Why I Chose Squarespace Over Wordpress
I BASICALLY LOVE ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING THERE IS TO LOVE ABOUT SQUARESPACE.
As a designer, (AND USER), the list is very long as to why I love Squarespace so much. Rewind to about 3 years ago when I hired a designer to create my first website, she worked solely with Squarespace and I loved what I saw in her work and style. Since then I've designed over 40 websites for other creative entrepreneurs. There are so many resources and articles out there to help business owners determine which platform is the best fit for their needs, but I want to share my own personal insight and views on the subject.
AMAZING CUSTOMER SERVICE (ON BOTH PLATFORMS)
With using both Squarespace and Showit, customer service is amazing. I can't say the same for a site that's set up just in Wordpress and not through Showit, but on both sides customer service left me feeling extremely satisfied as a customer. I've never had an issue with either so in this department they are both a win-win.
EASY TO USE CONTENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (SQUARESPACE WINS!)
The primary reason I design in Squarespace is so that when I'm done with a project, my clients can actually USE their website. My fear with Wordpress designs is that there are so many glitches and updates that require a lot more work and hair pulling (can you say plugin nightmare?) You don't get that with Squarespace. Squarespace sets up their templates so that they can be completely customizable depending on your business structure. I strategically pick templates based on my clients must haves for their site. Squarespace is very easy to use and to understand, not to mention all the incredible resources that are out there directly from Squarespace on how to do virtually everything.
FINANCIALLY MAKES SENSE
If you're developing a website, it means that you're taking your business seriously. That's a whole other subject, but one of the main reasons I love Squarespace is that it is affordable. Affordability is so important as a small business owner because let's be honest... running a business is expensive. Squarespace offers several different price points to best fit your needs with your site.
CUSTOMIZATION
I do basic coding and then hire out when I'm stuck on something that needs more tweaking than I am comfortable with attempting. It is on the goal list to become stronger in this department! What I love about Squarespace is that it takes minimal coding for anyone who is putting together a site for themselves if any at all. The templates are gorgeous and completely customizable with fonts, colors, etc. I also add various embedded codes throughout my site like Pinterest Widgets or Bloglovin' widgets that give my site an extra personal touch.
Wordpress is VERY customizable, but in my opinion it's more difficult and confusing to put together a site compared to Squarespace.
LET'S TALK ABOUT BEING RESPONSIVE.
I think it's safe to say that almost everyone is viewing sites on their cell phones! I do all the time and nothing bugs me more than stumbling on a gorgeous site only to be disappointed that it's difficult to navigate from the phone, so I quickly leave. Squarespace handles all of that for you perfectly. I found it difficult to get the mobile viewing within Showit to be exactly what I wanted and it was extremely finicky as you basically have to design BOTH the web version and phone version. I love that Squarespace does it for you.
SO WHY DID I EVEN MESS WITH WORDPRESS TO BEGIN WITH AND WHAT MADE ME THROW MY HANDS IN THE AIR AND MOVE EVERYTHING BACK TO SQUARESPACE?
Real talk for a minute about the reality of running and managing a business... it's hard. It takes a lot of time and effort to stay on top of everything. In my every day life I am looking for things that make my life easier as a creative entrepreneur, not more stressful. I found that each time I was in my Showit photography site I was getting frustrated and would end up not even blogging because I didn't even want to mess with it. When I blog on Squarespace (here), I'm much happier and less stressed out. So if I had to tell you the biggest reason I'm not using my Showit/Wordpress blog it's because it was just too finicky. I need something that is seamless and easy to use. I don't have the extra hours in the day to constantly fine tune my site and pull my hair out trying to make different plugins work.
Squarespace has such a professional look to every template. I was initially drawn to how "pretty" all the sites I saw from Showit, but once I got in there to start designing and doing what I love to do, it was more of a headache. Squarespace is still very pretty and you can give each template those custom touches to best represent your brand!
If you have any specific questions about Squarespace and various features, I would love to answer them in the comments below! What platform do you currently use? Why do you love it? What don't you love about it? I can't wait to hear from YOU!
