Trusted by CEOs Across Industries
CESSON — We Make Marketing & AI Click — Digital Marketing Agency for CEOs
Badass Marketing Since 2005

Your competitors are showing up in AI search.
You probably aren’t.
That gap is growing every day.

CESSON has navigated every major shift in digital marketing since 2006. This one — AI search — is the biggest. And most agencies still haven’t figured out what to do about it. 150 million Americans are using ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, Copilot, and Claude to research, compare, and decide who to buy from. When your name doesn’t come up — you didn’t lose that lead. You never entered the conversation.

Find Out Where You Stand — Free AI Assessment Or pick Philippe’s brain — Free 20-Min CEO Strategy Call →
Philippe Cesson — Founder and Badass-in-Chief at CESSON digital marketing agency
2006
In business — navigating every shift since
$0
Cut taken from your ad spend — ever
7 yrs
Average client tenure — in an industry built on promises
150M
Americans using AI to decide who to buy from
Why This Moment Is Different

Every shift created winners.
And businesses that looked up one day wondering where their pipeline went.

2006

Google is rewriting how businesses get found. Most companies have no idea how to show up. CESSON is founded to fix that.

2010

Social media changes how customers find and trust brands. The businesses that build real audiences early own channels that later cost competitors a fortune to reach. CESSON helps clients get there first.

2015

Mobile changes everything about how people search and buy. Companies that adapt convert. Everyone else is still optimizing for desktop. CESSON is already rebuilding for mobile.

2020

Data privacy and automation change how you reach and nurture leads. Businesses with real systems keep their pipeline moving. The ones running on gut feel fall behind. CESSON builds the systems.

2026

AI has changed who shows up when your prospects go looking. Most businesses aren’t in that conversation yet. CESSON is making sure its clients are.

Twenty years. Five shifts. One question that never changes: are you ahead of it or behind it?

Does Any of This Sound Familiar?

The problems CEOs bring to CESSON.

01

Your marketing is either making you money or it isn’t. Do you know which?

Vanity metrics fill the report. Qualified leads don’t fill the pipeline. There’s a difference between marketing that looks busy and marketing that produces revenue — and most CEOs can’t tell which one they’re paying for.

↓ See what good ROI measurement looks likeRead more: Is Your Marketing Making Money? →
02

You’ve been through the agency cycle. You know exactly how it ends.

Promise-heavy pitch. Enthusiastic onboarding. Gradual disappointment. Defensive reporting. The structural problems that cause it are never addressed — because addressing them isn’t in the agency’s interest.

↓ See how CESSON is built differentlyRead more: Bad Agency Experiences →
03

Everyone’s talking about AI. Nobody’s explaining what it means for your business.

The rules changed. Your competitors may already be ahead. And the agency you have now probably hasn’t figured out the difference between AI as a productivity tool and AI as a search channel your prospects are already using.

↓ See what’s real vs. hypeRead more: AI Confusion →
04

Your best future customers can’t hear you.

Gen Z and Gen Alpha research, validate, and buy differently. The channels that built your business aren’t where the next generation of buyers makes decisions. Every year this gap goes unaddressed, it compounds.

↓ See what the generational gap is costing youRead more: Generational Invisibility →
05

You’re spending on ads. But do you know which ones are actually working?

Most CEOs running paid media can tell you what they spent. Very few can tell you which campaign produced which lead, which lead closed, and what each new client actually cost them. That’s not a reporting problem. It’s a structural one.

↓ See how attribution should actually workRead more: My Ads Aren’t Working →

We Make Marketing
& AI Click.

CESSON handles everything marketing — building the brand, creating the content, managing the channels, generating the leads, and making sure your business shows up wherever prospects are looking, including AI search. Every engagement is led personally by Philippe Cesson, founder and Badass-in-Chief, with a specialized team executing across each discipline.

01
No markup, no surprises

Zero cut of your ad spend. Fees cover everything. No nickel and diming, no surprise invoices at the end of the month.

02
Philippe personally

The strategist who wins your business is the strategist on your account. No bait-and-switch, no junior team behind the curtain.

03
The team stays ahead so you don’t have to

CEOs get the applicable sizzle, not the sweat to get it.

