MarketingAdvisor.ca exists for one kind of person: the owner or manager who approves marketing spend but has no easy way to check it. We give that person a buyer-side advisor who knows how agencies work from the inside, and who explains in plain language what the money buys.
Why this service exists
Marketing is sold by specialists to non-specialists. The agency knows exactly what it is offering; the owner usually does not. That gap isn't anyone's fault, but it shapes every negotiation and every monthly report.
Large companies close the gap by hiring a marketing director to manage vendors. Most Canadian small and mid-sized businesses can't justify that salary, so the owner ends up judging proposals and reports alone, between quoting jobs and doing payroll. MarketingAdvisor.ca fills that seat for a fraction of the cost, on the projects or months where it matters.
Ali Sedighi, MBA
Ali Sedighi leads every advisory engagement. His credential is an MBA in Technology Management, and his time on the agency side of the desk adds up to 17+ years: it began in 2007, the year he founded ONE.ir, a full-service digital marketing agency. Today his home and base of work is Vancouver, British Columbia.
The ventures he has started since include Conv.ca, an agency focused on conversion-rate optimisation, and MyAutomation.ca; at SAZ.ca his title is Founder & Managing Partner. His client list spans Canada, the USA and Dubai, and his portfolio counts 150+ HVAC websites that are live today. You can read more on his profile at Sedighi.ca.
That agency-side history is the reason the advice is useful. Having scoped retainers, built campaigns and written client reports for many years, Ali knows which line items carry real labour, which metrics hide weak results, and which questions make a vendor pause.
The group behind the work
MarketingAdvisor.ca is part of the Sedighi.ca and SAZ.ca group of companies. On one side sits Sedighi.ca, the company through which Ali consults on growth, marketing and technology; HVAC.Agency, HVAC.Digital, Trades.Agency, BusinessConsulting.ca and Conv.ca are among its brands. On the other sits SAZ.ca (the name stands for Strategy & Acceleration Zone), a Canadian firm advising on strategy, AI and revenue acceleration.
The group is Canadian and headquartered in Vancouver, BC, and it serves clients across the country. Our consulting fees follow the Sedighi.ca consulting model, which is set out on our pricing page.
How we handle the obvious question
Because the group also runs marketing agencies, a fair reader will ask whether our advice leans toward our own services. Here is how we deal with that:
- Disclosure first. If any vendor on a shortlist or in a recommendation is connected to our group, you hear it before you see any scores.
- Same scorecard. Group services are scored on exactly the same criteria as outside vendors, and you see every score.
- An outside option. When we think a group service fits, we show at least one credible outside alternative alongside it.
- Payment in writing. How we are paid on your engagement is stated in your proposal. Ask us about it; you should ask any advisor the same.
How we work
Every engagement follows the same principles, whether it is a two-hour proposal review or a year of oversight.
- Evidence before opinion. We look at the accounts, invoices and data before forming a view, and every finding comes with something you can check.
- Your numbers decide. Budgets and targets come from your margins, capacity and close rates, not from industry averages or vendor suggestions.
- Plain language. Reports are written for an owner, not a marketer. If a term needs explaining, we explain it.
- You decide. We recommend; you choose. Sometimes the right advice is to keep your current vendor and change nothing.
- Stay in our lane. We provide business and marketing consulting. Legal, tax and accounting questions go to qualified professionals.
We advise owners in every province and territory, in person or by video call, phone, text and email; the areas we serve section explains regional differences in privacy, language and consumer rules that affect marketing.
What our background does and doesn't prove
Our published results come from home-heating businesses, and we present them as results from our HVAC work. They show that clear targets and honest tracking can produce strong returns, for example HVACDeal.ca reaching a 12:1 ROI on 500+ leads. They don't prove that any particular result will happen in your business, and we won't suggest otherwise.
What does transfer is the method: set targets from real economics, measure what matters, and hold every vendor to the same standard. See the details on our results page, or start a conversation through the contact page.
Frequently asked questions
Who owns MarketingAdvisor.ca?
The advisory practice belongs to the Sedighi.ca and SAZ.ca group of companies. The group is Canadian, with its headquarters in Vancouver, British Columbia, and Ali Sedighi, MBA, leads the advisory work personally.
Your group runs agencies. Isn't that a conflict of interest?
It could be, which is why we handle it in the open. We disclose any connection to a recommended vendor at the start, score group services on the same criteria as outside ones, and put the way we are paid on your engagement in writing in your proposal.
Do you give legal or accounting advice about marketing contracts?
No. We give business and marketing consulting. When a question turns on legal wording, tax treatment or accounting, we say so and suggest you take it to a qualified professional.
Do you meet clients in person?
Yes. Consultations are available in person or online by video call, and we also advise by phone, text and email, which lets us serve owners across Canada on the same terms.