PPCChat | Finding the Right Career Path in PPC | 28th April 2026

In this week’s PPCChat discussion, Julie F. Bacchini explored experts’ educational backgrounds, how they began their careers in PPC, and the best advice they would give to someone just starting out in the industry.

Q1: What is your educational background – or work experience if you did not attend college or university?

Dual in marketing and information systems, minor in finance at Villanova, 6-month co-op where i worked full-time for a semester to get DuPont’s analytics and Google Ads programs off the ground. I liked that a fortune 500 CMO cared about the interns work so…. here I am! @Aaronlevy

I have a degree in International Politics and French from Penn State @NeptuneMoon

Award-winning writer, Art school grad, then BA in Religions. In other words, creativity, language understanding, and deep thinking about What we believe, and How we treat one another. Kind of perfect for advertising it turns out. @JuliaVyse

Fun fact about me… I worked for the Atlanta Olympic Committee right out of college @NeptuneMoon

I have a BBA and also an Associates in Marketing. Definitely didn’t take a “digital marketing” route in school. I first got into PPC at an agency and then went into freelance. @JulianPhillip

I have a degree in Civil and Structural Engineering. @Pete_Bowen

I started in marketing before the internet… then to graphic design and marketing and PR for health system before getting laid off and starting my own thing. Then websites, SEO and finally landed in PPC. @NeptuneMoon

There was a time when I thought I wanted to study Civil engineering haha. @JulianPhillip

I have a B. Arch degree. They had web design classes the semester after I graduated. @IamNextSTEPH

BS in Marketing, Minor in Psychology. Went from software implementation, to agency life (acct mgmt, digital media management, now solo specializing in Google Ads + SEO @teabeeshell

Science student -> Bachelors in Management, Masters in International Business & Commerce -> Exec Program in Sales & Marketing. Got my first job at an ad network in 2012, straight out of college. And here we are today…..@alimehdimukadam

BA in Strategic Communications (was Ohio State’s fancy way of saying Public Relations) with a design minor. Got my first internship in PPC about a year after graduating college, then first full-time agency gig about half a year after that. @AnthonyMcDaniel

I have a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration in Marketing and another BSBA in Innovation Leadership & Entrepreneurship. Started off doing some graphic design, then web design, then PPC @williamhboggs

BS in Business Administration with an emphasis in Marketing from Brigham Young University. Took the first internet marketing class they offered and was hooked right away. @robert_brady

Major in Journalism and minor in Cultural Anthropology at California State University, Northridge. Went into PR. Didn’t like it. Went into non-profit direct mail fundraising for many years. Worked for both agencies and brands. Took contract gig at Overture, where I learned about PPC. Been doing PPC since 2004. @JeffreyHain

BS in PR. @Chriskostecki

Q2: How did you get started in PPC? What was your first job?

So I started Neptune Moon when I got laid off from my health system job. Had been thinking about going out on my own and had a few side clients, but got that big push from the layoff. There was no PPC then. Websites were just becoming a thing… it was 1999. So I went full in on websites, then SEO came along, and I did that and then when I started doing PPC and analytics, I thought I found my place! Creative and analytical – magic for me. @NeptuneMoon

Mentioned above, but I did it at DuPont while in college, and my role was basically to build dashboards in GA + present them to business unit owners and use that to convince them to invest in SEM. None of really knew what we were doing, so a lot of it was at the advice of (gasp) really good Google account reps. After that got a role at my first agency where I primarily worked for stores of TV networks (HBO, Nickelodeon, PBS). dating myself as well, but I “got to” watch True Blood on HBO for work. Did SEM, Affiliate, Email and a little display/seo. tbh I think starting with all channels was more beneficial for my career as an SEM-er, as I was trained to look whole picture. @Aaronlevy

First agency job, filled a void in the media department when the Digital Media Manager took another position. I was responsible for managing all clients’ online advertising, spanning search, social, audio, display, video, and analytics. I was attracted to the direct feedback loop and data within Google Ads, even though this predated the concept of “conversions” within the platform! @teabeeshell

@Aaronlevy I agree on having a background in other digital areas is super helpful in PPC. My pre internet marketing work is a lot too. @NeptuneMoon

I was working at a college as a website traffic analyst, which included updating the website. PPC found me there. @IamNextSTEPH

Not technically PPC, because it was SEO! I did old-school SEO writing for a small affiliate firm. I was so pumped when my T4 (tax doc) said Writer on it. Then I moved up to an agency as a copywriter and started helping the paid search lead with keyword strategy. I turned out to be good at it and was soon asked if they were hiring a search person so I could be a copywriter, or a hiring a copywriter so I could do search. I chose search, and here I am! @JuliaVyse

