Hi, I'm Joonas.
Ex-agency co-owner from Finland, with 10+ years spending real marketing budgets for 100+ clients. I help small business owners, solo marketers and consultants choose SEO and AI search software: what it costs, what it does, and how much work is left after you subscribe.
Ten years spending real marketing budgets, now pointed at one question: which SEO and AI search tools are worth a small business's money.
Agency Co-Owner (Helsinki)→Builder→SEO & AI Visibility(still a marketer at heart)
I co-owned Mediashake, a marketing agency in Helsinki, for over a decade, working with 100+ clients across SaaS, ecommerce, real estate and professional services. I saw which tools earned their fee and which ones quietly drained the budget. Today I combine that experience with current product, pricing and competitor research to explain which software fits which buyer.
How I Judge SEO and AI Search Software
The goal is to answer one practical question: which product fits your situation? I assess every tool against the same three decision areas.
I look at the work the product helps complete, the skill and time it demands, and whether it fits a small business, specialist, agency or marketing team. Direct use informs product-specific observations when relevant. The recommendation also draws on my agency experience and knowledge of the wider market.
I verify current plans against official pricing and calculate the configuration a realistic buyer needs. That includes seats, projects, usage limits, annual commitments and add-ons, so a low starting price does not hide the likely bill.
I compare the product with its closest alternatives, check official documentation and current product information, and use credible third-party feedback for patterns that need broader evidence. I say plainly when a simpler or cheaper option is enough.
Where the Data Comes From
Hands-on or desk research, always labeled
Pages based on hands-on use are marked as hands-on reviews. Every other tool is checked through desk research: its own pricing page, documentation and help center, plus public feedback.
When a vendor changes its plans, I update the page and the date I last checked it. Prices are in USD by default, and in euros first for European vendors.
A Note on AI
AI helps with research, data extraction and first drafts. I check the claims, make the editorial decisions and take responsibility for every recommendation. My judgment comes from 10+ years of running campaigns, buying software and managing budgets, combined with current research into each product, its buyers and its competitors.
My Journey
I co-owned Mediashake, a digital marketing agency in Helsinki, for over a decade. It grew to nearly 30 marketers serving 100+ clients across Finland and the Nordics, in SaaS, ecommerce, real estate and professional services. That is where I learned which tools actually deliver and which ones just look good in a demo.
What kept coming back, from a one-person business or a 30-person team, was the same question: which tool should I actually pay for? The honest answer changes with the size of the business, the site it runs on and the budget, and almost nobody writes it down that way. Review sites rewrite the vendor's feature list and call it a verdict.
So I built the resource I wished existed: SEO and AI visibility tools, priced against the vendor's own page, with a straight answer about who each one is for.
Who I Write For
Small business owners and solo marketers
Local service businesses, consultants, professional-service firms and small online shops. You pick the tool, pay for it and use it yourself, so cost, setup effort and the work left after you subscribe matter most.
Small agencies and SEO consultants
The same tools, a different question: what it costs across several client sites, how reporting and permissions work, and whether the workflow repeats.
What I cover
SEO software and AI-visibility (GEO) software, plus close neighbours like rank tracking, content optimization and crawling. I stay in that lane so each page can go deep.
What This Site Is For
After a decade of buying marketing tools and managing software budgets for real clients, I know the problem firsthand: there are hundreds of SEO and AI search tools, they all promise rankings or AI visibility, and most review sites just rewrite the vendor's feature list back at you.
That Marketing Buddy exists to give you the straight answer instead. Prices checked against the vendor's own page, including what happens when the intro discount ends, combined with the judgment of someone who has spent the budget, run the campaigns, and dealt with the consequences of picking the wrong tool.
I know which tools a business owner can genuinely run alone, which ones need a specialist, and which ones make sense only once you have a team. Nothing on this site ranks higher, or gets a better verdict, because someone paid me.
I run a few other small sites, from European marketing tools to Finnish price comparisons. They are listed on rjdigital.fi.
How I Make Money
Some links on this site are affiliate links, meaning I earn a commission if you sign up through them (at no extra cost to you). This is how I fund the research and keep the site running. A commission never changes a ranking, verdict or comparison, and I say so when a tool is not a good fit for a reader. Vendors can also pay for a review, a sponsor card or a content piece, and each of those is labeled on the page.
Sponsored cards sit outside the ranked lists and their links are marked as sponsored.
For Software Vendors
I get emails from marketing tools every week asking how to get in front of my readers. Here is what is actually on the table.
My rankings, verdicts and recommendations are never for sale. What you can pay for is visibility, my time, or placement, never the opinion.
Index listing
I add your tool to my software index with researched, verified data. No verdict or ranking.
Hands-on review
I test your tool and publish an honest review, disclosed as paid. You pay for my time, not the verdict.
Sponsored placement
One clearly labeled sponsor card on a best or alternatives page. Never part of the ranking. Recurring monthly: minimum 3 months, then one month's notice by email to cancel.
Content partnership
A piece I write about your tool, disclosed as a partnership. I take one or two a month.
Affiliate Partnership
Your standard program, or a negotiated deal for the right audience fit. Links are labeled and tracked.
Partner Deal
A code, longer trial or extra credits my readers cannot get on your pricing page. It needs a tracking link, and I pull it when it expires.
Find the Right Tool
Start with a best-of guide for your situation, or check a tool's real cost and limits before you pay for it.