Derek Oja, Marketing Expert in Cedar Rapids, IA, United States
Derek is available for hire
Hire Derek

Derek Oja

Verified Expert  in Marketing

Bio

Derek has 15+ years of experience in digital marketing, driving growth for startups and large corporations across industries, including sports, B2B tech, manufacturing, transportation, and agriculture. He manages nearly $2 million in annual ad spend, delivering strong results and focusing on top-of-funnel lead and sales generation. Derek crafts data-driven strategies to boost brand awareness, attract quality leads, and support sustainable growth.

Project Highlights

ROAS for Online Retailer
Helped an online retailer achieve a 650% return on ad spend (ROAS) on around $1 million in ad spend.
Meta Ads for eCommerce Brand
Implemented and managed Meta Ads campaigns that drive over $200,000 in monthly revenue at a rate of 5x ROAS.
Click-through Rate Improvement for Golf Entertainment Company
Employed SEO to help a golf franchise improve its click-through rate by over 40% on over 80,000 monthly impressions.

Expertise

  • Advertising
  • Digital Marketing
  • Google Ads
  • Graphic Design
  • Lead Generation
  • Marketing Strategy
  • Meta Ads
  • Social Media

Work Experience

Owner

2014 - PRESENT
3Eighty Marketing
  • Managed a client ad spend of up to $2 million annually, strategically allocating budgets to maximize ROI and achieve campaign objectives.
  • Oversaw 12-18 clients' workloads every month, effectively prioritizing projects as required.
  • Handled a diverse range of daily projects covering the entire scope of marketing.
  • Provided timely reporting and analysis of in-progress and completed projects.

Marketing Strategist (Contract)

2013 - PRESENT
PinSeekers
  • Led digital marketing execution involving orchestrating strategic campaigns, optimizing channel performance, and driving measurable results for PinSeekers franchise growth.
  • Optimized the PinSeekers site for SEO, continuously implementing changes and adjustments to enhance local/regional search visibility and improve performance over time.
  • Created and managed all paid advertising efforts, ensuring strategic placement and budget efficiency and maximizing ROI across various digital platforms.
  • Built graphics that adhered to athlete NIL rules and followed Big Ten school design guidelines, ensuring compliance and consistency across all materials.
  • Designed all graphics for digital platforms, print advertising, and in-house placements, ensuring cohesive branding and visual appeal across all media.

Fractional Marketing Director

2022 - 2024
Iowa Brewing
  • Advised ownership and leadership teams on corporate marketing strategies and handled end-to-end execution of action items.
  • Handled all marketing assets for in-house, online, and print, including paid advertising, event promotion, strategy, graphic design, website upkeep, and social media management.
  • Contributed to product and package design, ensuring visual appeal and brand consistency.

Marketing Specialist

2018 - 2021
New Leader Manufacturing
  • Managed all marketing campaigns from strategy, ideation, creation, and execution, to analysis and reporting/recommendations.
  • Handled creative development for co-marketing campaigns with OEM partners like John Deere and Case IH, aligning brand messaging and visuals for successful collaborations.
  • Assisted in a rebrand implementation that led to a first-place award for corporate Identity from the National Agri-marketing Association (NAMA).
  • Collaborated with a brand refresh that led to the International MarCom Awards as gold winners.

B2B Marketing Manager

2017 - 2018
TaxAct
  • Worked alongside the marketing and sales teams to support revenue growth goals through client strategy, business development, and B2B marketing activities.
  • Planned, directed, and executed marketing programs to increase the demand for products and services offered by TaxAct for professional and business customers.
  • Generated 20% of company revenue while being allocated only 1% of the total marketing budget.

Marketing Project Manager

2009 - 2017
MobileDemand
  • Handled planning, creation, deployment, and analysis of all inbound and outbound marketing.
  • Led company creative assets for co-marketing campaigns with OEM partners such as Microsoft and Intel.
  • Managed international channel partner marketing support.

Project History

ROAS for Online Retailer

Helped an online retailer achieve a 650% return on ad spend (ROAS) on around $1 million in ad spend.

The company needed to increase sales via online store and phone call sales. With this in mind, I implemented aggressive Google Ads and Microsoft Ads sales campaigns to drive relevant traffic to the website and increase phone calls. This resulted in a 650% ROAS for the client.