I started with Affinity Global Inc. – it was an ad network with different units for Programmatic, XML Feeds, Direct Advertisers, Mobile. Started as account specialist – setting up campaigns similar to Google’s interface for direct advertisers. We would generate a pixel and share it with the advertising team. Tag Manager was the first revolution I saw. @alimehdimukadam

I started as an Analyst at an agency. I went in knowing nothing about PPC, so it very much like drinking from the firehose. Lot’s of tough days, but was blessed to have had that experience. @JulianPhillip

I think we are all pretty much self taught on most PPC things too @NeptuneMoon

First paid internship was for an “agency” that was more like a 1 man operation, helping him run some of his PPC strategy. That’s where I first got “Google certified”, which was primarily how I learned Google Ads management. But then I got a full-time agency job a few months later and learned a TON. Before PPC, I mostly did some social media & pretty general content/design stuff here and there. @AnthonyMcDaniel

Oh yeah! the certs did not exist at all! @JuliaVyse

Oh yeah. I almost forgot I had a summer Internship doing organic social before I went into agency life. That was a pretty awkward time for me lol @JulianPhillip

Nobody would hire me even with my BSBA in Marketing, so I started freelancing for small businesses. Eventually built up a track record of good results and landed an in-house job, then an agency, now another agency. Still have my own clients on the side. @williamhboggs

Got an internship while in college helping a software company sell a package of letter-writing templates for Word. Turned into a full-time offer at graduation. @robert_brady

Working for a YP directory site, then traffic stopped coming, started selling Google “click packages” @Chriskostecki

Worked for a major mortgage lender (no longer around) doing email, PPC, and affiliates. My offline direct mail skills in copy, offer, targeting and testing translated to everything I did online. Company was growing, and I was asked to pick one and choose PPC. @JeffreyHain

Q3: How has your career progressed in PPC?  Have you had hiccups or obstacles in your path? Have you changed directions? What lead you to those decisions?

For me, once I started doing PPC work, I realized how much I liked it more than the other stuff I was doing. I kept doing websites for a number of years as PPC became a solid line of business and then transitioned to doing it exclusively over another few-year period. @NeptuneMoon

I haven’t had major hiccups as I have worked for myself coming up on 26 years. But that path has its own challenges. And advantages. One big advantage for me has been being able to scale my work up and down as life required. I am so grateful to be in a career and setup where that is possible. @NeptuneMoon

A few hiccups, but it’s honestly been a firehose. There is so much demand for good search talent that I’ve found my obstacles came from life changes like moving to Vancouver, Covid, and now ai-blamed layoffs. @JuliaVyse

…call me a survivor, I’m a corporate girlie who has made it through many layoff years. @JuliaVyse

Oh man, yeah. Was abruptly let go from my first full-time job for incredibly unclear reasons (turns out to be an entire story for another day), and then took a few years before I could find another agency to give me a chance. Finally found a spot to continue my PPC career about 3 years later, but still fight through a lot of imposter syndrome because of that early career situation. @AnthonyMcDaniel

huge do everything agency –> small search only agency that grew to large agency –> large search heavy agency that became huge everything agency –> did nothing for a year –> now tech side focused on influence and operations. for a while, I wanted to get as big as possible and have as many team members as possible working for as big of clients as possible – think my team was 120 and spending ~$1b/yr at Tinuiti. learned after not too long that at those sizes/budgets, it becomes less “ppc work” and more politics with a tiny touch of strategy, both internal and at client. Now, outside of optmyzr (and I guess inside too?), I’m trying to help foster a culture of curiosity, friendliness and humanity across a slop-ified industry/world. Frankly, PPC got boring for a while as it was more or less a math problem. I’m encouraged by all the automation which, while a “loss of control,” is making us ppc lifers become better real honest-to-goodness marketers. @Aaronlevy

I’ve had many challenges doing this work. Being let go from my first job in PPC at an agency, similar to Anthony, for unclear reasons, running into so many dishonest people, and just not knowing who to trust. If I didn’t love the work, I would’ve stopped a long time ago. It’s sad to say that I’m thinking of dipping my toe into something else, but I still want to do PPC at some level. @JulianPhillip

