Ada Digital Marketing, a digital marketing agency from Kenilworth has been ranked in the Elite Business Top 100 SMEs in the UK, less than five years after the company launched.

Ada Digital Marketing was ranked 87th in the Elite Business Top 100 SME Businesses UK 2024 awards, rubbing shoulders with a huge range of brands and beating off competition from hundreds of other companies from across the nation. 

The accolade - which was presented during a two-day event in London - was a "huge achievement" for Ada Digital, which was launched in 2019 by Kenilworth born and bred Tom Murrell.

In 2023, Dani joined the company, meaning the two could put their combined 30 years of digital marketing experience together to best support their clients.

Ada Digital offers a variety of services - including Web Design, Search Engine Optimisation, Google Ads, Content strategy, Conversion Rate Optimisation and Paid Social Advertising - and works with clients ranging from new businesses getting online for the first time, to established organisations like Samsung, Warwick University and the NHS.

Ada Digital Marketing combines Dani and Tom's joint 30 years of digital marketing experience (image by Ana Frantz Photography)

Having been ranked in Elite Business Top 100 SMEs in the UK, Tom told Nub News he had a huge sense of pride at what they have achieved, in such a short space of time. 

"There are a lot of digital marketing agencies and consultants out there, so to be able to say we are award winning and in the Top 100 SMEs nationwide in the UK, is huge for us," Tom said.

"On a personal level as well, we have been in corporate jobs previously and won awards but that has always been part of someone else's business and as part of a big team.

"But when it was our business that we created, to receive that recognition is really special and completely different sense of achievement compared to awards in the past."

'Pinch Me' Moment

Each business was analysed and ranked by a team of 30 judges - including former Dragons' Den entrepreneur Piers Linney - the criteria to enter includes SME businesses with up to 250 employees, and with turnovers up to £50 million. 

The ranking also includes companies from an incredibly broad range of industries, and features nationally recognised brands including fine dining wholesaler Cotswold Fayre, renewable energy manufacturers myenergi and multi-million-pound skincare brand Dr Paw Paw. 

So for Ada Digital Marketing to be ranked among large nationwide brands, it showed they "must be doing something right".

Ada Digital was ranked number 87 (image supplied)

Dani said: "After we submitted the application, we heard nothing back, and we focused on our clients. 

"We thought it was a long shot, as it's for established businesses, for businesses up to 250 employees, we were in a pool of big competition, so we knew it might not lead to anything. 

"And then Scott English [Founder of Elite Business] rang and said the table of judges had chosen us.

"I honestly didn't believe him. And then when it sunk in, it was a real 'pinch me' moment."

The Top 100 SMEs in the UK is also sponsored by major brands including TikTok, Sky, Vodafone, Cisco, British Business Bank and Club Wembley, which Tom and Dani said show how well regarded the awards are.

Watch This Space

The March awards ceremony for the top 100 SMEs also included a conference where the winners were able to hear from a range of speakers including some of the judges.

It was also an invaluable networking opportunity, and a chance for Tom and Dani to meet other companies at a similar point in their journeys.

Dani said: "It was great to speak to people who have been in business for a long time and have achieved so much. 

"We spoke to people who have been running businesses much longer than us, who still have big aspirations, and this helped give us a glimpse of where we could be heading.

"It was a really collaborative few days. Everyone was in a similar boat, and I just couldn't believe we were part of it."

Dani and Tom said the awards was also a great chance to learn from oyther businesses (image supplied)

The pair said they had learnt a lot from their fellow Top 100 firms, and said there were a number of things they have already brought back to help clients in Warwickshire and beyond.

One of the things that really stood out to Ada Digital was the use of AI, and how they could help empower their clients to bring such tools into day to day work.

"What was really interesting is how much AI is a real buzz at the moment, even though it has been around for years; we have used it in our day to day work for a long time," Tom said.

"There is a bit of negativity around Artificial Intelligence. But really it is about someone with a skill set, knowing when to use AI and how. It is not about replacing people. It's about boosting productivity, capacity and efficiency in marketing, and in business. 

"I came away from the conference thinking there are a lot of things we have learnt that will help us become more efficient, and bring innovation to our clients for years to come.

"So watch this space - AI implementation is the thing we are going to dive into over the next six to 12 months - we want to be your AI driven digital marketing partner."

Record Year

Alongside the Elite Business Top 100 SMEs in the UK ranking 2024 has brought further cause for celebration for Ada Digital as it celebrates its record year since launching.

The company, which works with small start ups all the way to worldwide brands like Porcelanosa, has continued to expand its range of clients, as well as furthering its relationship with existing ones.

Since year one, Ada has seen 250 per cent growth and is forecast to achieve 320 per cent at the end of year five, which Tom puts down to focusing on clients' needs, and making everything as simple as possible for them.

"Ada Digital was created through my frustrations of working in the corporate world and constantly coming up against blockers with agencies," he explained. 

"We started Ada Digital, thinking about just getting the basics right, and making things easy for our clients. We've worked both agency and client side, we know it's about providing solutions. 

"So being proactive, working hard, transparency in what we are doing, reporting on ROI, and being honest, those are our key pillars we have always stuck to. 

"And of course, we need to make sure our client's objectives align with what we are doing, and make sure communication is always there."

Ada Digital prides itself on working closely with clients to achieve their goals (image by Ana Frantz Photography)

As well as using their years of digital marketing experience to develop bespoke packages for clients, the pair also said their knowledge of working for larger companies had proved invaluable.

And Dani - who left her job as Head of Digital Retention with LloydsPharmacy to join Ada Digital - said their love of helping clients achieve their goals is as strong as ever.

"When we bring on new clients we genuinely feel like we are part of their team," she said. 

"Of course we are providing a service, but we feel like an extended arm of their team and that we are all in it together. 

"We care about all the brands we work with, and we want to see them succeed - and I think that is a differentiator to some bigger agencies."

Sky's the Limit

The two-day awards also gave Tom and Dani the chance to reflect on how the business has grown over the past four years.

No longer a start-up, Ada is now an award winning, established brand, but the duo said they have no plans to slow down.

"It honestly was a pinch me moment," Dani added. 

"We didn't expect anything from this, but we are so glad we took the opportunity. 

"It was really quite scary to leave the corporate world, to take this leap of faith with Ada Digital and leave the trusty safety net of a 'normal' job, and I just cannot believe where we are now. 

Tom: 'Maybe next year we will be even higher on the list' (image supplied)

Tom added: "It is genuinely exciting to think where we will go next. 

"We have come so far in the past year in particular, since Dani joined.

"Now it feels like the sky's the limit, and we can drive this in any direction we want. 

"It is brilliant to get that recognition, after all those late nights and weekends, and you start to realise it is all working. So now we just want to keep going, and maybe next year we will be even higher on the list!"

To find out more about Ada Digital, click here to visit the website, or head to the Instagram page here.