This fall has been more beautiful than the past few, both here in Mammoth and at my parents’ home in N.C. The last two years in Mammoth we had wildfire smoke that just wouldn’t quit, and the forest surrounding our town was closed for weeks on end. Mammoth Lakes is about four square miles surrounded by public land, so when the forest closes, it’s hard to find a place to walk your dog or yourself.
This year, though… bright blue skies, warm weather, whole swaths of fully golden aspens and orange willows. No smoke, no fires, no closures. I didn’t even pack my emergency grab bag this year. The easy times living here are a joy I had forgotten.
I recently got back from a quick trip to North Carolina to see the fam and be with my parents’ college friends who’ve been gathering every fall for 30+ years now. The leaves were brighter and bolder than I’d seen in years, the weather was perfect, and the group reminded me of everything I love about community. Without a word, someone different was always building up the fire, cleaning the kitchen, putting out the sandwich fixins.
I’m grateful for ease lately — getting to travel, hug people I love, admire bright fall leaves.
This Month’s Observation: Redesigning a website can feel really hard.
I’ve been working on my website redesign for the past couple of months. It was long overdue, so I set some reasonable-seeming goals and carved out time for it every week.
What I re-discovered: this process can be HARD. I didn’t hire anyone to help with copywriting, design, photos or development. I tried to follow my own processes, but I was the one responsible for keeping things moving. I did my best, but I still got stuck.
There were so many dependencies and so many ambiguous, brain-power-needed tasks to get through that the project stretched out longer than planned. I’m thankful for the deadlines I set (and told people about) or it would have taken far, far longer.
We don’t always have budgets to hire professional website designers, copywriters, business strategists, or brand photographers, but my main takeaway is that anything that you can afford to outsource should be seriously considered. There are so many places you can get stuck, and it can be hard to get through it on your own.
I shared a few reflections on my blog about where these sticky points were and what you can do if you get stuck during a redesign.
Website & SEO Updates from Around the Web
How to Write Alt Text: The Complete Guide
The author, AccessiCart, is an industry leader in website accessibility. This guide has everything you need to write your own alt text well.
6 Common SEO Mistakes & How to Avoid Them
A great short wrap-up. I look at site speed, whether meta descriptions are set, content quality, and mobile responsiveness in my website audits.
WordPress Hit 100 Million Downloads
If you have a WordPress website, you helped get them there!
What Is Organic Search?
“Google doesn’t really care about organic search. What Google does care about is making sure its users find unique, useful, and relevant content for what they are looking for.”
4 Alternative Ways to Approach Black Friday
Heartwarming and mission-driven ways for brands to mark this “holiday.”
How to Write a Blog Post
If you’re considering getting into blogging, this is a great, comprehensive, step-by-step manual.
Client Spotlight: AWExpeditions
AWExpeditions (AWE) runs all-women high mountain trips across four continents.
Owner Sunny Stoeer reached out a few months ago for help rebuilding the company’s Squarespace website on WordPress with the same look but with more robust trip pages and easier booking for their clients.
Mission accomplished — see the live site, and consider AWE if you’re looking for a big adventure.
