Media buyer & marketing strategist · Michigan

Planning and Executing Media that moves people.

I’m Rob, a media buyer and marketing strategist who takes campaigns from the first conversation through launch, reporting, and the next round of improvements. I bring together audience research, channel strategy, hands-on media buying, creative collaboration, and performance tracking to help businesses, universities, and live events reach the right people and turn interest into action.

Explore my work ↓Get in touch ↗
Rob Van Auken, Senior Media Buyer at Michigan Creative
SENIOR MEDIA BUYER, UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGANFOUNDER, BRASSIC MEDIA
$6M+Annual digital, traditional & OOH spend currently managed
21%Year-over-year increase in qualified B2B leads and sales at GIE Media
8+ yearsExperience in paid media campaign management
Selected work

Different audiences. One thoughtful approach.

I’ve planned and executed campaigns across paid search, social, programmatic, CTV, print, radio, and out-of-home. That work spans university enrollment and nationwide awareness, specialized B2B publishing, and live event marketing.

My role connects the strategy with the details: coordinating with creative teams and media partners, launching campaigns, setting up measurement, and using the results to decide what comes next.

Nationwide visibility

Planning and buying national and regional campaigns, including U-M’s Go Blue Guarantee and Look to Michigan, across paid search, social, programmatic, CTV, billboards, print, and digital signage.

Meaningful measurement

Helping U-M’s School of Social Work measure and optimize paid campaigns around completed applications, beyond the initial lead.

Specialized audiences

Building campaigns for 17 B2B publications and five live events, with search, video, and display tailored to niche markets.

Higher education / University of MichiganUniversity of Michigan block M logo
University of Michigan2024–Present

Media strategy at university scale

As the longest-serving senior media buyer for U-M’s centralized marketing division, I plan and optimize campaigns for 19 Ann Arbor schools and colleges, alongside university-wide initiatives.

Enrollment marketingPaid search & socialCTV & OOH
Explore the work

I manage $5M+ annually in digital spend and $1M+ in traditional and out-of-home media. My work brings together audience strategy, bid management, A/B testing, GA4 and GTM tracking, and reporting for campus partners. I also support national traditional placements and the Look to Michigan awareness initiative.

A layered stack of magazines representing publishingB2B / GIE Media
Niche audiences.
Measurable growth.
Photo: Cut Collective / Unsplash
GIE Media2021–2023

Performance marketing for specialized markets

I managed performance marketing and programmatic campaigns across 17 B2B periodicals and five live events. Google campaigns contributed to a 21% year-over-year increase in qualified leads and sales.

B2B lead generationGoogle AdsSearch, video & display
Explore the work

Campaigns paired keyword research and competitive analysis with focused audience targeting. I built and optimized Search, Video, and Display campaigns, then translated performance reporting into recommendations for internal stakeholders.

Live entertainment / Case Western ReserveCase Western Reserve University logo
Case Western Reserve University2019–2021

Connecting audiences with live experiences

Leading venue marketing and box office operations, I grew ticket sales by 21% year over year and website traffic by 41% through targeted marketing campaigns.

Ticket salesEmail marketingDigital & traditional
Explore the work

I managed advertising budgets, negotiated placements, and created digital and print design assets. Email programs exceeded industry average open rates by 20% and click rates by 7%, while keeping the venue’s brand consistent across channels.

How I work

A clear, transparent plan. A reason for every dollar spent.

Good media buying connects business goals, audience insight, creative, and measurement. Here’s how I bring those pieces together.

01

Start with the audience.

Understand who we need to reach, what matters to them, and the action that would make the campaign successful.

02

Build a purposeful media mix.

Choose channels, budgets, and formats around the goal, from paid search and social to programmatic, CTV, radio, and out-of-home.

03

Make performance visible.

Connect conversion tracking, UTMs, GA4, and GTM so decisions are grounded in what people actually do.

04

Test, learn, and keep improving.

Use audience, creative, and conversion tests to refine the campaign, then give stakeholders clear insights and next steps.

A little about me
Rob Van Auken, pictured on the Brassic Media About Us page

A media buyer with
an audience-first mindset.

My background spans live entertainment, live music, B2B publishing, and higher education, with campaign budgets ranging from modest small-business investments to millions in annual media spend. Across those settings, I’ve worked at the intersection of marketing strategy, media buying, and the details that turn a plan into a working campaign.

Today, I’m a Senior Media Buyer with Michigan Creative, the University of Michigan’s central marketing team. I collaborate with campus partners, project managers, writers, designers, and developers, and have shared paid media best practices at the Maize x Blue marketing conference.

I also founded Brassic Media ↗, bringing thoughtful paid media strategy to businesses that need their budgets to work harder.

Based inManchester, Michigan
EducationFerris State University · B.S.
StudiesMusic Business & Advertising
Let’s connect

Have a goal in mind?

Let’s talk about media strategy, a marketing challenge, or what we could build together.

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