner
Data Fluency turning numbers into a decision
Systems Fluency seeing the whole picture
Your Plan Illustration

Built for Performance Marketing Executive

4 units that map to this job, from the qualifications that cover it.

  1. Digital Analytics OCN London · covers 4 of 11 standards Level 4
  2. Digital Business, Marketing Metrics and Analytics ATHE Ltd · covers 2 of 11 standards Level 4
  3. Digital marketing metrics and analytics City and Guilds of London Institute · covers 2 of 11 standards Level 3
  4. Managing Marketing and Digital Communications Pearson Education Ltd · covers 1 of 11 standards Level 4
These are the real units behind this job, in the order they rank for it. Nothing here is marked done, because this plan has not been started by anyone yet. Yours would fill in as you go.

2AI and this work

Will AI change your work as a Performance Marketing Executive?

Nobody can say exactly how. Here is what this job is being asked for next, and where to start.

The new skills this role is being asked for

  • Prompt Engineering & LLM Integration
  • Advanced Data Storytelling
Why each one is rising

The future skills this job leans on

We'll only ever tell you what we can actually back up. No hype, no scare tactics.

What happens when you start

Next, a free account. We build your Performance Marketing Executive plan as you set up, starting with the free AI Fluency module. No card.

Your first Future Fluency module is free. After that, your AI tutor is £70 a month.

Ready to pay? Subscribe for £70 a month

Keep this read. One email with what AI is changing in this job, the new skills it asks for and where to start free. Nothing else follows unless you confirm your address.

3What this role really is

A performance marketing executive runs paid campaigns, targets the right audiences, and tracks budgets against results. The work involves managing specific campaigns, checking ad spend against customer numbers and revenue, and adjusting what does not work. It means taking ownership of parts of a digital budget and learning what drives growth.

4What you'd actually use

The tools this job runs on, and how well you'd need to know each one.

Google Ads Intermediate

Building and optimising Search, Display, and Shopping campaigns from templates. Managing daily budgets, performing keyword research, and pulling standard performance reports. You'll be in here daily.

Meta Ads (Facebook/Instagram) Intermediate

Setting up and optimising campaigns in Ads Manager. Defining core audiences, implementing the Meta Pixel, and monitoring daily ad performance across Facebook and Instagram.

Google Analytics 4 (GA4) Basic

Navigating the interface to find core metrics (users, sessions, conversions), using standard reports, and understanding event-based tracking concepts to validate campaign performance.

Google Tag Manager (GTM) Basic

Implementing pre-written tags (like Google/Meta pixels) into containers, understanding triggers and variables, and using preview mode for basic debugging of tracking issues.

Looker Studio (formerly Google Data Studio) Intermediate

Connecting standard data sources (GA4, Google Ads) and building dashboards from templates. Applying filters and creating basic charts to visualise performance for reporting.

Asana / Monday.com Intermediate

Managing your personal tasks, updating project statuses, and collaborating within existing project boards and timelines for campaign launches and optimisations.

5What you get to decide, and how that grows

Power in a job isn't your title. It's what you're allowed to decide. Here's how it grows as you move up.

The choiceComing in Where you are nowThe step above
Campaign Budget Allocation (within channel) Propose adjustments to supervisor for approval. Adjust daily/weekly budgets within a pre-approved monthly channel budget (e.g., £5K-£10K). Escalate if needing to move budget between channels. Approve budget shifts of up to £20K between campaigns/ad groups within a channel. Recommend cross-channel reallocations to Manager.
Ad Creative/Copy Changes Suggest changes to supervisor based on performance data. Independently launch A/B tests for new ad copy and creative. Deprioritise underperforming ads. Consult manager for major creative overhauls. Approve new creative concepts and copy for testing. Define testing frameworks and hypotheses for the team.
Audience Targeting Adjustments Suggest new audience segments or exclusions to supervisor. Independently refine audience targeting (e.g., adding exclusions, creating new lookalikes) within existing campaign structures. Escalate for entirely new audience strategies. Define and approve new audience segmentation strategies across multiple campaigns and channels.
Troubleshooting Tracking Issues Report suspected tracking issues to supervisor and follow instructions. Independently diagnose and fix common tracking issues (e.g., incorrect UTMs, basic GTM tag firing problems). Escalate complex issues to Analytics or Dev team. Lead the investigation and resolution of complex tracking issues, coordinating with multiple teams and external vendors.

6How you'll be judged

The scoreboard, and what is not on it. The hard targets, how often each is actually looked at, and the quiet signals that never reach a dashboard.

