19 Years. 300+ Websites. One Operating Principle: Build It Right and Stick Around.
Lemon Head Design started in 2007 because too many small businesses had websites that broke, got hacked, and went stale the moment the agency that built them walked away. We built a different kind of shop — one that builds things that work, then stays around long enough to make sure they keep working. Some of the clients who hired us in 2008 are still with us today.
Started Because Most Websites Were Sitting Ducks
In 2007, Adam McGee started Lemon Head Design in Spanish Fork with a specific concern most agencies weren't taking seriously: the websites they were building for small businesses were getting hacked, breaking, and going stale the moment the agency walked away. No security monitoring. No updates. No one watching. Owners would call a year later wondering why their site was redirecting to spam.
So Adam built the agency around the part everyone else skipped — security, maintenance, and ongoing care as a default, not an upsell. Websites that stayed protected. Plugins that stayed updated. Someone actually answering the phone when something broke. Some of the clients who hired us in 2008 are still with us today, on the same maintained, monitored sites we built for them.
In 2015, after eight years running the agency solo, Adam brought on Karl Young to run sales and account leadership — the front of the house — so the technical side could stay focused on building. That division of labor still runs Lemon Head today.
Nineteen years later, 300+ websites built and $2B+ in documented client revenue, we've grown into a full marketing systems company — websites, CRM, SEO, ads, and automation running as one connected system. But the operating principle hasn't changed: build it right, protect it, and stick around long enough to be useful.
Lemon Head Design Founded
Adam McGee starts the agency in Spanish Fork with a security-first approach to WordPress — building sites that stay protected, monitored, and maintained long after launch.
Credit Union Specialization Begins
Word of mouth among Utah credit unions turns into a deeper vertical. Lemon Head builds credit union websites with compliance-aware design, ADA standards, and core banking integration patterns most agencies don't touch.
Karl Young Joins the Team
After eight years running the agency solo, Adam brings on Karl to lead sales, client relationships, and infrastructure operations — freeing Adam to focus on design and development.
From Web Design Shop to Full-Service Agency
Lemon Head expands beyond websites into SEO, Google Ads, PPC management, CRM implementation, and reputation management. Client base grows beyond Utah into Idaho, Georgia, Texas, and other states. Revenue model shifts from project-based to retainer-based.
From Service Agency to Marketing Systems Company
Lemon Head stops calling itself a web design shop. The agency builds out proprietary plugins, automation tooling, and integrated systems that replace what most clients used to buy from four or five different vendors. The new operating model: one team running websites, CRM, SEO, ads, and automation as a single connected system.
Early Adopter of AI Search Optimization
Lemon Head builds out Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) capabilities to help clients get cited in ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google AI Overviews — among the first agencies in the region to make AEO a standard part of the SEO offering.
300+ Websites. 19 Years In.
Same operating principle as 2007: build it right, protect it, stick around.
The People Behind the Work
Every project at Lemon Head has direct involvement from the people who started it. That's not a marketing line — it's how we've kept clients for 19 years.
Adam McGee
Adam is the builder. He founded Lemon Head Design in 2007 because too many small businesses had websites that were sitting ducks — unpatched, unmonitored, and one bad week away from getting hacked or going dark. Nineteen years later, he's still the one writing the code, building the WordPress plugins, and architecting the marketing systems that make Lemon Head's work actually work. Most agency presidents stopped touching the tools years ago. Adam never did, and that's the point.
Today his focus is the technical core of the agency — proprietary tools the team runs on, client builds, and the integrations that tie websites, CRM, SEO, and automation into one connected system instead of five vendors.
Karl Young
Karl is the person clients actually talk to. He joined the team in 2015 to run the front of the house — sales, account leadership, and the day-to-day relationships that keep clients with Lemon Head for a decade or more. When a credit union, contractor, or small business is figuring out whether we're the right fit, Karl is the one walking them through it. No high-pressure pitch, no boilerplate proposal. Just a straight conversation about what they need, what we do, and whether the math works.
Once a client is onboard, Karl stays involved. He owns the account relationship, makes sure marketing campaigns are doing what they're supposed to do, and is the first call when something needs attention.
Four Things That Have Never Changed
Agencies come and go. The ones that last are the ones with a clear point of view about how the work should be done.
We Tell You What You Need, Not What Sounds Good
If your existing site just needs SEO, we'll say that. If you need a full rebuild, we'll tell you why with specifics — not vague assertions. We'd rather lose a sale than oversell you something that doesn't fit. That's not noble, it's practical: clients who get the right solution stick around. Clients who get the wrong one don't.
