Thornapple Tech

10/02/2026

Website templates can save a lot of time.

They can also leave behind things you don’t realize are still there.

I recently came across a website where Ontario was still showing up in page titles and metadata — even though the business wasn’t in Ontario.

The visible website looked fine.

Behind the scenes? Not so much.

Old template information can hang around in places like:

• Page titles
• Meta descriptions
• URLs
• Image alt text
• Schema
• Hidden pages
• Social sharing settings

Most visitors will never notice any of that.

Google can.

That’s why I don’t think templates are the problem. Incomplete customization is.

If you use Wix, Squarespace, WordPress templates, or any other prebuilt website system, don’t stop once the site looks right. Make sure the technical details actually match your business too.

Sometimes the biggest website problems are the ones you can’t see.

🌐 thornappletech.com
📞 (269) 388-2723

09/28/2026

This was the view out my back window this morning.

Beautiful start to the day. Peaceful. Quiet. It made me stop and say a little gratitude prayer for the freedom I have.

And then, because apparently business ownership enjoys irony, the day had other plans.

That’s actually one of the biggest reasons I care so much about systems.

Because some days I’m at my desk exactly when I planned to be. Other days I’m answering something from the school pickup line, moving meetings around, dealing with a sick kid, fixing something unexpected, or working from a coffee shop because that’s just where the day landed me.

Your business needs to be able to handle that.

Your website should still answer questions.
Your forms should still collect leads.
Your automations should still follow up.
Your Google presence should still be working.
Your systems should still be doing their job.

I don’t want technology to make small business more complicated.
I want it to hold the fort down when life happens.

That’s probably one of the best ways I can explain what I actually build for my clients: systems that create a little more breathing room, flexibility, and freedom in the day-to-day.

If your business still depends too heavily on you manually holding everything together, that’s exactly the kind of problem I help solve.

🌐 thornappletech.com
📞 (269) 388-2723

09/25/2026

We followed the mascot trend and asked ChatGPT to create mascots based on our personalities — and somehow it came back with a duo that feels way too accurate.
Meet Glitch and Scout Spark.

Glitch is mine: a tiny dachshund-dragon in glasses. The dachshund part fits the stubborn, loyal, determined side of me. The dragon adds the intensity, independence, and “I will figure this out no matter what” energy. The name Glitch felt especially fitting for someone who spends a lot of time working in websites, SEO, automations, CRMs, and systems that occasionally decide to stop cooperating.
His tagline: Tiny chaos. Immaculate systems.
Honestly… fair.

LouAnne’s mascot is Scout Spark, a fox-squirrel-ish fantasy creature. The fox side represents curiosity and cleverness, the big energetic tail fits her always-moving personality, and the softer fantasy feel reflects how warm and encouraging she is.
The name came from two sides of her personality: Scout for someone who is always learning, paying attention, and helping guide others, and Spark for the way she brings encouragement and positive energy to the people around her. The little quiz buzzer is a nod to Bible quizzing, and the tagline sums her up pretty well: Always learning, always cheering.

And honestly, put the two together and it feels a lot like Thornapple Tech.

One of us is usually deep in a system trying to figure out why something is broken.
The other is learning, organizing, encouraging, and helping keep everything moving.
A little chaos. A lot of problem solving. Constant learning. And a team that genuinely cares about doing good work for people.

So yes — Thornapple Tech officially has mascots now.
And yes, we’re keeping them.

🌐 thornappletech.com
📞 (269) 388-2723

09/24/2026

This one made our week. 😊 Sandra from Fizer Pools took the time to share how things have been going since we started working on their SEO, and we really appreciate it.

If you've ever wondered what SEO actually does for a local business, here's the simple version. When someone nearby searches for a service like yours, SEO helps make sure your business is one of the first they see. Most people don't scroll past the first few results, so showing up there can make a real difference in how many calls you get.

We've put a lot of work into this one, and it's nice to see it paying off for a local business we love working with. Thank you, Sandra!

09/23/2026

A website doesn’t have to change how a business works. It should make it easier for people to understand how the business already works.

