- Journal
Field notes on marketing
& growth in Canada.
Does Your SaaS Site Need an llms.txt File?
Somebody told you to add an llms.txt file so AI assistants cite your product. Google says no AI system uses it. Here is what does matter.
How to Split a $2,000 Monthly Marketing Budget
You have $2,000 a month for marketing and no framework for splitting it. Here is a worked allocation, and the honest floor for paid media.
Who Actually Owns Your Google Business Profile?
Your developer set up your Google Business Profile and left. Here is what Google's ownership rules actually allow, and how to get access back.
Google's New Rule on Bilingual Business Names
Google now disallows repeating your business name in two languages or scripts, even if that is what your sign says. Here is what to change.
What Makes a SaaS Trial Signup Page Actually Convert
Trial signup benchmarks, what the credit-card data really means, why cutting form fields is overrated, and what to test when you cannot run a valid test.
Your Google Business Profile Got Suspended. Now What?
What Google actually documents about suspended profiles, the appeal step by step, and the one Canadian detail almost nobody mentions.
Google's AI Search Report: What It Shows, What It Hides
Google reports how often you show up in AI Overviews and AI Mode. One metric, most Canadian sites cannot see it yet, and the coverage gets one part wrong.
Which Google Business Profile Photos Actually Help?
Google does not say photos improve your local ranking. Here is what its own documentation actually says, and which photos quietly get removed.
Google Changed Its Search Links. Does It Affect You?
Google now routes search result clicks through its own redirect. Here is what it actually breaks, what nobody has proven yet, and what to check this week.
B2B SaaS Startup? Run a Marketing Audit First
Buying ads before auditing your funnel is a deploy with no logging. What an audit covers, what skipping it costs, and what a week of it gets you.
Content Marketing vs Paid Ads: Which to Fund First?
Not a matter of principle. A question about cash flow and time horizon. Run the cost-per-lead arithmetic first, and the answer usually decides itself.
How AI Search Is Changing SEO for Canadian Businesses
AI answers now sit above the results and fewer people click through. What actually changed, what Google says to do about it, and what is worth ignoring.
Do You Need a Website If You Have a Google Business Profile?
Sometimes the honest answer is no. When a Google Business Profile is genuinely enough, the four things it cannot do, and what a real website has to be.
Your Business Is on Apple Maps Too. Have You Claimed It?
Two thirds of Canadian mobile browsing happens on iPhones, and Apple Maps is the default. Here is how to claim and build your listing in about 30 minutes.
The 3 Biggest Mistakes Canadian Consultants Make Online
Three things that make independent Canadian consultants hard to hire, and one legal requirement most of them get wrong before their first campaign.
Mobile-First: Is Your Website Failing Customers?
In Canada, desktop still beats mobile for page views. Mobile-first design matters more than ever anyway. Here is why those two facts do not conflict.
Why Your Law Firm's Website Is Losing Clients
Five reasons Canadian law firm websites lose clients before a lawyer is ever contacted, including the trust signals your law society will not let you use.
What Happens to a Google Profile You Never Touch
Google does not penalize a quiet Google Business Profile. What actually happens is slower, harder to notice, and easier to fix than you think.
Google Removed Q&A From Business Profiles. Now What?
Google retired the Q&A section on Business Profiles in favour of Ask Maps. Here are five places those answers belong now, and the one you actually control.
The 15-Minute Monthly SEO Routine for Busy Business Owners
Five checks, fifteen minutes, once a month. The realistic SEO routine for an owner who does not have time for more than that, and does not need to.
How to Rank in the Google Maps 3-Pack
The 3-Pack is the block of three businesses Google shows above the map. Here is what actually moves you into it, and what you cannot change.
The Honest Agency Pricing Guide for Canadian Businesses
What a Canadian marketing retainer actually costs, the red flags worth walking away from, and exactly what mayans.STUDIO charges. No call required.
The $0 Website Audit Any Canadian Business Can Do
A free, twenty-minute audit any Canadian business owner can run today: speed, titles, broken links, profile consistency, and calls to action.
5 Signs Your Business Is Invisible on Google (And the Fix)
Five specific, fixable reasons Canadian businesses don't show up on Google, from an incomplete Business Profile to a slow site, with the fix for each.
Your Google Business Profile Checklist for Canadian Businesses
Your Google Business Profile is either your best free salesperson or a digital ghost town with no details and zero photos. Here's the complete, $0, one-afternoon checklist to fix it, before your competitor with the slightly better profile picture steals your next customer.
How to Ask for Google Reviews Without Making It Weird (A Guide for Genuine Interactions & Real Results)
Google reviews do two jobs: convince potential customers to trust you, and help Google decide whether to show your business in local search results. Most business owners either forget to ask or find it painfully awkward. This guide gives you the exact timing, word-for-word scripts, and a straightforward guide so asking for reviews becomes a natural part of every great customer experience.
How Vancouver Service Businesses Actually Win Referrals
Referrals close faster and stick longer than any paid channel. A four-step loop you can run without ever asking anyone for a favour.
An Honest Guide to Paid Ads for Vancouver Businesses
Google, Meta and LinkedIn each do a different job. Work out what a customer is worth to you first, then pick one channel and stay on it.
Why Vancouver Tech Startups Need a Human-First Brand
Gradient mesh, Inter, two-tone purple. Vancouver startups all look alike, which is a strange outcome for a process meant to make you stand out.
Maximizing Local SEO in Metro Vancouver
Metro Vancouver is 23 jurisdictions, and each neighbourhood behaves like its own market. Here is how to rank in the one your customers search from.