At Affinity: Moved from Account Specialist to Business Development to Manager of Strategic Growth & Ops – worked with product, tech teams, platforms. Then joined brand side – built their marketing team & direct media buying. Then started my own ppc agency scaled it, and was offering white-label to other agencies as well. Burned out & had health issues. Sunsetted it and moved to growth consultations @alimehdimukadam

Also, I would be remiss in not highlighting taking over PPC Chat in 2017 as part of my career path. I love this community so much. And helping everyone I possibly can find their way in this industry and cheering them on. @NeptuneMoon

We’re so glad you did @Aaronlevy

That sounds awesome Ali! Except the burn out. That’s never fun. @JulianPhillip

ppc chat was huge in building out my “external” brand, in turn my speaking propensity and “influence” and taught me a TON about networking. @Aaronlevy

@NeptuneMoon Finding this community is one the great rewards (and they’re a few) of my PPC experience. It was hard finding a solid community, so I’m super grateful everything you’ve done to build and keep this going @JulianPhillip

I found PPC Chat when I was pregnant and it was a lifeline in those early “I have a baby – how does this all work now” days. @NeptuneMoon

I figured out that PPC had a faster pace than web design or SEO. I’ve worked on my own and for a few outfits, some white-label, some on-staff. @IamNextSTEPH

I hit a point when I was freelancing full-time. Then moved, and a lot of my clients included photo/video production; lost most of them in the move and started over. Worked for an agency for a few years, they ended up pulling some shady shit. That was a big obstacle for me but I won’t get into it here…I changed courses a lot on my freelancing journey – really just trying to get whatever work I could. It’s been cool to see it all pay off though, because now I have experience in several different areas (SEO, web design & dev, programming, graphic design, photo, video, ppc…) that all ties together and gives me more big picture insight to pull projects together. @williamhboggs

My biggest “challenge” was a realization about waste in the industry. I got hired in 2017 to manage all of Target’s North America search efforts in Minneapolis. It felt like an accomplishment until I learned how poorly they held their search spend accountable. Knowing that it IS possible to track dollars in to revenue (or at least store visits), I was floored that neither were pinnacles of importance for that media division. I ultimately turned down the job and moved on to start my own thing. I like being able to (largely) guarantee that ad dollars I manage are directly, provably moving forward businesses that I believe in and that move humanity forward. @teabeeshell

@williamhboggs Being a big picture thinker is such an asset in PPC. @NeptuneMoon

Went from in-house > agency > freelance > founded an agency > freelance > agency > freelance. I learned that I’m much more comfortable managing accounts than managing employees. And PPC has been the perfect combination of art/science for me. @robert_brady

@NeptuneMoon PPC was also a lifeline for me from the other side while caregiving. @IamNextSTEPH

@IamNextSTEPH Went through that too (and am now) @NeptuneMoon

I went from delivering snake oil in the yp industry to delivering value-based services for ecomm ppc, then went inhouse to a couple of CPGs built teams there, paid social came about, when I got more into project management, I jump back into agency world to stay close to the action, when I had my third kid I went on my own. During covid an agency client pulled me in full time, though always maintained my own clients, now I am on my own again and pretty much at capacity until I take on more resources. @Chriskostecki

I shifted agency side after 5 years in-house and have been agency ever since. Worked at small and large agencies. Started doing exclusively B2B in 2012. @beyondthepaid

Q4: Is there anything you wish you could “do over” in your career path?

I want to state here, as PPC Mom, that I want you all to know that there is no “one right path” when it comes to PPC careers. There is only the path that is right for YOU. And that path might change over time and that does not mean that the choices you made before were wrong. Just that the ones you need to make now are different. There are so many ways to have a successful and happy career in this industry! @NeptuneMoon

Big question – i wish i stretched myself more. my back is sore. Someone else alluded to it as well, but I think i trusted too much, too often and too early (applies to companies, clients and vendors). nobody wants to be a full time cynic but i learned over the years to look at peoples motivations in addition to just listening to the words coming out of their mouths or screens. @Aaronlevy

I would probably push harder to build processes at scale. Yes, they constantly (should) evolve, but a system that allows me (now) to spend more time with my family would have been huge. I’m still in the process of trying to do this, and the current method has been serving as a consultant to agencies. If I take my built expertise to that top level, I can have a one-to-many approach that’s A) more lucrative, and B) less of a time investment on an average weekly basis. @teabeeshell

seeing that skepticism (or lack thereof) rear its ugly head as we enter a new era of ai snake oil. companies need to keep looking under the hood rather than falling for “OOOH NEW BEST SHINY THING” @Aaronlevy

