Please give us a bit of background about your company and what you do
We are Ace Digital. We are a creative content and advertising agency that specialises in e-commerce marketing. Our extremely talented creative content team offer a complete digital solution which includes optimised paid social advertising, web conversion optimisation, organic social media management and more. Our specialist areas are video content creation and paid advertising.
I started the company with Tristan Van Ingen-Kal, also a Massey graduate, in one of our workshops. After losing my job of four years in early 2020 due to Covid, I was a bit shaken up. I wasn't expecting to be dropped so suddenly and this really solidified my decision to become an entrepreneur. I never wanted my livelihood to be in the hands of someone else ever again. Having a passion for creativity and advertising I knew I wanted to own a social media marketing agency one day.
Tristan is an entrepreneur at heart and already had a business called The Cart Warehouse when I met him at uni. We began talking about business a lot and when I shared my long-term goal to start my own marketing agency, he encouraged me and so we decided to team up and just do it. We spent the next few weeks researching how to start a business as well as company names, buying domains etc. and finally started Ace Digital.
The first year or so it was just the two of us and we probably made a loss with the amount of food and beer we consumed! However, two years on we are a six-figure agency with eight employees and seeing consistent growth every month. It is crazy to look back at the days on campus when we were just messing around with WordPress and Canva!
What is the value of your connection with Massey Business School?
So valuable. Tristan and I both studied our Bachelor of Business at Massey and that is where we met so Ace Digital wouldn't exist without MBS. In particular our Marketing Lecturer, Simon Cope, has been a huge help to us from when we were getting started and still now to this day. He is great to talk to about all things entrepreneurial and marketing. MBS has been so valuable to us; the lecturers were understanding of our commitments outside of uni and they were always enthusiastic and willing to share their knowledge and expertise with us whenever we asked.
What qualities and skills do you look for when hiring graduates?
The most important quality for us when looking for an employee is their attitude. Skills can be taught and learnt but attitude is key. We exclusively hire enthusiastic and positive employees who align with our greater vision for the company, and do not just fill a role on paper. Our company culture is very important to us, and we all get along well so making sure any future employees fit into this culture is key.
What advice would you offer to Massey students to get the most out of their time as a student?
Take advantage of all the resources available while you have them! Especially the great facilities Massey has to offer and the networking opportunities. I would say get to know as many like-minded people as possible while you are at uni as you never know where your lives will lead to down the track. Many of our distant connections from old schools or sports teams have come around and are now some of our now favourite clients! So, Massey is definitely a great place for networking and making connections, even if it doesn't seem that way at first.
As well as students, connect and spend time with as many lecturers as possible. There is a reason they are teaching a class and the knowledge and expertise they possess is invaluable. Once you leave uni, it is not every day you will be able to pick the brain of someone like that. I would say get to know them as well as possible and really ask them your questions - most are more than willing to help out!
What trends are impacting the future of employment in your sector?
I believe adaptability is going to be one of the most significant factors influencing the future job market of digital marketing. Given the nature of the industry, technologies and skillsets are constantly evolving and changing the way we do things online. Take TikTok for example. Keeping up with technologies such as web 3.0 and the advancements that will come with that will be so important to this industry.