A Website for a Resilient Keynote Speaker: Eileen McDargh, the Lemon Cake Sweetheart

I just relaunched Eileen’s new 2023 keynote speaker website. It is the third rendition of her website that we have published since we became acquainted in 2008.

Not a Referral for Web Design & Development Service

She was referred to me by Linda Larsen, a client of mine for over 20 years, who is in the same business as Eileen. It was not that Eileen needed a website, but rather because Linda wanted to bring attention to a friend of hers in need.

As most of you know, I had a major motorcycle accident in 2008 and suffered from limb loss. Aside from my family and loved ones coming to my aid, Linda Larsen started a fundraising campaign to help “her webmaster” and friend recover.

My relationship with Eileen began when she elected to contribute to the fundraiser to aid a complete stranger’s recovery purely on a friend’s whim.

As I was recovering in Arizona, Eileen even called me up to check on me and how I was doing. When you have good friends who haven't even checked on you, but a stranger does, you realize how special it is to have her in your life.

We became friends, and we didn’t talk business until later in 2010, after we got to know each other better.

Websites for Keynote and Motivational Speakers

Thanks to Linda Larsen, I have been privileged to serve over a dozen motivational and keynote speaker clients over the years. 

Though most speakers preferred Wordpress, Eileen’s site was built on the Adobe Business Catalyst platform, and it didn’t take much to convince her to accept my recommendation.

Business Catalyst Website Builder vs Wordpress

Business Catalyst was a SaaS (Software as a Service) website builder, where Adobe handled all platform updates. Wordpress requires constant server-side, platform, and plugin updates that the clients, webmasters, and host-providers are responsible for. I prefer that my clients spend their resources on marketing rather than trying to figure out why their website isn't working as it should due to a plugin conflict. 

Eileen's initial site would last 7 years on that platform. She was an avid blogger, producing over 500 blog posts and a newsletter called The Resiliency Report, which she sends to all her subscribers monthly.

Business Catalyst EOL

In 2018, Adobe announced Business Catalyst’s End of Life and set a deadline for the service's end. I had two years to migrate 170 sites off that service and onto others. Of the batch, about 5% didn’t need their site anymore, 10% went to Wordpress, 10% when to Duda (a new local SF-based SAAS service), and the rest went to Wix.

Wix and their EditorX Platform

I wasn’t completely sold on the Wix platform at that time. Five years prior, I absolutely hated that platform. However, after closer review and having the need to find an immediate solution, I discovered that they had a lot going on and big changes were coming down the pipe. This is when I moved Eileen over to Wix in 2018.

After launch, she kept blogging and email marketing as always, but then COVID happened, and during that time, we all struggled to find a way to “keep going.”

On the flip side of the pandemic, she decided to reinvent herself. It was perfect timing because Wix rolled out their EditorX platform, the most enjoyable platform I have ever worked with.

Everyone couldn't be happier.

Eileen McDargh is The Resilience Builder

We truly did a complete makeover of her site from the old to the new. Traffic has tripled since the relaunch.

All these years, I wondered why she reached out to me back in 2009. I was very humbled by all the donations, but even more so after our call. As I got to know her and her content during this rebuild, I realized why she reached out to me back then – she didn't just contribute to the fund, she was aiding my recovery by sharing her words of resiliency.

Check her site and her message.

AND yes I was rewarded with yet another loaf of her yummy, yummy LEMON CAKE!