Websites built by humans in Chico, California. Do you know who or what built your website? Or where? You may not know it, but a lot of marketing agencies outsource most of their web design work to cheap overseas freelancers. That’s okay, I guess. But when you hire someone to build a website, we think […]
Thoughts
Why showers boost creativity
Why do we think better in the shower? DMN Our brains love showers The phenomenon of feeling more creative or having clearer thoughts in the shower is tied to a combination of psychological, physiological, and environmental factors. This can happen for a few reasons. Default mode network activation When you’re doing something relatively automatic and […]
New Year’s Resolutions 2025
It’s 2025. You can stop wasting time on newsletters, webinars, funnels, secret circles, storytelling, and Google. Happy New Year 2024 was weird. Seriously, 2024 was a troubling year on a lot of fronts. However, on a more positive note, some of the upheaval has relieved you of the burden of worrying about many popular marketing […]
The Grinch figures out Christmas
It came without ribbons!It came without tags!It came without packages, boxes or bags! Merry Christmas How could it be so? And the Grinch, with his grinch-feet ice-cold in the snow,stood puzzling and puzzling: How could it be so? It came without ribbons! It came without tags!It came without packages, boxes or bags. And he puzzled […]
Questionable marketing stuff
Do I really need personas, storytelling, mood boards, journey mapping, or brand archetypes? Nope. Just say no When searching for a web designer, you’ll likely encounter a baffling array of packages, plans, processes, and magic products. These “special” services are easy to spot — their titles typically feature buzzwords like blueprint, playbook, workshop, or roadmap. […]
AI adoption slows to a crawl
Has AI adoption slowed? Yes. To a crawl. Use of AI among U.S. workers stalls Despite ongoing enthusiasm from tech-happy management, the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) by U.S. workers has slowed to a crawl. The latest Slack Workforce Index reveals that AI adoption rates among American employees have effectively stalled over the past three […]
The truth about ads for free websites
If you’re a good enough web designer to charge for your work, then why would you run ads to give away websites for free? You wouldn’t. Are free websites really free? Unlikely. Any web designer or marketing agency that’s paying for ads to give away free websites is probably working some sort of angle that’s […]
What is generative engine optimization?
What the hell is GEO? Don’t ask. GEO is the new SEO. GEO stands for generative engine optimization. It’s the shiny new thing that the search engine optimization (SEO) industry will be trying to sell you in 2025. What does it do? GEO claims to optimize website content for generative AI platforms like ChatGPT, Gemini, […]
Messaging versus design
Is messaging more important than design? Wrong question. Beware of amateurs. If your web designer claims that messaging is more important than design, they’re either confused or inexperienced. How so? Design isn’t just about how something looks. As Steve Jobs put it: “Design is how it works.” When it comes to websites, that includes architecture, […]
Soul-infused website design
“What is soul-infused website design?” Hmm. We were stumped. We’ll admit it — we had no idea what this was. As dedicated professionals, we try to stay informed about the latest web design breakthroughs, but we clearly missed this one. So, we asked ChatGPT. Here’s what she came up with: “Rather than focusing purely on […]