Cost Per Acquisition (CPA)
The average cost to acquire a new customer or a qualified lead through your campaigns.
Target · Maintain CPA within 5% of target (£100-£150, depending on product)

If your target CPA is £120, consistently hitting £123-£126 means you're doing well. If it jumps to £150, we'll need to figure out why, quickly.

Return on Ad Spend (ROAS)
The revenue generated for every pound spent on advertising. Super important for e-commerce or direct sales.
Target · Achieve a minimum ROAS of 3:1 for your assigned campaigns

Spending £10,000 and generating £30,000 in revenue means a 3:1 ROAS. If you hit 3.5:1, you're smashing it. Below 2.5:1, we've got a problem.

Conversion Rate (CVR)
The percentage of website visitors or ad clicks that complete a desired action (e.g., purchase, sign-up).
Target · Improve or maintain CVR by 0.5-1% month-over-month for key landing pages

If a landing page converts at 2.5%, getting it to 3% through your optimisations is a solid win. A drop to 2% means something's gone wrong with the ad or the page.

Campaign Setup Accuracy
How accurately campaigns are set up, including budgets, targeting, ad copy, and tracking parameters.
Target · Maintain a 99% accuracy rate on all campaign setups and changes

No broken UTMs, no daily budgets accidentally set to £10,000 instead of £100, no ads running to the wrong audience. Catching these before they go live is key.

Proactive Optimisation & Issue Identification
You're not just reporting numbers; you're digging into them, spotting trends, and suggesting changes before your manager asks. This means catching problems early and finding opportunities.
  • You'll bring solutions to your manager, not just problems. You'll flag unusual performance dips (or spikes!) and have a hypothesis ready. You'll be testing new ad copy or audiences without being prompted.
Campaign Documentation & Organisation
Keeping your campaigns, tests, and results clearly documented so anyone can understand what's happening, even if you're on holiday. This includes clear naming conventions and notes.
  • Your campaigns in Google Ads and Meta Ads Manager will be tidy and easy to navigate. Your weekly reports will be well-structured. Someone else can pick up your work and understand the logic quickly.
Effective Stakeholder Communication
Translating complex performance data into clear, actionable insights for non-marketing people. This means explaining 'why' something happened and 'what' we're going to do about it, without jargon.
  • Your weekly updates for the wider team will be easy to understand. When Product asks why a page isn't converting, you'll have data-backed answers and suggestions. You'll get fewer follow-up questions because your initial explanation was so clear.

7Would you like it

Both sides. What people enjoy, and what grinds them down.

What people enjoy
Seeing Direct Impact

You'll get a real kick out of seeing your campaign changes directly translate into more conversions or a better ROAS in your daily dashboards.

You tweak an ad's headline, and the next day, the CTR jumps by 0.5% – that immediate feedback is what gets you going.

Solving Puzzles with Data

You love digging into spreadsheets and platform data, trying to figure out why a campaign's performance changed, or how to squeeze out a few more percentage points of efficiency.

When a campaign's CPA starts to creep up, you're excited to dive into audience segments, bid strategies, and creative variations to diagnose and fix the problem.

Continuous Learning & Mastery

The ever-changing nature of paid media platforms means there's always something new to learn and master. You'll enjoy keeping up with the latest features and strategies.

You're keen to experiment with a new Meta Ads feature or a different Google Ads bidding strategy, even if it means reading up on it in your own time.

What frustrates people
  • The Attribution War: You'll constantly be defending your channel's value against sales reps who claim 'the client was already talking to me' or brand marketers who attribute success to a billboard, while you're stuck with last-click data.
  • Sudden Platform Algorithm Shifts: Waking up to find Google or Meta has changed their algorithm without warning, making your perfectly tuned campaigns obsolete overnight and forcing you to relearn what works.
  • "Just make it go viral" Feedback: Receiving subjective creative feedback from senior stakeholders ('I don't like that blue') that completely ignores A/B test data showing that specific blue converts 15% better.
  • The Tracking Black Hole: A website update from the dev team breaks your GTM container or pixel, and you spend two frantic days with zero conversion data trying to prove it's not your fault.
  • Budget Whiplash: Having your budget approved, launching campaigns, and then having it suddenly cut mid-month because another department overspent, destroying your momentum and data acquisition.
  • Explaining Statistical Significance: Trying to convince a manager not to make a major strategic decision based on a two-day A/B test with only 100 visitors and a 52/48 split.
  • The 'Magic Bullet' Expectation: Being treated like a vending machine where execs expect to put £1 in and get £5 out instantly, without any appreciation for the testing, learning, and optimisation required.
What this role does not give you
  • A perfectly predictable day-to-day routine – expect urgent requests and platform changes to mess up your plans regularly.
  • Complete creative freedom – your ads need to convert, even if they're not 'award-winning' in the traditional sense.
  • A quiet, isolated work environment – you'll be collaborating and communicating constantly, both internally and with platforms.

