Blog: design, websites and marketing

Article · Nov 9, 2026

Facebook ads cost more every year: quality beats budget against rising prices

Every quarter, Meta discloses what advertising on Facebook and Instagram costs. In five charts, I show how much prices in Europe have risen, why the end of the year gets particularly crowded and where you can still save.

Article · Nov 8, 2026

WordPress isn’t slow, but many WordPress sites are

I analysed how many websites in Germany pass Google’s Core Web Vitals, broken down by system. In five charts, I show why WordPress lags behind, what page builders have to do with it and where the problem almost always lies.

Article · Nov 8, 2026

A quiz brings more leads than a newsletter form, and sorts them right away

A form promises mail, a quiz promises an answer. In five charts, I show why a quiz funnel brings contacts almost four times as often and how the eater quiz I built for VANSOL turns a click into a purchase.

Article · Nov 8, 2026

There are enough applications again, just not the right ones: your job ad has to filter

The German labour market has turned: each new hire attracts 16 applications again, but only four of them fit. In five charts, I show what the latest IAB figures mean for small businesses and how a job ad reaches the right people.

Article · Nov 5, 2026

Anthropic’s IPO shows that companies pay for AI that works, not for chats

Anthropic, the company behind Claude, is going public and has opened its books for the first time. The figures show what businesses really spend money on when it comes to AI. In five charts, I show what the prospectus says and what small businesses can take from it.

Article · Nov 4, 2026

WhatsApp Business is free, you only pay once you add marketing and a team

The WhatsApp Business app is free. Since September there is a subscription on top, and since October replies on the Business Platform cost money too. In five charts, I show what WhatsApp Business really costs and how it differs from personal WhatsApp.

Article · Nov 1, 2026

Newsletters work, but half of your open rate is machines

Two thirds of newsletter subscribers in Germany have already bought or booked straight from one. Yet opens and clicks increasingly come from machines. In five charts, I show which metrics still hold and what you should count instead.

Article · Oct 31, 2026

Accessible websites start with corporate design, not with code

A new check of around 6,000 local business websites shows that on almost nine in ten, text stands out too little from its background. That is rarely a coding error, but a colour decision. In five charts, I show where things go wrong and what you can do now.

Article · Oct 29, 2026

Google’s AI Overviews cost clicks on questions, hardly any on offers

Google now shows an AI Overview for one in five search terms. Advice sites lose up to 30% of their clicks as a result, sites for buying and booking hardly any. In five charts, I show who is affected and what it means for your website.

Article · Oct 27, 2026

With Meta ads, AI now helps design them, but the responsibility stays with you

From 20 November, new terms apply to advertisers on Meta: whatever the AI generates for your ads, you alone are responsible for it. In five charts, I show how far the automation goes, what is changing, how customers react to AI advertising and what you should do now.

Article · Oct 21, 2026

Many websites lose inquiries before anyone reads the first sentence

Almost one in three websites in Germany fails Google’s benchmarks for loading speed and stability on mobile. I show what happens in the first few seconds and five things you can check yourself.

Article · Oct 12, 2026

LinkedIn reach has collapsed, but it isn’t gone, it has moved

Active creators on LinkedIn have lost around 60% of their reach in two years. In five charts, I show what happened, who sees your posts first today, which formats still work and what you can do now.

Article · Oct 6, 2026

AI is booming in mid-sized firms, but 84 percent of trade businesses aren’t considering it

One in four companies in Germany now uses AI, while for most trade businesses it’s still far away. In five charts, I show where AI stands today, what holds companies back and where small businesses can sensibly start.

Article · Sep 30, 2026

Two thirds want to book their workshop appointment online, only one third can

Cars come in for repairs less often, and customers compare more closely. If you can’t be reached digitally, you don’t even get asked. In five charts, I show what workshop customers expect, where workshops stand and where to start.

Article · Sep 22, 2026

On LinkedIn, reach grows in the comments, not the likes

On LinkedIn, comments bring more reach than likes, your own replies do too, and the link in the first comment is no longer a trick. In five charts, I show what the data says about comments and how to use them.

Article · Sep 14, 2026

More people read newsletters every week than use Facebook

Social media reach fluctuates, and the algorithm decides it. In five charts, I show why a newsletter is more reliable for small businesses, which open rate is realistic and how to get started.

Article · Sep 8, 2026

With inquiries from ads, the first hour decides

A Harvard analysis of 1.25 million inquiries shows how quickly prospects go cold. I show how long companies in Germany take to reply and how a simple process makes sure no paid inquiry slips through the cracks.

Article · Sep 2, 2026

People looking for coaching care more about the person than about referrals

For the first time, the new RAUEN coaching market analysis also surveyed clients. Their view differs clearly from that of coaches. In five charts, I show what that means for your personal brand.

Article · Aug 27, 2026

The LinkedIn algorithm now understands topics, and a clear profile makes its job easy

Since March 2026, a language model reads every LinkedIn post before it’s distributed. In five charts, I show how the new feed works, what LinkedIn itself says about it and how to set your topic so it lands.

Article · Aug 21, 2026

WhatsApp Business pays off, but only with the right setup

Almost everyone is on WhatsApp, and more and more businesses use messengers to talk to customers. In five charts, I show what speaks for it, how the app differs from the business platform and what data protection and costs mean.

Article · Aug 13, 2026

Recognition comes from repetition, not from a beautiful logo

A new study of 1,162 brand assets shows that no type of asset carries a brand on its own, and most of them aren’t known widely enough. I show what that means for your corporate design.

Article · Aug 4, 2026

The people who co-decide on your contract read along long before they talk to you

In many companies, people who never talk to sales have a say in buying decisions. A study by Edelman and LinkedIn shows that they read anyway. In five charts, I show who these hidden decision-makers are and how to reach them with thought leadership.