04
AI is in everything we do

Your content shows up in ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, Copilot, and Claude. Not a buzzword. Built in from day one.

Why CEOs Stay

Nine reasons CESSON is different.
Only one way to find out if it’s true.

01

The average CESSON client has been with us for 7 years.

In an industry built on promises, we’ll let that speak for itself.

02

Built for CEOs.

Everything at CESSON is designed around the person who leads the company — not marketing jargon, not deliverable checklists, not activity reports. You get straight answers, plain language, and a clear connection between what we do and what your business produces.

03

Philippe personally.

The strategist who wins your business is the strategist on your account. Philippe Cesson — founder, Badass-in-Chief, Vistage member, 400+ CEO presentations — is personally involved in every CESSON engagement. There is no junior team behind the curtain.

04

The team stays ahead so you don’t have to.

The team tracks and is immersed in a daily-evolving industry so clients don’t have to. CEOs get the applicable sizzle, not the sweat to get it.

05

No markup, no surprises.

CESSON takes zero cut of your ad spend. Our fees cover what they cover — no nickel and diming, no additional hours conversation at the end of the month, no invoice that’s 40% higher than you expected. You know what you’re paying before the month starts.

06

No software kickbacks.

CESSON never recommends software because of what we make on the sale. We work with what you already have or propose tools that fit your specific situation based on what’s right for your business, not what earns us a reseller commission.

07

We work with what you have.

Internal marketing team, outside vendors, existing agencies. CESSON doesn’t require a clean slate. We complement and elevate whatever setup you have — and make the whole operation stronger without disrupting what’s already working.

08

AI is in everything we do.

Your content is structured to show up in AI search answers and establish your authority in your market. Our team uses AI to work faster and smarter. And we bring AI into your business in ways that create real advantage. Not a buzzword. Built into every engagement from day one.

09

Full visibility, full control, world-class practices.

Open, industry-leading platforms — no proprietary tools that trap you. Your data is encrypted and always yours. And you can check in on your projects 24/7 from your phone, tablet, or desktop. You always know where things stand.

10

You own everything.

Your website. Your ad accounts. Your content. Your data. Always. If you ever leave CESSON — which our clients rarely do — you take everything with you. No hostage situations. Ever.

What CESSON
Actually Does

We don’t sell packages. We diagnose your specific marketing problem and build the solution around it. Every engagement starts with our Free AI Assessment.

Organic Visibility

SEO & Local SEO

Rankings that bring qualified buyers, not just traffic volume. Built for both Google and AI search.

LEARN MORE → AI Search Visibility

GEO — Generative Engine Optimization

Structured to be cited by ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude, and Copilot when prospects search your category.

LEARN MORE → Paid Media

Paid Advertising

Every dollar tracked to a business outcome. Google, LinkedIn, Meta — zero ad spend markup, ever.

LEARN MORE → Content & Authority

Content Strategy & Authority Building

Content that ranks on Google, gets cited by AI, establishes your authority, and converts the right prospects.

LEARN MORE → Pipeline

Lead Generation

A systematic pipeline that attracts, qualifies, and converts your ideal prospects — consistently.

LEARN MORE → AI Implementation

AI Marketing Implementation

AI tools deployed strategically across your marketing and your business. Faster execution, smarter decisions, human judgment throughout.

LEARN MORE →
What Clients Say

Results in their words.