We Stay Involved After Launch Day
A lot of agencies disappear once the invoice clears. We don't. Some of our client relationships are over a decade old — because we show up after the site goes live, fix what needs fixing, and keep optimizing. The launch is the beginning of the work, not the end of it.
We Leverage Deep Expertise, Not Generalists
Web design, SEO, Google Ads, speed optimization, AI search — each of these is a discipline that takes years to master. We bring in specialists for what they do best, coordinated by people who understand how it all fits together. Our clients get depth, not breadth spread thin.
We Stay Ahead So You Don't Have To
The agencies that hurt clients the most are the ones still doing 2018 SEO in 2025. We invest time and resources in understanding where search and web technology are heading — AI search optimization, Core Web Vitals, emerging frameworks — so that what we build today still performs tomorrow.
What 19 Years of Doing This Actually Produces
300+ websites built. 19 years in business. A 5.0 Google rating across the entire history of the company. Those are the foundational numbers.
The ones that matter more to clients are the ones that show up in their business — more calls, more form fills, more booked consultations, more revenue. We track those individually, in case studies, with real names attached. No typical-results claims, no vanity metrics, no industry-average hand-waving. If we say a client got a result, we can show you the client.
How Every Engagement Works
Whether it's a quick AI-assisted launch or a fully custom enterprise build, the process is the same — because cutting corners in any phase is how projects go sideways.
Honest Discovery
We ask the uncomfortable questions first — what's actually broken, what's the real goal, what has and hasn't worked before. No assumptions.
Straight Recommendation
You get a specific recommendation with a rationale — not a menu of upsells. We tell you exactly what we think you need and why.
Transparent Execution
Work happens on a staging environment you can see. You review before anything goes live. No surprises on launch day.
Ongoing Partnership
Post-launch isn't goodbye. We monitor, optimize, and stay available — because the goal is long-term results, not a closed ticket.
Questions People Ask Before Working With Us
Honest answers to the things prospective clients want to know before they reach out. If your question isn’t here, just call or send a message — we’ll answer directly.
Lemon Head Design was founded in 2007 in Spanish Fork, Utah by Adam McGee. Karl Young joined the team in 2015 and now serves as CEO & Sales Engineer. We have been in continuous operation for over 19 years, which makes us one of the longer-tenured independent web design agencies in Utah.
Our office is at 1081 E 1330 S, Spanish Fork, Utah 84660. We work with clients throughout Utah County, Salt Lake County, and statewide, and we serve businesses across Idaho, Georgia, Texas, and nationally for select projects.
Adam McGee founded Lemon Head Design in 2007 and serves as President. Karl Young joined the team in 2015 and serves as CEO & Sales Engineer. Adam leads design, development, and project management. Karl leads sales, client relationships, and infrastructure operations. Adam and Karl are both personally involved in every new client engagement — when you work with Lemon Head, you're working directly with the people who run the business, not a sales rep handing you off to an account team.
Our typical client is an established small to mid-sized business that wants its website to actually drive results — more leads, more bookings, more revenue. We work across a wide range of industries including professional services, contractors and home services, healthcare, retail, financial services, and nonprofits. Project sizes range from focused redesigns to ongoing marketing engagements.
Yes. We have active clients in Utah, Idaho, Georgia, and Texas, and we take on national projects when they fit our specialties. Almost everything is delivered remotely — calls, screen shares, and project management tools mean geography rarely matters. If you’re outside our primary markets, reach out anyway.
Three things that show up across every project:
Direct leadership involvement. Adam or Karl personally reviews every inquiry and stays involved through launch and beyond. You don’t get handed off to an account manager who has never built a website.
Honest answers. If you don’t need a redesign, we’ll tell you. If your project is a poor fit for us, we’ll point you to someone better suited. We’d rather lose a sale than oversell.
Long-term thinking. Some of our client relationships are over a decade old. We build sites to perform after launch, not just look good in the demo.
Yes. The initial conversation is free and has no obligation. It usually runs 20–30 minutes. We’ll ask about your business, your goals, and your current site. You’ll get honest feedback on what’s working, what isn’t, and a recommended approach. No sales pressure — if it’s a good fit we’ll send a proposal afterward; if not, we’ll say so.
Easiest path is the contact form — we respond to every inquiry within one business day. You can also call us at 801-797-3492 Monday through Friday, 9 AM to 5 PM Mountain Time. Either way, your message goes straight to Adam or Karl, not a queue.
Let's See If We're a Good Fit
We don't take on every project — and we'll tell you honestly if we're not the right agency for what you need. But if you want straight answers and work that actually moves the needle, start here.
or call us at 801-797-3492
