We often see visually appealing ads, awesome products and strategies and really fabulous monthly reports. When we take a look behind the curtain though you’ll find a brilliant group of folks that are the backbone of a campaign’s success!
Key Takeaways
· Every Product at Vici has a Dedicated Guru – they make the magic happen!
· It’s the PEOPLE of Vici that empower the machine – If teamwork makes the dream work, the Vici Specialists are the “Genie’s of Lamp!”
What the Vici Specialists do is nothing short of actual magic. In fact, they seem to always impress, leaving us wondering, “How the heck did they make that work?” The answer to that question is actually not magic, but instead, real dedication and ongoing training. Each specialist has taken a deep dive into their specialty which serves the whole team in several ways:
· Each product changes so often with upgrades and new features that the specialists are CONSTANTLY learning and testing.
· When the questions get confusing, difficult or weird (Trust me. They. Get. Weird!) the specialists not only have THE answer, but they also explain it in a way that’s understandable and maybe most important… The respond FAST!
· Their specialized training in the Vici products saves you and your clients hours and hours of deep learning giving everyone else the time to get the sale.
If I’m making the Vici Specialists seem pretty awesome… it’s because they are actually pretty awesome! Let’s answer the big question you have at this point: Who are the Vici Specialists?
Amin (Programmatic)
My name is Amin Vora and I am the Programmatic Buying Specialist at Vici. I started at Vici as an intern in the Summer of 2016 and started a full-time Ad Buyer position in May 2017 and became a manager in 2020. I specialize in programmatic buying - including products such as Display, Native, Video, OTT, Audio and Social Mirror. I received my certification in August 2023. As the specialist, I stay on top of trends by reading newsletters, sync-ups with our DSP representative, and even finding articles and posts on Reddit! In the ever-changing landscape of digital advertising, it's imperative to stay in the know in terms of new product offerings, policy changes and more. I take all of this into consideration when coming up with the best solutions for our clients. A product that I find to be particularly effective is Social Mirror. It allows clients to promote their Social Media posts in Display inventory, which increases overall awareness by serving ads on not just Facebook or Instagram like they normally would with their social posts, but within Display placements on many other sites as well.
Laura (Mobile Conquesting)
I've been here for ten years! I started as an intern in August 2015, started full-time January 2016, and have made my way up to Digital Operations Manager and Mobile Ads Specialist since then. While this platform does not have an official certification, I have gone through all their training materials and articles to ensure I understand all aspects of the DSP. To stay on top of new offerings, I receive their product newsletter and have quarterly meetings with DSP representatives who share anything new they're working on or any enhancements they're making. Any advertiser that has a permanent physical store location is a great prospect for Mobile Conquesting since we can track visits with this product. So bars, restaurants, retail stores, gyms, etc. tend to be able to utilize the visit tracking feature the best. It is also a great product for a client wanting to target everyone in an area regardless of demographics or behaviors (geo-fencing) for brand exposure. Since this is an all-mobile product, we are able to target everyone currently within a radius who are on their phones or mobile devices. Maybe a pet store wants to target everyone at a dog park, or a new restaurant wants to target everyone in a downtown area - anyone who wants to focus on the location someone is currently in as a means of targeting.
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John (Meta)
In November, I will have been with Vici for seven years. I began as a Digital Campaign Coordinator, moved into a Senior Digital Buyer role, and after about three years became a Digital Operations Manager and Meta Specialist. To stay ahead of the curve, I subscribe to Meta’s newsletters, which keep buyers informed on new enhancements and best practices, and I watch weekly videos featuring professional buyers discussing their experiences with the latest updates. I take all of this information into consideration and regularly test new features to determine what works best for our partners. I find that interest-based targeting is Meta’s bread and butter — it gets a client’s product in front of a qualified cold audience and consistently drives engagement. Layering in matching, lookalike, and retargeting audiences is also an effective way to diversify results and scale performance.
Katie (Restricted Category Ads)
I've been at Vici for 3.5 years. I tried out a lot of different career paths before landing on this one, working in civil engineering, mortgage refinancing, and customer service. At Vici my experience in changing careers helped me learn the job quickly, and I've even used some of my past job knowledge when running and proposing campaigns for those industries. I specialize in running BARCK campaigns for restricted ad categories (Political, Cannabis, Firearms, etc.). I keep up with news and updates for our restricted ad platform through checking their updates database regularly. Political season also keeps me on my toes, solving any and all internal issues we might run into to keep all our campaigns running smoothly. Aside from political ads, cannabis ads make up a large portion of the restricted ads we run and had an average CTR of 1.35% over the past year!
Lauren (Amazon)
I started at Vici about 6 years ago as a Digital Campaign Coordinator. In 2020 I took on the role of Senior Digital Buyer, and then in 2023 I took on an additional role as Amazon Ads Specialist. I specialize in the Amazon DSP and hold an Amazon DSP Certification. I stay up to date on trends and new DSP announcements through Amazon’s newsletter and various digital marketing news outlets. Our Amazon Behavioral and Product targeting are especially effective because they can leverage Amazon’s exclusive first-party data such as users’ Amazon purchase history, searches, and browsing. This allows us to target higher intent audiences who are actively considering or purchasing specific products.