Meta Ads for eCommerce Brand

Implemented and managed Meta Ads campaigns that drive over $200,000 in monthly revenue at a rate of 5x ROAS.

I led and managed Meta Ads campaigns generating over $200,000 in monthly revenue with a consistent 5x ROAS for an eCommerce brand specializing in supplements for animals and humans. I developed strategic ad creative content, aiming to scale performance while maintaining efficiency and strong customer acquisition results.

Advertising for Holiday Gift Card Sales

Obtained over 16,000% return on ad spend (ROAS) for a holiday campaign.

The company is in its first year of business and wanted to promote online gift card sales leading up to the holidays. I launched and managed Google Ads and Meta Ads promoting gift card purchases, ultimately generating holiday gift card sales that equated to over 16,000% ROAS.

Click-through Rate Improvement for Golf Entertainment Company

Employed SEO to help a golf franchise improve its click-through rate by over 40% on over 80,000 monthly impressions.

The client's previous marketing agency did not optimize their website for search engines, which led to poor search performance. I did a full SEO revamp of the client's website, including custom metadata, page speed, and new content creation.

Exponential Growth for Mobile App Through Paid Advertising

Leveraged Google Ads and social media ads to drive over 1,000 new monthly users to download the mobile app.

The company needed to increase the number of farmers and farmhands downloading and using the app. I used a combination of Google Ads and social media ads (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter) to help drive 1,000 new downloads per month on a $0.15-0.25 cost per click.

Revenue Increase for Regional Retailer

Helped a regional retailer increase revenue by 15% thanks to seasonal Google Ads campaigns.

With increased competition, the client wanted to boost the visibility of their brand and product among high school students and their parents. I implemented an aggressive regional Google Ads campaign to increase brand awareness and boost online and in-store sales.

Optimization for Local Dentist Office

Drove a large local dentist office toward a new website, cutting data entry time by 95%.

The client had an outdated website that did not represent them as a company. They wanted something new, modern, and clean that was easy for people to navigate and understand. They also needed a website platform that was easy for them to make changes; they needed to digitize their form processes to cut down on manual data entry.

As a result, I created a brand new, responsive Wix website and optimized it for local SEO. I also helped them implement a digital consent form their clients could complete before their first dentist appointment.

Education

2006 - 2010

Bachelor's Degree in Marketing

Mount Mercy College - Cedar Rapids, Iowa, USA

Skills

Core

Google Ads, LinkedIn Ads, Social Media, Digital Marketing, Branding, Web Marketing, Lead Generation, Local SEO, Brand Strategy, Marketing Strategy, Content, Apple Search Ads, Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Social Media Marketing (SMM), Content Creation, Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO), Product Marketing, Paid Advertising, Pay-per-Click (PPC), Email Marketing, Marketing, Digital Marketing Strategy, Facebook Ads, Performance Marketing, Search Engine Marketing (SEM), Google SEO, SEO Audits, WordPress SEO, Marketing Mix, Keyword Research, Social Media Advertising

Platforms & Tools

Canva, Mailchimp, Bing Ads, Google My Business, X (formerly Twitter) Marketing, Adobe Suite, Google Analytics, Screaming Frog, Instagram Ads

Business Models

B2B

Other

Meta Ads, Microsoft Advertising, Wix, Strategy, Website Management, Advertising, B2B Marketing, Email Marketing Strategy, Facebook, Instagram, X (formerly Twitter), Google Play Store, Growth Strategy, Growth Marketing, PPC Campaign Management, Brand Management, Graphic Design, WordPress, Event Marketing, Squarespace, B2B Partnerships, Trade Shows, Partnership Marketing, Mobile Apps, Shopify SEO, Brand Awareness, Amazon, eCommerce, Startup Marketing, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Photography, Page Speed Optimization, Shopify, Website Design, Customer Retention, Sales Growth

Collaboration That Works

How to Work with Toptal

Toptal matches you directly with global industry experts from our network in hours—not weeks or months.

1

Share your needs

Discuss your requirements and refine your scope in a call with a Toptal domain expert.
2

Choose your talent

Get a short list of expertly matched talent within 24 hours to review, interview, and choose from.
3

Start your risk-free talent trial

Work with your chosen talent on a trial basis for up to two weeks. Pay only if you decide to hire them.

Top talent is in high demand.

Start hiring