There’s an expectation that journalists be impartial and separate from the events and people they cover. But sometimes, acknowledging the connection between reporter and subject can bring something special and more authentic to a piece of writing. This is one of those times. I’m breaking down the fourth wall to tell you, the reader, about what I know about Danijel Slisko and the evolution of his digital marketing company, Cerco Creative Marketing.
I first met Danijel when I profiled him and his company, United Supreme, for Business in Calgary magazine five years ago. Throughout my career, I’ve had the opportunity to interview a wide range of business owners, entrepreneurs and leaders, but even among that long list of accomplished professionals, Danijel stuck out. And he continues to stand out as he redefines marketing by focusing on people and relationships rather than business deals and transactions.
This year marks thirty years since Danijel started his first business. Twenty five of those years were spent building United into one of the leading commercial and industrial coatings companies in Western Canada.
After selling United, Danijel found himself at an unexpected crossroads. For the first time in decades, he wasn’t responsible for a company of a few hundred employees, and he could finally slow down enough to consider what came next.
“United was like a Ferrari. It was going 300 kilometres an hour and I had to be conditioned to run a company that big. So when I sold it, it was like getting out of that car and feeling like I suddenly wasn’t moving anymore. After exiting, it took me a little bit to find myself,” Danijel says. “I had to figure out what I wanted to do and how I was going to do it.”
One thing he knew right away was that the answer wouldn’t be another construction company or a large-scale operation. Instead, his next act became something far more personal, a business built around his greatest strength: bringing people together. While entrepreneurship is often portrayed as a solitary pursuit, Danijel believes the opposite is true.
“No one builds a business alone. I really do believe business is a team sport,” he says. “I see myself as a marketing entrepreneur, a community organizer. Really, I’m a person who supports others by helping, by spotlighting them,” he says.
That has become the foundation of both his personal brand, and also for his company’s.
Cerco Creative Marketing didn’t begin as a traditional marketing agency. It evolved organically out of the businesses, experiences and relationships Danijel accumulated over his career. One piece of his new company was formed from his early fascination with design.
Years ago, Danijel dabbled with graphics at United with a ‘wayfinding’ division that offered custom wallpaper, stencils and signage offering directions. From here, the name ‘Cerco’ reflects Danijel’s vision. In Italian, cerco means “I search” or “I look for.” It also carries a deeper meaning connected to finding direction; it’s a perfect description for a company that helps organizations discover how to communicate their story.
“That’s why we named the agency ‘Cerco’ because the translation is ‘wayfinding’ or ‘to look for direction’. It’s kind of fitting because if you’re lost and you need help, we’ll lead you in the right direction,” he says.
Walk into Cerco Creative Marketing on any given afternoon and you won’t find a room full of specialists guarding their own corners. You’ll find designers leaning over a developer’s shoulder, a marketing coordinator sketching a campaign next to the SEO experts, and everyone circling back to the same question: what does this client actually need to grow? The atmosphere itself sets expectations, the kind of premium environment that signals the team takes its craft seriously, never losing the spark that makes partnerships feel like more than transactions.
That instinct for teamwork isn’t an accident. With a diverse blend of expertise and experience, the team has become a leader in both digital design and traditional innovation, blending year-over-year marketing approaches with the latest technologies to make sure a client’s brand dominates in the environment it operates in. But underneath the jargon is a foundation of people addicted to creating, learning and growing to foster intentional diversity.
Between the associate publisher, lead operational developer, marketing coordinators, SEO and SEM specialists, admin staff and a roster of talented contractors, Cerco’s team is a mosaic of expertise that discovers new heights in what others have missed and scales Cerco beyond the curve.
“Someone’s making sense of operations, someone else is deep in full-stack code and our coordinators are turning stats into campaigns people actually notice with the help of the SEO team. Plus, with our designers, developers and multimedia experts, nobody’s really hyper focused on one thing, which is exactly why it works so well,” Danijel says.
The team is as multicultural as it is multidisciplinary, drawing on lived experience from across the globe rather than a single point of view. That range of culture and perspective shapes the work in ways technical skill alone never could.
It’s an unusual mix for a marketing agency, and that’s precisely the point. Cerco was never interested in following the trend. Its goal is to be several things at once, trusting each other to deliver excellence together.
That range shows up directly in the work. Branding and design lay the foundation, from logo systems to websites that actually look like the brand they represent rather than a recycled template. Marketing services, from strategy to content calendars to monthly reporting, are built around a number the client agrees to move, not a vague sense of activity.
Paid advertising is treated the same way, tested constantly and cut the moment it stops converting. Web solutions keep the technology running smoothly, so problems get caught before a client ever notices them. Search engine optimization gets people found and researched against real keyword behaviour for result-driven progress. Cerco’s integration of AI is for the sole purpose of sharpening work, not replacing it, to move faster, reach further and grow smarter.
Merchandise, often overlooked, gets the same design attention as everything else. The team’s attention to detail ensures that what a client approves on paper is exactly what arrives at their door.
“My wife, Rosina, handles that part with my boys. She’s the queen of the hunt. It’s fun, especially when it’s something that’s harder to find. Whatever you can imagine, we have access to somebody that can provide it, all with a custom flare,” he says.
The extensive reach Cerco has in its marketing outreach was built on thirty years of visionary leadership, relentless innovation and deep-rooted community trust, proof that Cerco’s growth has always been about building alongside others, not just for them.
Cerco Store gives clients a direct line to custom merchandise and branded goods. UTAGG’s custom NFC digital business cards allow you to connect with a single tap to give you an edge on competitors. Brand100 celebrates Canada’s top one hundred founders and organizations shaping the region’s business story.
To further highlight businesses and leaders, Brand Magazine was launched to emphasize diversity and the power of scaling trust, helping brands build meaningful connections that strengthen their influence and reach. Family Psychology Magazine, on the other hand, focuses on professional wellness, exploring the people, practices and perspectives that support mental health professionals as they strive to better serve their clients. Brand Magazine and Family Psychology Magazine turn storytelling into publishing, giving business leaders and mental health professionals alike a platform built specifically to highlight their voices and share what they are passionate about with their intended audience.
The Private Exchange brings that same spirit into a room, hosting quarterly intimate, invite-only gatherings designed for networking, sharing insights and discussing scaling strategies, all in a solicitation-free zone.
The team believes results and relationships were never rivals; they’re two threads of the same story. Every touchpoint, from the first meeting to the tenth month of a campaign, becomes a chance for human connection, empathy and growth.
That culture of shared ownership and thirty years of experience is what Cerco is betting its future on. In an industry often defined by noise, they are betting on something quieter and harder to fake: growth, craft and authenticity.
Becoming the most trusted marketing agency in Western Canada isn’t a distant hope. Rather, it’s a destination already within reach because the people needed to get there are already in the room. It’s that blend of backgrounds, brought together under one roof, that lets Cerco Creative Marketing hand clients a process and a result they can genuinely be proud of.
Rennay Craats - Rennay Craats is a prolific Canadian author and professional writer based in Calgary, Alberta. With a career spanning over two decades, she has authored dozens of non-fiction books for children and young adults, specializing in educational topics such as Canadian history, geography, and sports. Her notable series include Canada through the Decades and the My Favorite Writer biographies. Beyond juvenile literature, Craats is a prominent figure in business journalism. She is a frequent contributor to Business magazines, where she profiles industry leaders and explores regional economic trends. She also serves as a strategic writer for Nuvera Partners, crafting corporate narratives and marketing packages that translate complex business histories into compelling value drivers for the mid-market space.