Oh man, every pitch I’ve ever lost, I wish I’d done that one thing differently or better. @JuliaVyse

@JuliaVyse there are more than a few pitches i wish i didn’t win – things that felt wrong at the time but we got them to yes just to have a terrible experience for a year or more. @Aaronlevy

@Aaronlevy my brother in skepticism – the world needs us now more than ever! @NeptuneMoon

I would say “yes” less. It’s gotten me taken advantage of a lot in my career. @williamhboggs

I wished I’d learned systems thinking and workplace politics faster in my early days. Finding a mentor or community early on would’ve been super helpful for my confidence and for over coming imposter syndrome as well. @JulianPhillip

Say no more often to shiny objects….@alimehdimukadam

I wish I would have leaned farther into the technical side of paid search and social. API’s, Python, Dataops chops, understanding and being able to execute on all things “data architecture”. @timmhalloran

For everyone struggling with impostor syndrome, I hope we can help cure that for you here. There are so many smarties here and you do things differently and I love that. @NeptuneMoon

Also, if cauliflower can be pizza, you can be anything! @NeptuneMoon

I didn’t know that where you go to college matters more than the degree you get. I would have gone to a more reputable university, though I loved the experience where I went. Or skipped university altogether and started freelancing sooner. In hindsight, since I did go to a university, I wish I’d have gone for something more specific like Graphic Design or Business Intelligence, instead of just Marketing. Marketing turned out to be very broad. I ended up really enjoying doing Graphic Design – I like the science behind it, so I think it would have been really interesting to study. @williamhboggs

Same… @teabeeshell I’m also looking at building a consulting business. I’m not sure where to start, but as a new dad, I do know that I’d like to be able to be more present for my family. @JulianPhillip

@JulianPhillip Congrats on your baby and becoming a dad! Just had my first myself, 6 weeks old girl now..@williamhboggs

PPC Babies! Yay! Mine is 13… @NeptuneMoon

@JulianPhillip Congrats! Happy to share my experiences if you’d ever like to chat. Hit me up! @teabeeshell

Trust my intuition more when prospects showed red flags. @robert_brady

So many affiliate sites. @Chriskostecki

Honestly, I wouldn’t trade any of it. I have learned from every experience in my career. @beyondthepaid

I’m loving all the new parents in this thread! I have a 1-year-old (which is partially why I’ve been so MIA on this thread for a while), and the flexibility is great. I think I would have tried to put myself out there and meet people in the industry a little more – it’s been a somewhat lonely pursuit from me, as I mostly work from home. I’m definitely at the point where I’m ready to level up in some way, but am not totally sure how to go about that, and I think having a slightly stronger network/mentor support would have helped me a lot there. I love my clients, but at the end of the day, they aren’t my coworkers or supporters — I definitely took this for granted in the corporate world. @MicheleJaeger1

We got you! @NeptuneMoon

@JulianPhillip Yes! Same here! As someone neurodivergent, I wish I understood corporate politics & industry politics sooner. I also wish I had a mentor earlier in my career. I had one much later in my career, but only for a short amount of time, and it came at a cost. It did wonders for my career, but I imagine it would’ve been more impactful years earlier. @DiiPooler

Q5: What do you wish you knew when you got started in PPC relative to it as a career? What is your best career advice to someone starting in PPC or considering PPC as a career?

So if you want to do your own thing, one of the best pieces of advice I got was “if you can’t be comfortable always being 6 weeks away from having no work, having your own freelance/agency might not be for you.” And the horizon might not be 6 weeks, but the point remains. Although back then being an employee was a much more stable proposition than it is today… But I think flexibility is one of the most important traits to have if you want to thrive in PPC. @NeptuneMoon

Nothing is static. Spend less time mastering a step-by-step. Spend more time seeing the forest, not the trees. This more macro perspective is so much more valuable than knowing where a setting lives or the fastest way to do X. @teabeeshell

1: Read classical marketing case studies (Harvard Business Review type stuff) to learn where PPC fits. 2: Up until two years ago, advice would’ve been get good at excel and scripting. Now advice is get good at AI, learn what it’s good at and what’s it not and use it to apply YOUR ideas (not to be a cheat sheet). 3: Learn money math and what CFO/CRO’s care about. They’re holding the purse strings, not your day-to-day contact. 4: figure out who you REALLY want to be when you grow up @Aaronlevy

@Aaronlevy #2 and #3 are so immensely critical, great call outs. @teabeeshell

I have also found that being able to explain technical things in plain language is a hugely valuable skill @NeptuneMoon