8Who you work with

Your work directly influences how many new customers we bring in and how much it costs us to get them. Get it right, and we hit our growth targets profitably. Get it wrong, and we're just burning cash. You're a key player in making sure our marketing budget is spent wisely and effectively, supporting the overall business growth strategy.

Inside the business
  • Your Manager (Senior Performance Marketing Executive/Manager)
  • Product Marketing team (for understanding new features and messaging)
  • Sales team (to understand lead quality and conversion rates)
  • Content team (for ad copy and creative assets)
  • Analytics team (for data validation and deeper insights)
Outside the business
  • Google & Meta account managers (for platform support and insights)
  • Ad creative agencies (if we use them, for asset delivery)
  • Third-party tool providers (e.g., for A/B testing or competitive analysis)

9What you need before you start

Not a wish list. The things you would be expected to already have.

  • At least 2 years of hands-on experience managing paid media campaigns (Google Ads, Meta Ads) in a commercial setting.
  • Demonstrable experience with campaign setup, daily optimisation, and performance reporting.
  • A solid understanding of digital marketing metrics (CPA, ROAS, CTR, CVR).
  • Experience with Google Analytics (ideally GA4) and Google Tag Manager for basic tracking and reporting.
  • Ability to work independently on assigned tasks and manage your own workload effectively.
  • A genuine curiosity for data and a desire to understand 'why' things happen in campaigns.

10What to practise next

Where the job is going, and what to do about it starting this week.

Google Ads & Meta Ads (Advanced Bidding & Automation)

Platforms are constantly rolling out more sophisticated bidding strategies (e.g., Performance Max, tROAS) and automation features. To stay competitive, you'll need to move beyond basic manual bids and understand how to effectively use and troubleshoot these advanced tools.

Performance Max campaign setup and optimisation · Advanced bidding strategies (tCPA, tROAS, Value-Based Bidding) · Custom scripts for automation · Conversions API (CAPI) implementation and troubleshooting

  • This week: Read up on Google's Performance Max campaigns. Understand how they work and what inputs they need.
  • This month: Experiment with a tROAS bidding strategy on a smaller campaign, carefully monitoring its performance.
  • Month 2: Look into basic Google Ads scripts. Try to find a simple script to automate a daily report or a bid adjustment.
  • Month 3: Research Meta's Conversions API. Understand why it's important and how it differs from pixel tracking.

Quick win: Set up a Google Ads automated rule today to pause ads with zero conversions after 7 days. Simple, but effective.

Google Analytics 4 & GTM (Custom Event Tracking)

As businesses demand deeper insights, you'll need to move beyond standard GA4 reports. Custom event tracking via GTM is crucial for understanding specific user behaviours that drive conversions and for feeding better data into your ad platforms.

Data Layer implementation and best practices · Custom event creation and configuration in GTM · GA4 custom explorations and funnels · Debugging complex tracking issues

  • This week: Spend an hour in GA4's 'Explorations' section. Try to build a simple funnel report for a key conversion.
  • This month: Identify one specific user action on our website that isn't currently tracked. Research how to set up a custom event for it in GTM.
  • Month 2: Work with the Analytics team (or your manager) to implement one new custom event via GTM and verify it's firing correctly in GA4.
  • Month 3: Practice debugging tracking issues using GTM's preview mode and the GA4 DebugView.

Quick win: Set up a custom event in GTM to track clicks on a key call-to-action button that isn't currently being measured.

11Staying current once you are in

What people here do to keep up
  • Regularly reading industry blogs and publications (e.g., Search Engine Land, Marketing Land, Adweek) to stay on top of platform changes and new strategies.
  • Attending relevant webinars or online courses on advanced paid media techniques, data analysis, or CRO.
  • Participating in online communities or forums dedicated to performance marketing to learn from peers and share insights.
  • Experimenting with new features or beta programmes offered by Google or Meta (if available and approved).

12The rising capability

The rising capability

Zavmo analysis

What's rising in its place

This is where the work is heading, and the higher pay with it. Get fluent here and the shift stops being a threat and starts being your edge.

