A mid-level hire took Japan. Not a director. Not the most expensive person on th
By George Barnett Reid 👀 · November 9, 2026 · Curated by George's Blog
A mid-level hire took Japan.
Not a director. Not the most expensive person on the market.
Global gaming-accessories brand, Japan is their single biggest market, and it was drifting.
From the client's own scored quarterly review:
→ $2.1M in sales against a $1.9M goal
→ ACOS down from 24.5% to 20.1%, while spend was scaling
→ PPC sales up 57.5% across the quarter — $122K, then $192K, then $228K
→ 4.6x ROAS on a new launch inside 90 days, $75K in ad sales off $16K spend
The interesting bit isn't the sales number. It's that ACOS fell while spend went up. That only happens when someone is pruning and expanding in the same week, every week.
Client's words: "Strong at digging into the detail and translating data into action."
They scored the placement 4 out of 5, not 5. I'd rather show you that than pretend everything lands perfectly.
P.S. What's the most senior title you've hired that, looking back, you didn't actually need? 🤔