Matt (LinkedIn)
My name is Matt Ogden and I am the LinkedIn Ads Specialist here at Vici. I have been at Vici for over four years and have been the LinkedIn Ads Specialist for about two years now. I have all 3 certifications that LinkedIn offers: Fundamentals, Content and Creative Design, and Marketing Strategy. I stay up to date on trends and changes at LinkedIn through their extensive Ads Guide as well as their LinkedIn for Marketing Blog. I think LinkedIn Ads is one of the best products we run for B2B marketing campaigns. LinkedIn allows advertisers to target directly specific professional demographics, such as job title, industry, company size, and more, while overlaying geographic targeting, to ensure that ads reach the most relevant audience. Through this category targeting, as well as website retargeting and customer audience matching and lookalike targeting, LinkedIn places your ads directly in front of the decision-makers and industry leaders you hope to reach.
Nicolette (Social Mirror)
Nicolette is a Senior Digital Buyer and Social Mirror Specialist who has been at Vici for four years. Nicolette stays on top of Social Mirror trends and product news by reviewing the DSP's blog, quarterly newsletter, and case studies. The use of story ads is particularly effective with Social Mirror. Out of all the creative formats (single image, carousel, video and story), story ads generate the highest number of clicks. Another standout for Social Mirror is customizable Call-To-Action buttons and Creative AI. Customizable Call-To-Action buttons can outline the exact action/experience click through URLs and QR codes will provide the viewer. With Creative AI, up to 16 versions of Call-To-Action buttons and colors are generated based on the copy and creative provided and the Creative AI will automatically push more impressions towards the versions with the best results. Campaigns using Creative AI have seen on average a 44% higher Engagement Rate and 30% higher CTR than those that do not.
Olivia (Google)
I started at Vici as an intern in Spring 2022 and have been full-time since June 2022 - just had my 3-year viciversary! I have been the Google Specialist for a few months and counting! I specialize in all things Google - focusing mainly on YouTube and PPC campaigns. I am currently Google Ads Certified and keep up with the various trends and happenings via direct emails from Google as well as subscribing to "The Keyword" which is the latest news from Google, specifically regarding Google Ads. I think Dynamic ads are something that are really effective when running PPC campaigns. Allowing Google to automate ads and targeting based on website content is a really effective way to reach a wider audience!
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Christina (DOOH)
Hi, I’m Christina Graber! I’m a proud California native with a love for the ocean, Disney, and exploring new places. I recently celebrated two years at Vici, and the time has truly flown by. I began my journey here as an intern for four months before transitioning into a Digital Buyer role. Since then, I’ve continued to grow professionally and am now a Senior Digital Buyer. Most recently, I earned certification in one of our incredible DSPs and officially added “DOOH Specialist” to my title. I’m especially passionate about DOOH (Digital-Out-Of-Home) advertising—it’s a unique product in our lineup, focused on billboards and outdoor screens where success is measured by awareness rather than conversions. Organization is one of my strengths, and it plays a key role in both my buying responsibilities and my work as a DOOH Specialist. I stay current on industry trends by reading weekly newsletters and continuously refreshing my knowledge of the platforms we use. DOOH is perfect for awareness-driven campaigns—after all, people are out in the world every day, and sometimes all it takes is one screen to make a lasting impression!
Hanna (Live Chat)
I’ve been with Vici for nearly 4 years and have been a live chat specialist for 1.5 years. I specialize in Live Chat, which is a teal-time tool that drives customers to interact directly with businesses. I keep up with the latest versions of our platform by receiving updates from our live chat representatives and then relaying the information back to our team and in our how-to guides. The best aspect about live chat is that there is no wait time, and the chat will provide customers with an immediate response.
Anna (TikTok)
Hi, I’m Anna Halligan. I’ve been with Vici for just over three years. I began my career as an Associate Buyer in footwear for a small company in Wayne, Pennsylvania. After COVID, I felt ready for a new challenge, which led me to my current role as Senior Digital Buyer and TikTok Specialist at Vici. I recently earned my Media Buying Certification and stay up to date by attending weekly webinars through TikTok Academy. What I love most about TikTok is its wealth of creative resources. The TikTok Creative Center is especially valuable, as it allows us to analyze trending hashtags, top-performing ads, and key performance metrics like CTR, view-through rates, and engagement derived from those ads. I am excited to continue growing in my role as TikTok Specialist and look forward to helping clients build creative campaigns that take full advantage of the platform’s potential.
The Vici Specialists are indeed an impressive bunch. Not only because of their individual or collective wealth of knowledge but especially their passion to continuously deliver outstanding service in all aspects of their roles and above and beyond.
People often ask, “What makes Vici different or standout above the competition?” The answer is our PEOPLE. It would be hard to find another company that employed a specialist for every product they offered. It would be impossible to find another company that matched the caliber of our team. The Vici Specialists are yet another shining example of “Vici Values”.
