It seems that every time I turn on a Podcast, I’m always hearing an advertisement for Squarespace. It makes me uneasy hearing “Squarespace You Should,” because sometimes…you just shouldn’t.
Squarespace is just another website builder, like Webby and Wix, that sells a template you can use as long as you keep up with the monthly payment. Many of these template companies lock you into specific themes and layouts that can make it impossible for your business to grow, unless you spend even more money. But, many people don’t see the negatives of using a theme until they have already invested too much time and money into a website that just isn’t performing.
Here are the top 5 reasons I cringe when I hear advertisements for Squarespace:
-
If you decide to leave you can’t keep the design
-
The backend isn’t tailored to your company
-
Smaller websites can suffer with website builders
-
The site isn’t as optimized for SEO as advertised
-
You’re wasting time learning the website builder’s software
If you decide to leave you can’t keep the design
Provided content or photos you purchased through their platform…poof gone.
Your small company’s branding is everything. It is the first thing customers recognize and it builds trust between you and your customers. Finding a Squarespace template that perfectly captures your company is nearly impossible, especially since restaurants only have four template options. In total, the company has 31 templates with a modern, simplistic and clean look.
When starting out, it is a good idea to set yourself apart from the competition, and there is no better way to do that than with a website custom designed for your company. The website can compliment your logo, your current locations and the brand attributes of your company to make you stand out. Take a look at these custom restaurant websites built specifically for each client.
The backend isn’t tailored to your company
You shouldn’t need to force a theme to work for your company.
When working with a theme, you have to make that theme work for your specific business. It can be difficult to organize this information if you’re not tech-savvy. A much better solution is to have the theme custom-built for your company. For example, if you have Idea Marketing Group build your website, we can create specific sections for restaurant menus, photo galleries of your work and even a testimonial section.
These sections keep everything organized in the backend of your website, and can easily be taught to new employees, allowing you to always keep your website up-to-date and relevant.
Below is a sample of what the Squarespace interface looks like compared to a custom website.
http://www.elegantthemes.com/blog/editorial/wordpress-vs-squarespace
Smaller websites can suffer with website builders
You only have a dozen pages to make a good impression, don’t waste them.
For a company that just needs a five page website, using a template could be tempting. But, I urge you to avoid it at all costs. You only get a short window to make a good impression, and a template won’t make your website stand out like a custom WordPress website can. For example, we just created a website for Sherpa Experience Group that incorporates video, animation and a blog!
All these features stand out in the visitor’s mind, and the blog helps increase the website’s ranking in search engines. Which brings me to another issue I have with these website builders…
The site isn’t as Search Engine Optimized as advertised.
The placement of your website title isn’t everything.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) isn’t just about the placement of your title on the page. Yes, it is important, but where your website ranks in search engines is also determined by how often you post, titles, descriptions, and use of alt tags. Even naming your images properly can make a difference in where your website ranks in Google, Bing, and various other search engines.
For example, the placement of your content in the code is also important. Egg Shop, a Squarespace website, doesn’t start the content until line 310. For comparison, on a similar website we created, Castaways, the content starts on line 113. Those 200 lines of code can make a huge difference when you’re trying to increase your SEO. A custom website can provide your company with a beautiful website that also improves your performance online.
Your time is money and you’re wasting it.
It can take weeks to learn the software that you’ll maybe use twice.
It can take weeks to research the best website builder. Once you’ve selected one you have to customize the template, pick the photos, resize the images, write the content, and by the end you’ve wasted days or even weeks. This process is time-consuming, and if done incorrectly can affect your website’s ranking in search engines. That is why I strongly encourage you to think about the benefits of a custom website built by professionals that will optimize your photos, provide the design and even write content that captures your company’s value and engages your readers.
Squarespace isn’t bad for everything. For example, if you’re looking for a simply way to get your ecommerce website up and running I would encourage you to check out Squarespace. The difference between an ecommerce website and a restaurant website is the number of pages.
Restaurant websites have an average of 10 pages, and you need to ensure those pages are optimized for SEO so that your website will rank well in search engines. On the other hand, an ecommerce site can easily have 100 pages that are always being updated, meaning the website naturally ranks higher in search engines.
The main difference between a website builder and a custom built website is the cost upfront. A custom website with 10 pages can cost thousands of dollars, which is a lot of money. But, I encourage you to think about the cost of a website builder like Squarespace, Webby and Wix. Squarespace costs $18.00 a month for a business if you sign a contract for a year.
That means you have to keep paying every month, and you don’t even own the design, some of the content or photos purchased. With a custom website, you are paying to have everything tailored to perfectly fit your business and help achieve your specific company goals. It will rank high in search engines and make your business stand out from the competition.
Invest in your company from the beginning with a custom website, and see what a difference it can make for your business!