Why Squarespace is Perfect for Minimalist Business Websites

June 27

I recently came across the concept of “minimum viable technology,” which refers to the bare minimum you need to implement to get something up and running (whether it’s a course, a podcast, or an online store, for example), and I’ve realized that this idea is at the heart of everything I do: I’ve been helping my clients build their websites for years, yes… but I also review their business processes and look at how we can create workflows that make managing the website easier, with an impact on other areas such as content publishing, lead generation, and integrations with other tools (payment gateways, newsletters, etc.).

And behind all these systems has always been the idea of creating something minimalist, efficient, and sustainable—in other words, something that works well and is very easy for a single person or a small team to manage.

In my case, Squarespaceis the cornerstone of the minimalist and sustainable tech ecosystem for my business—and for the systems I set up for my clients. So in this post, I want to explain a little more about what I mean by this and why I highly recommend this platform for this type of business.

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Squarespace makes your life and website management easier (instead of more complicated)

I like to apply the idea that “less is more” whenever I can, without compromising on quality. I’m quite particular about my work and I like everything to run smoothly… but that’s precisely why I always look for the most efficient way to achieve something—in other words, to get the best result with the least amount of effort possible.

And this need was one of the reasons why I fell in love with Squarespace and chose it over other options like WordPressto build my website: it’s easy to use without compromising on aesthetics, robustness, or quality, and it saves me a ton of time and mental energy.

With Squarespace, you don't have to worry about whether you've exceeded your hosting capacity, whether you need to perform an update, or whether plugin X conflicted with plugin Z and caused the site to crash in the middle of a launch.

And having more time and mental space means:

More time and energy that I can devote to improving my services, my marketing, and whatever else I can think of to grow my business, instead of having to spend it on maintenance tasks.
My business is more profitable because I have to spend less time to achieve the same results.
And also, more free time to do other things in my life—which is what it’s all about in the end, isn’t it? To have the life we want.

Of course, this doesn’t mean that Squarespace is universally perfect, nor am I claiming it’s the best platform in the world, because I don’t believe in absolutes. What I’m simply saying is that I consider it the best platform for certain types of businesses (like mine, and perhaps like yours if you’re reading this).

If you need a website with virtually unlimited customization options or an online store with highly complex features and a large inventory, Squarespace isn't the right choice for you, and there are other platforms that are much better suited for these needs.

On the other hand, if you run a business offering products or services and need a website that seamlessly integrates your branding, is easy to use and maintain, and gives you the freedom to make changes and updates without making your life difficult… well, Squarespace might be just what you need.

Squarespace is very easy to use

One of the questions I’m most often asked by clients who’ve never used Squarespace is whether they’ll be able to make changes themselves after I’ve delivered the website. This concern often stems from past experiences with platforms like WordPress (a wonderful platform, but one that many non-technical clients find difficult to use), or from the widespread belief that any website platform is complicated.

One of the things I like most about Squarespace is that it empowers users—and, in my case, my clients—to take control of their websites without fear or hassle. This platform is specifically designed for the DIY user; in other words, it’s built to make life easier for people who aren’t web designers or programmers.

Squarespace is the website platform "for beginners." Even if you're not tech-savvy, you'll quickly get the hang of the interface and understand how it works.

It has a design and user interface that are a pleasure to use: clean, balanced, and uncluttered.

Its visual builder is very flexible, and you build pages using content blocks. This way, you can easily add and move different types of content (it’s just a matter of dragging and dropping) and see the changes in real time.

With content blocks, you can insert (or edit) content anywhere on a page:

Text with various formatting options, backgrounds, colors, etc.
Images and galleries in various formats.
Videos and audio.
Social media icons or feeds (like the Instagram feed I have in the footer of this website).
Buttons and forms for contacting us or subscribing to the newsletter.
Blank spaces or lines, so you can customize the layout to your liking.
Calendars, menus, podcasts, products, maps… and much more.

Adding or removing items from the navigation menu is as easy as dragging and dropping, and you can edit your website's entire style with just a click.

Ultimately, this means that if you’re running your business on your own or have a small team (an assistant, for example), you can handle whatever you need to do on your website without making things unnecessarily complicated:

Create a landing page from scratch to attract subscribers or to launch a new product or service.
Change images and text whenever you need to.
Publish and schedule blog posts, or even podcast episodes.
Create a new digital product (such as a masterclass) and set up the shopping cart (again, all with just a few clicks and in very few steps).
Create a membership or an online course without having to worry about installing any plugins you don't understand how to use.