That was the goal with the brand-new website we recently launched for Tri-Pine Tack & Western Boutique.

Before I designed anything, I sat down with Brandy to learn about the family behind the business, how they sell, what matters to them, and what makes Tri-Pine different.

From there, Thornapple Tech handled the project from the ground up: new domain, website strategy and design, copy, SEO foundations, Google Search Console, forms, and the systems behind the site.

One thing I especially wanted them to have was a way to build an email list.

Social media is powerful, but your audience shouldn’t exist only on someone else’s platform. Remember when TikTok went down? Platforms change. Algorithms change. An email list gives a business a direct connection to the people who actually want to hear from them.

Tri-Pine’s newsletters will be coming soon, so check out their new site, learn more about this four-generation family business, and join their list:

👉 https://tripinetack.com

If your business has grown but your website no longer reflects what you’ve built, that’s exactly the kind of project I love working on.

🌐 thornappletech.com
📞 (269) 388-2723

09/22/2026

Last weekend I was here, camping with my family and friends, looking at this view. Then last night I was back at my computer digging through client websites, Google search data, Google Business Profiles, website crawls, indexing issues, service pages, schema, redirects, internal links, and reporting.

That contrast is actually a pretty good picture of life at Thornapple Tech right now.

A lot of the work we do never makes it to social media. It happens quietly behind the scenes like finding what isn’t working, figuring out why, and deciding what needs to happen next.

Our clients are busy running their businesses. They shouldn’t have to constantly wonder whether Google is finding the right pages, whether their website is saying the right things, whether their social content sounds like them, or whether some technical issue is quietly getting in the way.

That’s the stuff we pay attention to.

So yes, we’ve been quiet over here. But we definitely haven’t stopped working.

08/16/2026

I love it when a friend ups their tech in their business 😎 If you have not seen Jason’s before and afters of his work, you need to!

Finally upgraded the JC Hydro Blast office setup! 💻🔥

I seriously don’t know how I ran this entire business for so long straight from a cell phone. 😂

Two monitors, the new laptop, everything right in front of me—quotes, scheduling, customers, marketing, photos, emails… this is an absolute GAME CHANGER for JC Hydro Blast!

Always looking for ways to improve—not just out in the field, but behind the scenes too.

JC Hydro Blast LLC
💦 Bring New Life to Your Greatest Investment!
BLAST ON!

08/14/2026

Kids are with Gigi, the office in town was too hot, so it's a patio work day! 🌳🐾 The dogs are just as happy about it as I am.

This week we helped a client launch a new online intake system for student athletes — cutting out hours of paperwork, manual checking, and cash/check handling. Every new system has its hiccups, but we're really happy with how this launch went, and learned a lot for future ones.

Closing out the week drafting brand voices for client websites and social media (so their content sounds like them, not us), polishing up older sites, and fine-tuning phone system features for clients who don't have a full-time receptionist and spend their days out in the field.

This is exactly why I do this — helping other business owners run smoother, show up online, and make their lives a little easier. 💛

07/31/2026

Friday afternoons are for handyman work to get the new office settled 😎 (and yes, my boys have appointed themselves official assistants for the job).

Outside of that, it's been a productive week! LouAnne and I helped two clients with website rebrands — reveals coming next week — mapped out our goals for the rest of the year, and put together social media content for clients to help build their brand authority.

So what is brand authority, and why does it matter? In short, it's the trust and credibility your brand builds online through consistent, helpful content, reviews, and engagement. It's a bigger deal than ever because Google and AI tools like ChatGPT and Claude use those same signals to decide who to recommend when people ask questions in your industry.

More on that next week!

07/28/2026

📋✨ First official dry erase board meeting = we’re basically a Fortune 500 company now 😂

LouAnne and I sat down (well, actually we stood up and paced a bit around our new big office — too excited to sit still!) to map out our goals for the rest of 2026 — rooted in Colossians 3:23 (work as if we’re working for the Lord), with a clear focus on increasing efficiency to serve our community and clients better, without ever cutting corners on customer service.

Small team. Big goals. Grateful for every client who trusts us with their business. 🙌