GAIN - Head of Owned Media

Department:Performance Media
Reporting to:DirectorofPerformance Media
Location:London/Bournemouth /Bristol /Barcelona /Hybrid

ABOUT:

GAIN is a creative-led, insight-driven company that blends data,techand creativity. We believe the best ideasemergewhere intelligence and creativity unite, where insight sparks imagination, and where innovation turns possibility into progress.

We are explorers of new frontiers, shaping bold strategies that move people, brands, and businesses forward. Individually and together, our specialist teams provide the vision, data, and confidence brands andorganisationsneed to make braver, more impactful decisions.

Today as GAIN, we work as a united force, using data to fuel creativity, and technology to unlock new possibilities.Wedon’tjust embraceinnovation,we engineer it,transforminginformation into action, and ideas into breakthroughs.

This is where rebel thinking, smart technology and data-driven creativity shape the future.

THE ROLE:

The Head of Owned Media is GAIN's senior specialist and capability leader across SEO, organic search, social, authority and link building, responsible for setting the standard for our work today while defining how the capability needs to evolve for the future.

Search and discovery are changing rapidly. Traditional search engines increasingly sit alongside AI-powered search, generative answerenginesand new discovery environments. We are looking for a progressive leader who understands this shift and is excited by the opportunity to evolve GAIN's Owned Media proposition around it.

Reporting to theDirectorof Performance Media, you will lead a team of specialists and take responsibility for the quality, development,innovationand commercial performance of the capability. You will combine deep technical and strategicexpertisewith strongpeopleleadership, ensuring our teams consistently deliver exceptional work for clients while continuing to develop their skills andexpertise.

You will be expected to remain close to the craft. This is not simply a people-management role. You will provide senior technical leadership on complex client challenges, challengeestablishedapproaches, introduce new methodologies and ensure GAINremainsat the forefront of SEO, Generative EngineOptimisation(GEO), AI-enabledsearchand the wider evolution of organic discovery.

You will work closely with Client Portfolio teams, Strategy, Data, Technology,AIand other specialist capabilities across GAIN to create integrated solutions that deliver measurable business impact.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES:

The Head of Owned Media is accountable for:

• Setting the strategic and technical direction for GAIN's Owned Media capability across SEO, organic search,social,authorityand link building
• Leading, developing and inspiring a multidisciplinary team
• Ensuring consistentlyhigh standardsof strategy, technical delivery,executionand measurable client performance
• Evolving GAIN's proposition in response to changing searchbehaviours, AI-powered discovery,GEOand emerging technologies
• Building AI-enabled workflows, automation and tools that improve the quality,speedand scalability of our work
• Acting as the senior subject‑matter expert for Owned Media across GAIN, providing authority and confidence to clients,prospectsand internal teams
• Developing new services, methodologies,frameworksand intellectual property that differentiate GAIN in the market
• Ensuring the capabilityoperatescommercially, with strongutilisation, effective resourcedeploymentand sustainable contribution to margin
• Developing world‑class specialists and future leaders within the discipline

TECHNICAL & CAPABILITY LEADERSHIP:

You will be the senior technical authority for Owned Media within GAIN, continually raising the quality,sophisticationand relevance of the capability.

Responsibilities include:

• Define and continually evolve GAIN's approach to SEO, organic search,social,authority building and digital discovery
• Maintain deep knowledge of technical SEO and ensure best practice is consistently applied across complex and enterprise‑level client environments
• Provide senior oversight and strategic direction for major clientprogrammes,pitchesand complex organic‑search challenges
• Establish clear standards for technical SEO, contentoptimisation, authority and link building, measurement,reportingand strategic planning
• Challenge teams to move beyond traditional SEO metrics anddemonstratethe relationship between organic visibility, discovery, customerbehaviourand business growth
• Coach and mentor senior specialists, ensuring technical knowledge and strategic thinking continually develop across the team
• Build strong relationships with search platforms, technologypartnersand relevant industry communities
• Represent GAIN as arecognisedauthority on the future of search and organic discovery through client conversations, industry events,contentand thought leadership

THE FUTURE OF SEARCH: AI, GEO & DISCOVERY:

The Head of Owned Media will play a central role in defining what the next generation of Owned Media looks like at GAIN.

You will:

• Develop GAIN's approach to Generative EngineOptimisation(GEO)and visibility within AI‑powered search and answer environments
• Build our understanding of how brands are discovered,referencedand represented across traditional search engines, AI assistants, generative searchexperiencesand emerging discovery platforms
• Establish methodologies for measuring brand visibility and influence across both traditional and AI‑mediated search journeys
• Explore how technical SEO, content, structured data, digital PR, authoritysignalsand brand credibility influence visibility within generative search environments
• Lead experimentation around emerging search technologies, separating meaningful opportunities from short‑term industry hype
• Work with GAIN's AI and Technology specialists to develop proprietary approaches, tools and workflows that create competitive advantage
• Ensure new capabilities can be translated into credible,repeatableand commerciallyviableclient services

AI-ENABLED WAYS OF WORKING:

We want AI to change how the capabilityoperates, not simply become another tool in the technology stack.

You willidentifyand implement opportunities to use AI and automation across areas such as:

• Search and audience research
• Keyword,topicand intent analysis
• Technical auditing and diagnostics
• Content opportunity identification andoptimisation
• Competitor and market intelligence
• Authority and link analysis
• Data analysis and insight generation
• Reporting and performance commentary
• Quality assurance and workflow automation
• Identification of emerging trends and changes in searchbehaviour

You willestablishappropriate governancearound these workflows, ensuring automation improves humanexpertiserather than compromising quality,accuracyor strategic thinking.

CLIENT & DELIVERY EXCELLENCE:

• Take senior ownership of the strategic direction and quality of GAIN's most important and complex Owned Media engagements
• Build trusted relationships with senior client stakeholders, translating complex search challenges into clear commercial opportunities
• Support teams in resolving difficult technical, strategic or performance challenges
• Ensureappropriate qualityassurance is applied across strategy, implementation,analysisand reporting
• Challenge briefs,strategiesand established approaches where a better solution can be found
• Ensure client strategiesremaincurrent as search platforms, algorithms, consumerbehaviourand AI‑powered discovery evolve
• Lead or support strategic pitches,credentialsand new‑business conversations where specialistexpertisecan differentiate GAIN
• Work closely with Client Portfolio teams toidentifyopportunities to grow and deepen client relationships

PROPOSITION & SERVICE DEVELOPMENT:

• Continually assess GAIN's Owned Media proposition against client needs, competitorcapabilitiesand wider changes within the search landscape
• Identifyopportunities for new products and services across SEO, GEO, AI discovery, authoritybuildingand organic performance
• Turn successful approaches into repeatable methodologies, frameworks,scopesand commercial propositions
• Lead pilots and proofs of concept before scaling successful approaches across the capability
• Develop reusable assets, methodologies and intellectual property that differentiate GAIN
• Collaborate across Strategy, Creative, Media, Data, Technology and AI to develop integrated propositions rather than allowing Owned Media tooperatein isolation
• Ensure propositions are commerciallyviable,scalableand capable ofdemonstratingmeasurable client value

DEVELOP WORLD‑CLASS EXPERTS:

You will build a specialist community