I want to hire a paid social ads specialist: what is a targetologist and how are they different from a marketer?

A marketer decides what to sell and why; an ads specialist figures out who sees it and on which screen. Creating copy or visuals isn't their core job. You supply the creative assets or hire a designer, and the specialist tests them across different audience segments.

We started with a similar budget last year: 150,000 rubles in ad spend and a 50,000 ruble specialist fee. In the first 10 days, we spent a 30,000 ruble test budget and drove our cost per click down from 45 rubles to 18 rubles. When campaigns are set up properly, costs drop significantly.

Don't fall for flashy portfolio screenshots. High click counts or lead volumes mean nothing on their own. Did those leads actually walk into your bakery and spend money? Always ask candidates how they reconcile dashboard conversion metrics with actual cash register sales.

Make sure to put these three technical points on the table during the interview: 1) How will they set up the geo-radius and local audience filters? 2) Who will manage the integration between the ad dashboard and the order line? 3) On which day will the kill criteria for underperforming ad sets be decided?

i'd say don't sign a long contract. like set a two-week trial period first, give them a small budget and see for yourself how they configure the dashboard settings.

Where will you be directing the incoming ad traffic? Is your landing page, ordering messaging line, or menu ready? Even if the media buyer brings in the audience, if the landing experience is weak the money spent goes down the drain.

does this specialist shoot the photos and handle the design work themselves, or do we need to hire a professional agency to take the photos?

edit: fixed a few typos.

Open the ad account in your own name and only grant the specialist admin or analyst access. Never let them run ads from their own account, otherwise all the audience data stays with them if you part ways.

I felt relieved reading this answer, so it's not just me. Valuation methods for exits must be defined by formula; "market value" isn't enough.

Good luck with that.

I'd say don't rush. When we decide without measuring we always end up in the same place.

If you dont write this down from the start, it leads to arguments later. If you post the result here it will help others too.

Don't miss this: If it's your first time, start small; scaling comes later.

If you're going this route, sort this out first. The biggest time-waster for us was not knowing who had the final say.

Do a small three-month project before talking stocks, so you see each other. Correct me if I'm wrong.

There are three things to check when doing this. Don't hesitate to ask; those who don't ask always pay more.

When listing, put proof that the product actually works at the very top.

Just a heads-up. When making a decision, first look at what data you have on hand.

Solutions that work at a small scale collapse when you grow; I learned this late. This is my opinion, I'm not claiming it's absolute truth.

We experienced almost the exact same thing last year. Hasty decisions become decisions you have to fix six months later.

I'd appreciate it if you shared the outcome. When listing, put proof that the product actually works at the very top.

Correct me if I'm wrong.

Yes, that's exactly how it is with what is a targeting specialist. When listing, put proof that the product actually works at the very top.

Proven by experience.

Here's how it went for us. Give trial work but pay for it; free trials don't bind anyone.

If I were you I'd go this route.