Persona templates, LinkedIn ads, and Canadian data

#1
Better ideal customer profile templates (specific to B2B)

Here's the exact ICP templates I use when taking clients through strategic planning sessions (no email required). My goal? To free you from those flimsy personas that feel like the “A/S/L?” days of early internet chatrooms.

For example, “We target CXO women ages 45-65 in the SaaS space” doesn’t offer much insight into where you fit into their world—or why they should choose your services.

The templates are in two parts:
1. a table of questions to get deeper on your ICP's world.
2. A matrix to prioritize which ICP to focus if you have multiple.

There's an explainer video to show you how to use them, with files available in Miro, Canva, Google, and Microsoft formats.

My question to you: Can everyone on your team easily articulate who your ICPs are? If not, this template may help. Housing this information in a central document is key to aligning your team and your strategy.

#2
7 scenarios to use LinkedIn ads instead of/before Google and Meta

LinkedIn ads are still the sleeper channel for many companies. Which is kinda odd when you consider LinkedIn is ripe for marketing B2B offerings. Especially since you can target people that work at certain companies or have specific job roles.

7 Scenarios when LinkedIn Ads is a must channel (Maybe before Google Ads and Meta Ads) is a video that highlights the buying stages and industries most suited for LinkedIn ads. Post-secondary accreditation and industry events, for example, do well on this platform.

If LinkedIn ads are new territory for you, the video includes a step-by-step guide to setting them up, plus best practices to help you get started. While I always recommend working with paid media specialists to maximize ROI, it’s valuable for marketing leaders to understand the basics of how these ads work.

My question to you: is your content and offer ready for paid ads to send targeted traffic their way?

#3
Change call-to-action buttons to call-to-value conversion magnets

Stop saying "Learn More": how to create buttons that convert hinges on the concept that due to their design, buttons are often first before the rest of content of a page. If they're generic, it plants ambiguity in the reader's mind. And if the reader isn't ready to take the level of action you want, there's opportunity to point to value they'll get if they take the next step. For example:

"Book a Call" becomes "Request a breakthrough"
"Subscribe Now" becomes "Transform your brand"

It's a subtle tweak to try!

My question to you: hen's the last time you reviewed your website to ensure your call-to-actions reflect your most current audience research?

#4
Audience research tool now has Canadian data AND content ideas

If you've been munching on Marketing Snacks for a while, you know I’m a big fan of the audience research tool SparkToro. This month, they rolled out two exciting new features:

Canadian and UK specific data: a refreshing shift from the usual American focus in martech.

The ability to generate content ideas from the data: a long-requested feature to help marketers uncover topics their audiences care about.

When I met founder Rand Fishkin at the B2B Marketing Forum two weeks ago, I even gave him a mini Coffee Crisp to celebrate the Canadian rollout!

What’s great about the content generation feature is its focus on topics and interests, not just keywords. From SparkToro:

"Topics and Interests are bigger than keywords; they’re subjects people care about, even if search engines might not. Newsletter writers, social media marketers, podcasters, video hosts, and creators of all kinds looking to break out of the SEO box, but still wanting to inform their work with audience data—[SparkToro's] got your back."

I am so thankful the team of SparkToro exists. They're such ethical, humble people who truly want us all to figure out where our audience hangs out online.

My question to you: how are you conducting audience research to ensure all your hard work actually reaches the people it’s meant for?

Honour, growth, and other words that shape strategy

I'm reading New Happy by Stephanie Harrison, and paying attention to my contributions to negative systems. What can I change within my role of the status quo for more positive impact?

As I help B2B brands put more good into the world, I’ve been reflecting on the words I use with clients during strategic planning sessions. Words have power—they shape our experiences, decisions, and even our impact.

These words aren’t just placeholders; they’re tools that guide us to think differently about our strategies and outcomes. Here are a few that spark the strongest reactions during sessions—and why I use them.

💙 Honour
Example: "Let's take a moment to honour the decision you made to create X; the risk you took to publish it; and the resources you put into it."

We spend so much time focusing on the outcomes of our marketing that it's easy to dismiss what went into it. Honouring what it takes to bring something from idea to public consumption is important and valid. If we're not reflecting on the journey, what's the point of the destination?

🌱 Growth
Example: "I agree X growth is a top priority. Let's envision what that looks like together, so we can plan a way to get there."

Note I've not specified what is growing here. From my perspective, it doesn't matter. Revenue, followers, locations, calls booked, brand authority, etc. They all require "strong roots" to support the weight of whatever increase is coming. Marketing's job is to be that support in multiple ways.

🧠 Instinct
Example: "You have great instinct that X channel needs more attention. What brought you to that conclusion?"

I see this often with companies that deeply understand their ideal audience. Instinct, to me, goes beyond gut feelings—it’s informed by research, client feedback, and market trends. It’s the culmination of insights your team has gathered and refined over time. Witnessing this wisdom open new doors is one of the most rewarding parts of what I do.

♻️ Sustainable
Example: "Let's make that initiative more sustainable for the team by reusing more of what's already created and reducing new projects."

A lot of what a garden needs throughout the year can be found within itself. Debris becomes cover or fertilizer. One kind of plant acts as a insect repellent for another. This sustainability is what I look to achieve with clients. So they reclaim time by simplify systems with what they already have. It works for nature, and it absolutely can work for your marketing, too.

- - -
I’d love to hear what these words spark for you. Are there words you use often—or avoid—when thinking about your strategy?

Your strategic marketing partner,

Alison K