“About a month ago I received the first phone call from a potential client who found us on the web and said ‘can you help us?’ — we wouldn’t have been found like that in the past. I know it’s because of the fine work CESSON did.”
— Mark Stefanick, Advantage Benefit Solutions
“CESSON was instrumental in developing Google advertising campaigns for our different products and services. They produced a high-quality marketing plan that helped us reach out to the publishing community and sign a large publishing agreement.”
— Dr. Christophe Morin, SalesBrain
“Working with CESSON was an amazing experience from start to finish. I reached out after we had a bad experience with another developer who left our company website in shambles. CESSON was easily able to pick up the pieces.”
— Allison Lewis, Pilot Painting & Construction
“CESSON has been a significant asset to our company for years with their vast knowledge of marketing, technology, and social media. They have helped us grow our platform interactions, improve our SEO, organize our leads, and advance our website.”
— Hillary Perry, A. Perry Homes
“CESSON’s insights and entrepreneurial acumen offer us a unique perspective on how to identify, cultivate and secure clients — from finding new markets to creating the strategies and tools needed to execute.”
— Tony Perry, A Space 2 Work
“I highly recommend the CESSON team to any business that wants to get to the next level. They have all the latest technology and most importantly a team that knows how to best utilize their tools to help improve or start up your new business.”
— Tony Cimorelli, Baillie Lumber Co.
“With CESSON you are delivered exactly what you are promised. CESSON created materials for our library of knowledge that are simple and easy to understand. I’m very happy with the results.”
— Brad Shapiro, C & E Vision
“Taking one of our videos close to 1 million views in less than a month has been incredible to see. CESSON has helped us build a brand that we know and feel is needed — one that can have a deep and meaningful impact on the world.”
— Marlon Saunders, The Music Oasis
“Our experience with CESSON has been phenomenal. Their team is engaged and current, and they create amazing content. Our social media profile has been taken to a new level and has greatly enhanced our business.”
— Allison Duggan, Anew Era TMS & Psychiatry
“CESSON brings fresh, updated perspectives to SEO — something that’s rare to find these days. Their work in revitalizing our website has been immensely valuable.”
— Vincent Tran, DiscoveryMD
“Working with CESSON has been an excellent experience. The team has been incredibly helpful, responsive, and available — even when last-minute needs came up. Their support has made a significant impact.”
— Kyleigh Geraghty, Discovery B&H
“I would like to thank you for the wonderful job you and your staff did on my website. Everyone has been highly professional and easy to reach. Your creative staff provided me with options I never could have thought of myself.”
— Richard Renkin, Law Office Renkin & Associates
Case Studies

Real results. Real clients.

Anew Era TMS

Needed blog visibility and organic authority in a competitive healthcare category.

25+ blog posts on page 1 of Google. One ranked #1 nationally with over 20,000 page views.

A. Perry Homes

Needed service page visibility across two states for a custom home building company.

12 Illinois and 31 Tennessee service pages on page 1 of Google, positions 1–4.

The Music Oasis

Needed to build a brand and audience from zero for a new music retreat concept.

1M+ video views in under a month. Concept to successful launch in under a year.

Pilot Painting & Construction

Needed a new website after a previous developer left the site in disrepair.

Load time from 9 seconds to 2 seconds. Users, page views, and visitors doubled.

McGrath Training Solutions

Needed to build LinkedIn presence and generate leads for a compliance training company.

Double-digit LinkedIn growth in a few months, resulting in several dozen new clients.

Baillie Lumber Co.

Needed to scale a digital presence from one brand to a multi-brand portfolio.

15-year partnership. One website scaled to 14 brand-specific sites across 30 facilities.

Free — Delivered Live on Zoom

When Your Buyers Ask AI Who To Call or Buy From — Does Your Company Name Come Up?

Probably not. And you won’t know until someone shows you exactly where you stand — and who’s showing up instead of you.

CESSON’s free AI Assessment isn’t a form, an automated scan, or a 40-page PDF nobody reads. It’s a real conversation — researched before you arrive, delivered live on Zoom by Philippe and the team, with a written report sent after.

8Categories Scored
25Minutes Live
90Day Action Plan
$0Cost to You

Still reading? That means you already know something’s off. Let’s find out what.

Get Your Free AI Assessment

Researched and delivered personally by the CESSON team on a private 1-on-1 Zoom. Your full written report is sent after the call — free, yours to keep.

  • AI Readiness Score across 8 categories
  • Competitor visibility breakdown — who’s showing up instead of you
  • The exact AI search queries where you’re invisible
  • Full priority action plan ranked by impact
  • 90-day timeline you can act on immediately
  • Quick wins that move the needle in 1–2 weeks
Get My Free AI Assessment Prefer a quick call? Pick Philippe’s brain — 20 min →
FAQ

What CEOs ask before working with CESSON.

