I met Christine over at CEM Writing Services back in March of 2022 when she reached out to schedule a custom Squarespace* web design project. I was thrilled because I personally love working with other freelance creatives. They can just relate, ya know? 🤪

Christine offers content writing, strategy and marketing services to clients all over the world. Her approach is different from other content writers because she strongly believes in doing customer research (surveys, interviews, etc…) BEFORE building a content strategy. Additionally, Christine takes a journalistic approach to writing by interviewing multiple subject-matter experts and including their stories and direct quotes in pieces.

Christine also works with brands to create other content assets (podcasts, videos, etc...) that fit into the content strategy. She really focuses on providing readers with as much value as possible with any piece of content she creates. It's always about the reader first and the brand second!

Christine really wanted be taken seriously in her industry and wanted people to feel confident that hiring her is worth the investment. She needed her new website to stand out from the crowd. It needed to be professional and easy to navigate, while still portraying her personality and catching the eyes of her audience.

Introductory Call

Christine and I hopped on an introductory call and got to know each other a bit better. I learned that she wasn’t happy with her current website’s “poor” design. She wanted a website that strategically displayed her offerings and effortlessly pulled in new leads. She also explained that her current traffic is irrelevant because her SEO was not properly set up or optimized. She wanted her new website to first and foremost, PULL IN INQUIRIES. She wanted to improve her SEO in order to attract more relevant leads. So we got to work.

Pre-Build Questionnaire + Content Gathering

Before the project started, I sent Christine my “pre-build questionnaire” which must be completed before the project begins. The questionnaire tells me a bit more about your business, your target audience and what you’re hoping to see in a new website design. Christine provided me with fabulous information in her questionnaire, as well as many example websites in her industry that she admired. She also provided me with a Google Doc containing all of the text content for her new website, as well as wonderful images from a professional photo shoot.

SEO Research, Design + Build

Our project began in early May. I kicked off the project with some important keyword research. I put together a list of keywords that I would later use to optimize the backend of her website for Google. One of the popular keywords we decided to use on the site was “Content Writing Packages” which she is now ranking for on the first page of Google, 4th spot, yay! 🎉

I went ahead and jumped on Canva* to create custom graphics for her new website. Then, I began designing the website in Squarespace. I typically start with fully designing and building the website’s homepage. I completed her new homepage within the first few days of the project and sent Christine a password protected link to check out the progress so far. At this point, she’s able to provide me with feedback and any requests for changes before I continue building the entire website. She was thrilled with how the website was coming together and had very few edits. Here’s a quote from her first impression:

“Elise!!! I wish I could hug you. This is sooooo good. Where have you been all my life? 😅”

Christine and I worked together for the next 2 weeks completing each website page and setting up her blog. At the end of the 2 weeks, her new website was fully ready for launch! I connected her custom domain name, helped her get her website indexed with Google and just like that, her new website was out in the world! Check it out here.

The Results ✓

Christine was ecstatic with the way her new website turned out. The new website has a strategic layout and design that is fun, yet professional, clean, clear and eye-catching. She’s even starting to rank for some of her target keywords on Google and her impressions are steadily trending upwards. Check out her new website below, along with some kind testimonials and social praise from Christine.

I continue to be impressed, Elise. Thank you so much for your fantastic work. It's been an absolute pleasure working with you and I'll be recommending you to anyone who asks about my new website!"

“Elise is amazing! I knew I would be working with someone who's both talented and professional the moment I saw her website. That's what pulled me in first. What followed blew my mind! She has a fool-proof process that makes everything clear from the get-go so that communication flows freely and collaboration is easy. I love her process, her creativity, and her ability to translate my vision into reality. I highly recommend Elise if you're looking for a fantastic Squarespace web designer.”

— Christine McLean, CEM Writing Services

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My modern, service-based templates are designed for entrepreneurs and small businesses who are looking for a professional website design without breaking the bank. Each one of my templates include video tutorials for easy content upload / style tweaks. I also include my Advanced SEO Guide (a $500 value). This guide contains the exact techniques I use to help my SEO clients land on Google page 1.

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