Learn ad copywriting. Yes, even to brief AI. @JuliaVyse

@NeptuneMoon I would say my information systems major was a waste, but it’s been immensely helpful in talking to developers and/or translate what they’re saying to execspeak  @Aaronlevy

Connect with people in the industry early on. They’ll be very generous. Then pay it forward later. @robert_brady

@Aaronlevy Speaking dev is a whole entire discipline in and of itself @NeptuneMoon

Learn. Earn. Return. @JuliaVyse

• Skip college, agencies don’t care about your degree.
• Study data analytics and statistics
• Good design is often explained by science. You don’t have to be creative to be a good designer; just understand the principles and you’ll be 90% there.
• Read marketing books. Ogilvy, Seth Godin, Hormozi, all of the Best Sellers and anything you can find about Ads throughout history – this will teach you 10x more than any degree.
• Build a portfolio and explain your work.
• Take the time to build scalable systems. I have a running spreadsheet of formulas and tools I’ve created since starting in PPC. Working on turning this into an app for others now. @williamhboggs

Represents the client’s interest. In paid media, money talks, and it should be used as leverage. It is on the networks to prove their worth. @Chriskostecki

Be curious too. About developments in the industry and about what each client or stakeholder really needs and wants. For instance, I ask every client a couple of questions: What questions do you have to answer regularly about the PPC work and performance? What keeps you up at night? @NeptuneMoon

It’s okay to say “I don’t know” when someone asks you a question. But be willing to go find the answer. @robert_brady

Then address those things! Make sure they have what they need to answer those questions they get asked in a way they feel comfortable and confident. @NeptuneMoon

Both are relatively elementary, but I wish I understood them earlier in my PPC career.

1) Consistent communication. Check in at regular intervals, even if it’s a simple “Hi, we’re working on negative lists, which will help with removing low-quality leads. Keeping a close eye on CPA. We’ll check-in on Thurs.” It’s simple information and doesn’t require action, but it keeps you and the work you’re doing top of mind.. 2) Converting raw data into narrative, then converting that narrative into task execution. “We had 30 leads come in from Google Ads this month.” That’s not a helpful statement. It doesn’t answer how many we had last month, or last year same month? It doesn’t explain how it relates to the RSA or keyword or bid-mod work you did on the account in February. Tie it together. We did this work, these are the results, the change in results tells us X, based on X we plan to implement Y. Work we did, data from it, narrative from data, narrative to task. @timmhalloran

Oh, random thought that took me FOREVER to learn and even longer to convey to the team – I called them butt pats (from a history of playing hockey where we hug after goals and frequently pat on the butt). celebrate little good things. Did your account just randomly have a really good day? shoot the client an email! they see it too, but shared excitement builds a bigger bond and can foster much better discussions vs. sending a weekly report with CONVERSIONS INCREASED 12% WEEK OVER WEEK. @Aaronlevy

@Aaronlevy love this one! Small wins often get overlooked, and a little kindness goes a long way! @williamhboggs

Random surprises always beat scheduled gifts…@Aaronlevy

I love this @Aaronlevy I think it goes along with being keyed in on what a client needs too. Because sure, they all want efficient performance, but underneath that different things are important to them at different intensities. Showing you care about their account beyond just the required reporting says a lot too. AND if you find yourself in one of those situations where you think you are absolutely killing it but the client is not feeling it with the leads let’s say… you can find that out before you’re in the monthly meeting with your “everything is awesome” presentation queued…@NeptuneMoon

You will make mistakes. It’s ok – it happens to everyone. The important part is how you handle it and how you respond. @revaminkoff

Always always ALWAYS double check daily vs campaign/monthly spend! then check again @Chriskostecki

With good clients, honesty will always be appreciated no matter what it says about performance, etc. @MicheleJaeger1

PPCChat Participants

• Julia Vyse @JuliaVyse
• Julie F Bacchini @NeptuneMoon
• Ali Mehdi Mukadam @alimehdimukadam
• Tim Halloran @timmhalloran
• Michele Jaeger @MicheleJaeger1
• Reva Minkoff @revaminkoff
• Melissa L Mackey @beyondthepaid
• Travis @teabeeshell
• Anthony McDaniel @AnthonyMcDaniel
• Chris Kostecki @Chriskostecki
• Steph Cockerl @IamNextSTEPH
• Boggs @williamhboggs
• Aaron Levy @Aaronlevy
• Julian Phillip @JulianPhillip
• Jeffrey Hain @JeffreyHain
• Dii Pooler @DiiPooler

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