Insights
Notes on building a better web.
Occasional writing on strategy, design, craft, and the business of being memorable online. Written from the work, for the people deciding what their next website has to do.
- 01
Why most business websites fail to convert
Most business websites don't fail on looks. They fail on decisions: who the site is for, what it asks of them, and whether each page earns the next step.
Strategy4 min
- 02
Designing trust into a service-business website
For a contractor, clinic, or firm, the website's job is trust. How to build it with real work, specific claims, visible people, and a low-risk first step.
Design4 min
- 03
What makes a website feel premium?
Premium is not decoration. It is typography, space, motion with a reason, honest photography, speed, and the last five percent most sites never finish.
Craft4 min
- 04
Strategy before aesthetics
Why the most expensive design decision is the one made without a reason, and what a web project should settle before anyone opens a design tool.
Process4 min
- 05
Building websites for the AI search era
Search is becoming an answer instead of a list. What answer engines need from a business website: quotable pages, truthful structured data, and speed.
Technology4 min
- 06
The hidden cost of template-based design
Templates are cheap to start and expensive to keep. The sameness tax, the workaround tax, performance debt, and when a template is still the right call.
Perspective3 min
- 07
Can you write off your website? A guide for Canadian businesses
How the CRA treats website costs: current expense or Class 12 capital, what the reinstated Accelerated Investment Incentive means for timing.
Business6 min
- 08
Can you write off your website? A guide for US businesses
How the IRS treats website costs after the 2025 tax law: Section 174A for development, ordinary expenses for hosting and ads, Section 179, and domains.
Business7 min
- 09
How much does a website cost in Canada?
Real starting points from an Ontario studio, what moves the price up or down, what should be included, and the questions to ask before you compare quotes.
Business4 min
- 10
How long does it take to build a website?
Honest timelines by project type, where the weeks actually go, what slows a build down, and how to launch on the date you need without cutting quality.
Process3 min
- 11
Do you still need a website if you have Google and Instagram?
What a Google Business Profile and social media do well, what they cannot do, and why businesses that win locally treat the website as the destination.
Strategy3 min
- 12
Custom website vs Squarespace, Wix, and WordPress
A fair comparison of website builders, WordPress, and a custom build: what each does well, where each runs out, and how to choose for the business you want.
Perspective3 min
- 13
When to redesign your website
Age is not a reason. The signs a website has started costing you customers, the ones that only look like problems, and how to choose refresh or rebuild.
Strategy3 min
- 14
AODA and website accessibility: what Ontario businesses need to know
Who the AODA web rules apply to, what WCAG 2.0 Level AA means in practice, the reporting deadline, and why an accessible site is worth building regardless.
Business3 min
- 15
Local SEO for service businesses: how to get found in your area
How a landscaper, barbershop, or contractor gets found on Google locally: the profile, the site, pages that answer local questions, and consistency.
Technology3 min
- 16
Why is my website slow, and what is it costing you?
The usual causes of a slow business website, how to check yours in five minutes, what speed costs you in enquiries and visibility, and what fast is built from.
Technology3 min