CESSON is a boutique digital marketing agency founded in 2005 in California, built specifically for CEOs who expect their marketing investment to generate real business results. CESSON handles everything marketing — building the brand, creating the content, managing the channels, generating the leads, and making sure the business shows up wherever prospects are looking, including AI search. Services include SEO and local SEO, GEO — Generative Engine Optimization, paid advertising including retargeting and remarketing, content creation and copywriting, graphic design, social media management, lead generation, email marketing and nurture campaigns, CRM integration, website building and development, reputation management, brand strategy, AI marketing implementation, and analytics. Every engagement is led personally by Philippe Cesson, founder and Badass-in-Chief.
Several things — and they compound. Philippe Cesson is personally involved in every engagement. No bait-and-switch, no junior team behind the curtain. The strategist who wins your business is the strategist on your account. CESSON takes zero percentage of your ad spend and charges no hidden fees. What you’re quoted is what you pay — no nickel and diming, no surprise invoices at the end of the month. CESSON never recommends software because of what we make on the sale. CESSON is built for AI search from day one. Content is structured to show up in ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, Copilot, and Claude. Clients own everything — website, data, ad accounts, content. Always. The average CESSON client has been with us for 7 years. In an industry built on promises, that number speaks for itself.
CESSON adapts to whatever setup a client has. For CEOs without an internal marketing team, CESSON becomes the entire marketing operation — strategy, execution, and accountability all in one place. For CEOs with an internal team, outside vendors, or an existing agency, CESSON complements and elevates what’s already there — providing senior strategic direction, filling specific gaps, or working alongside existing partners. No clean slate required. The goal is always the same: make the entire marketing operation stronger.
The AI Assessment is a custom analysis of your business — not a template or automated scan. Before your call, CESSON researches your company, audits your AI search visibility, and identifies which competitors are showing up instead of you. During a 25-minute live Zoom, Philippe and the team deliver your AI Readiness Score across 8 categories, a competitor visibility breakdown by name, the specific search queries where you’re currently invisible, a prioritized 90-day action plan, and a quick wins list you can act on immediately. A full written report is sent after the call. It is completely free and comes with no obligation.
GEO — Generative Engine Optimization — is the practice of structuring content so it gets cited by AI platforms like ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude, and Copilot when users ask questions in your category. Traditional SEO targets Google search rankings. GEO targets AI-generated answers. When a prospect asks an AI platform who to trust in your industry, the AI cites specific sources and recommends specific businesses. If your content is not structured to be cited — and if your domain and content authority aren’t strong enough to be recognized as a trusted source — your business does not appear in that answer. GEO matters because 150 million Americans are now using AI platforms to research, compare, and make buying decisions — and that number is growing every month.
CESSON’s fees are structured around the scope of work and the business outcomes you’re trying to achieve. We don’t sell packages — we build what your specific situation requires. Most CESSON engagements run between $3,000 and $5,000 per month, though larger and more comprehensive engagements go well beyond that. There is no ad spend markup on top of those fees, no software kickbacks, and no surprise invoices. The free AI Assessment is the right place to start — it tells you what your specific situation requires before any conversation about investment.
CESSON builds for results at every time horizon. Immediately upon implementation: paid advertising, schema and structured data, retargeting, email campaigns, Google Business Profile optimization, and social media deliver visibility from day one. Within weeks: landing page optimization, quick-win SEO fixes, LinkedIn outreach, and reputation management take effect. Within one to three months: new content gets indexed, lead capture and nurture sequences build pipeline. Beyond three months: SEO and content marketing build meaningful organic visibility, and AI search visibility compounds as domain and content authority grow. Every engagement includes monthly in-depth reporting and quarterly strategy deep-dives. You always know where things stand.
After the call, you receive a full written report by email — a PDF that captures your AI Readiness Score, the competitor visibility breakdown, the specific gaps identified, and the prioritized action plan discussed during the session. It’s yours to keep regardless of what you decide next. If the findings indicate a mutual fit, Philippe will walk you through what an engagement would look like. There is no pressure and no pitch. If CESSON isn’t the right fit, you still leave with a clear picture of where your marketing stands. The only thing it costs you is 25 minutes.