Prompt Engineering & LLM Integration

Honestly, competitors are already using tools like ChatGPT and Jasper to draft dozens of ad copy variations in minutes, which used to take hours. Analysts who figure this out will outproduce their peers significantly. It's not just a 'nice to have' anymore; it's becoming essential for efficiency.

  • Context windows and token limits
  • Temperature settings for different tasks
  • Output validation and hallucination detection
  • Prompt chaining for complex analysis

Advanced Data Storytelling

As data becomes more complex and AI handles more of the raw analysis, your value shifts to interpretation and communication. Being able to tell a compelling, actionable story with data for non-technical stakeholders is becoming even more critical than just presenting numbers.

  • Audience-centric reporting
  • Narrative structure for insights
  • Visualisation best practices
  • Actionable recommendations

13What you’ll use

What you’ll use

Skills this role draws on

Technical

  • Attribution Modelling (Basic Understanding)
  • Conversion Rate Optimisation (CRO) (Application)
  • Full-Funnel Campaign Architecture (Understanding)
  • Audience Segmentation & Management
  • Unit Economics Analysis (Basic Calculation)

14The pathway

The pathway

How you actually get there, here

How you become one varies far more by country than what one does. This is the UK route. Most people take one of these ways in; the right one depends on where you're starting from.

  1. 1

    Associate Performance Marketing Executive (L1)

    1-2 years

    Skills to master

    • Mastering campaign setup accuracy, basic daily optimisations, and reliable reporting. Understanding core metrics and platform interfaces.

    You're ready to move on when

    • Consistently delivering accurate campaign setups and reports with minimal supervision.
    • Proactively identifying minor performance issues and suggesting basic fixes.
    • Demonstrating a solid grasp of Google Ads and Meta Ads fundamentals.
  2. 2

    Digital Marketing Assistant / Coordinator

    2-3 years

    Skills to master

    • Broader digital marketing knowledge (SEO, email, content), but with a specific focus on gaining hands-on paid media experience. Learning how paid channels fit into the wider marketing mix.

    You're ready to move on when

    • Successfully managing small-scale paid campaigns or specific ad groups independently.
    • Showing a strong analytical mindset and a knack for optimising ad performance.
    • Expressing a clear desire to specialise in performance marketing.
  3. 3

    Marketing Analyst (with paid media focus)

    2-4 years

    Skills to master

    • Deepening analytical skills, particularly in data manipulation and interpretation. Understanding how to connect raw data to business outcomes and identify actionable insights for paid media.

    You're ready to move on when

    • Proficiency in extracting and analysing data from ad platforms and GA4.
    • Ability to identify trends and provide data-backed recommendations for campaign improvements.
    • A strong desire to move into a more hands-on campaign management role.

15Where this role leads

The long view: This work can lead into a deeper technical specialism in paid channels, or into managing a team and a full marketing budget.

The ten Future Fluencies

Zavmo analysis

The credential is what you can do today. These are what keep you valuable.

A qualification proves you can do the job as it's defined today. These ten are what decide whether you're still the obvious person for it in five years. They're the capabilities employers are now writing into senior roles faster than people are learning them. Zavmo weaves them through whatever you study, so you come out with both: the credential and the fluency.

The highlighted ones are the Fluencies your role leans on hardest, from how Performance Marketing Executive is actually changing.

Where it leads

Roles this leads to

How you would learn this

One to one, on the work you already do

A tutor sets the task against your own job and marks the reasoning, at your pace. There is no cohort to fall behind.

A lesson from Digital Analytics, worked against Performance Marketing Executive.

Digital Analytics Level 4

Applied to your work in Performance Marketing Executive

This unit aims to provide learners with a comprehensive understanding of digital analytics principles, tools, and techniques. Learners will develop the skills to collect, analyse, and interpret digital data from various sources, enabling them to measure the effectiveness of digital marketing campaigns, improve strategies, and report findings to stakeholders, while adhering to data protection regulations.

How the thinking builds
  1. 1 Remember
  2. 2 Understand
  3. 3 Apply
  4. 4 Analyse
  5. 5 Evaluate
  6. 6 Create
An illustration of a Zavmo lesson, built from this role’s own route. The unit, its objective and every criterion above are the awarding body’s own words, not an example.

It is £70 a month, billed monthly. Your free first module is Future Fluency, and you can cancel any time.

See Your Progress Grow Illustration
Performance Marketing Executive
  • Attribution Modelling (Basic Understanding)
  • Conversion Rate Optimisation (CRO) (Application)
  • Full-Funnel Campaign Architecture (Understanding)
  • Audience Segmentation & Management
  • Unit Economics Analysis (Basic Calculation)
This is your Mind Palace on learn.zavmo.ai. Every skill above comes from this role's own record, not an example borrowed from another job. A node lights up when you evidence it, and what you build stays yours between jobs. That is the part a course cannot do.