As I said, Squarespace empowers you to take control of your website and start using it for what it’s really meant to be: a powerful marketing and sales tool for your business.

Squarespace requires no maintenance

Since they’re a company, they handle everything: maintenance, regular updates and improvements, website security, and so on. The platform itself keeps everything up to date and running smoothly; the whole process is completely transparent to the user, and you don’t have to worry about plugin conflicts that could break your website.

When I say that Squarespace takes a huge mental load off your shoulders, I’m not just saying that!

For me, this makes the subscription I pay to keep my website up to date without lifting a finger 100% worth it.

Forget about plugins: Squarespace is an all-in-one platform

It includes, all in one place: hosting, domain registration, a visual page editor, a blog, podcasting, e-commerce, a membership and course system, appointment and class scheduling, and email marketing.

So you don't need 40 apps or plugins that all work together to sell services, products, or courses; with Squarespace, everything is built right into the platform so you can scale as needed.

And, as I've been telling you, one of the best things about Squarespace is that it doesn't require external plugins for features that are so basic these days—like having a visual builder or adding a contact form—or for more complex tasks, like setting up an e-commerce store or a membership system on your website.

This is one of the reasons why there are limits to what you can do on Squarespace, unlike WordPress, where there’s a plugin for almost anything you can think of. But these are very specific needs for a small percentage of websites… the vast majority have more than enough with everything Squarespace includes.

And, in my opinion, this "limitation" of not needing plugins has a major advantage: your site won't stop working because a plugin wasn't updated, or because it conflicted with another plugin, or because you changed something you shouldn't have.

Knowing that my site isn't going to "break" gives me—at least—a lot of peace of mind.

And I put "limitation" in quotes because having your website on Squarespace isn't limiting at all... as I've been saying, the platform includes many features that would normally require you to install a plugin or do something extra, such as:

All of their templates areresponsive, and you can enable a feature called AMP, which will earn you a few extra points with Google.
With its visual builder and "DIY first " philosophy, you can customize the design with just a click, while seeing your changes in real time.
You can create contact or subscription forms and customize their appearance with just a few clicks.
It includes templates with page layouts so you don't have to start from a blank page.
It comes with an SSL certificate already included and activated (which is super important for Google) without you having to click a single button.
Web hosting is also included in your plan, with unlimited storage. No need to worry about your website crashing right in the middle of a launch.
You can enable customizable pop-ups in various formats and edit their style.
You can create online stores (on the Business, Basic Store, and Advanced Store plans) and sell physical or digital products.
You can create memberships and online schools.
You can optimize your site for SEO without having to install any additional software (and it works very well for SEO if set up correctly).
It includes a section on web analytics, which, of course, aren't as detailed as Google Analytics, but they're perfectly fine for day-to-day use and less overwhelming.

And these are just a few of the features available to you—there are many more. And seriously, you don't need any external tools for any of this! Everything is built-in and available right within the platform itself.🤯

But if at any point you need to integrate an external tool or add additional functionality, you can do that too.

There are many features you can add to a Squarespace website because you can add code at both the site-wide and page-level. Its Advanced plan also includes a fairly comprehensive API that lets you automatically integrate it with almost any other tool using services like Make or Zapier.

With Squarespace, you get a minimalist and elegant design right from the start

If you're building your first website on your own, you have access to a library of templates designed with a sleek, minimalist aesthetic to help you launch your site in record time without too much hassle.

And, of course, since you’re working on your website design on Squarespace with a specialized designer (like me 🙋🏻‍♀️), this isn’t something you need to worry about too much because the design is completely custom-made (it’s a very flexible platform when it comes to design).

Conclusion

If you're looking to simplify and streamline your business's tech ecosystem (to make your life easier), Squarespace gives you the chance to free up space and reduce mental load so you can focus on what matters most to you. With this platform, you can save a lot of time, energy, and headaches because both creating and maintaining a website is very simple.

I don't recommend Squarespace just because it's the platform I use; it's the other way around: I use Squarespace because I wholeheartedly recommend it.

Building a website, a school, a landing page for a launch, or a shopping cart doesn't have to be a daunting or stressful process. Technology is there to make your life easier, not to complicate it.

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