16The detail, folded away

Everything else the record holds

The career branches in full, how AI is already showing up in the day-to-day, and the questions people ask about this job. Here when you want them, out of the way while you decide.

Where it leads next, rung by rung

Where it leads

The career path, and where it branches

Performance Marketing Executive is a start, not a ceiling. Each step below asks for new skills and hands back more autonomy.

  1. Senior Performance Marketing Executive (L3)

    2-3 years from this role

    You'll move from owning specific campaigns to leading an entire channel (e.g., Paid Search) or a major workstream. You'll also start mentoring junior team members.

    • Channel Strategy Development Designing full-funnel strategies for a major paid channel.
    • Advanced Attribution Modelling Articulating and defending the chosen attribution model to senior stakeholders.
    • Budget Forecasting & Scenario Planning Developing more complex budget forecasts and understanding the impact of different spending scenarios.
    • Complex A/B Testing Designing and overseeing more sophisticated multivariate tests.
Working with AI on the job

Working with AI

Where AI is starting to help

Let's be honest, a big chunk of performance marketing can feel a bit repetitive and manual. Imagine if you could cut down on the grunt work and spend more time on strategy, analysis, and actual growth. That's where AI comes in.

At Zavmo, we're not just talking about AI; we're actively using it to make our Performance Marketing team more effective. For a Performance Marketing Executive, this means transforming how you approach everything from ad copy to reporting. You'll still need your brain, don't get me wrong, but the tools will handle the heavy lifting, freeing you up to do the interesting stuff.

Ad Copy & Creative Generation

Use AI tools like Jasper or ChatGPT to generate dozens of headline and description variations for your Google and Meta Ads in minutes. You can even use generative AI (think Midjourney) to brainstorm diverse image concepts for A/B testing, getting you to winning creatives faster. No more staring at a blank page for hours.

Performance Anomaly Detection

Forget sifting through endless spreadsheets. AI-powered analytics platforms (or even built-in features in Google Ads) can automatically flag significant performance shifts – like a sudden drop in CTR for a key ad group or an unexpected CPA spike. You'll catch problems much faster than manual checks ever could.

Competitive & Audience Research

Feed competitor ad copy, landing pages, and offers (scraped from tools like Semrush) into an AI and get instant summaries of their strategies. You can also ask AI to brainstorm entirely new potential audience segments based on your existing customer personas, opening up new targeting opportunities.

Stakeholder Reporting & Summaries

Got a weekly performance report due for the execs? Dump your raw data (e.g., CSV exports) into an AI model and ask it to 'write a concise summary for a non-marketing executive, highlighting key trends, wins, and areas for concern.' It'll save you hours of writing and make your reports clearer.

Common questions

Common questions

How do you become a Performance Marketing Executive?

Common routes in include Associate Performance Marketing Executive (1-2 years), Digital Marketing Assistant / Coordinator (2-3 years) and Marketing Analyst (with paid media focus) (2-4 years). Times vary with prior experience.

Where can a Performance Marketing Executive progress to?

This role can lead on to Senior Performance Marketing Executive (2-3 years from this role), depending on the skills you build.

What new skills matter most for a Performance Marketing Executive?

Increasingly, Prompt Engineering & LLM Integration and Advanced Data Storytelling. These are the skills our record of this role lists as growing.

Free tools

Want a read on where you stand?

Three free tools, no account needed. Each one ends with a role, a level and a way in.

Read the Zavmo manifesto to understand how you will be taught Meet your tutors

Or try another one

17Where to go from here

Other roles at Level 3

Same depth of qualification, different job. Useful if the work appeals but this particular role does not.

 More jobs in marketing

Stay in the field you know and move sideways rather than up.
If you leave this industry

The skills involved apply across industries, since most businesses need to acquire customers online. This can lead to roles in e-commerce, SaaS, FinTech, or agency work, applying the same skills in different settings.

This role profile is © 2026 Growth Engineering Technologies Ltd. Built from UK occupational standards and regulated qualification data, and written for Zavmo.

You're not behind. You're right on time. The shift is only just beginning. Your role won't look the same in two years. Be the one who leads the change, not the one it happens to. Start my free AI Fluency module What happens next: a free account, then we build your plan as you set up. No card. Build your plan, see your roadmap and meet the twelve tutors matched to you. All free. When you're ready to start learning, it's £70 a month, billed monthly. Cancel any time and billing stops.