Should You Use Squarespace Templates?
Why Squarespace Templates Maybe Aren’t a Good Idea?! 🤔
Squarespace is known for its ease of use for website design, and with good reason! It’s an intuitive platform, and one that makes creating a website a breeze for most people, even/especially for those unfamiliar with coding.
One thing kept tripping me up when I first got started using Squarespace though:
Should I use Squarespace templates?
Personally, I wasn’t sure if I should use the templates - and in fact, really didn’t know there was a viable option not to. The templates are already made and formatted with colors, fonts, images, and blocks of information. Easy right?
Plus until very recently, which template you chose impacted the design and capabilities for the whole website - though luckily Squarespace updated how templates work and they all have the same functionalities now in 7.1.
AND they’re thematic, so if you’re a yoga studio owner, for example, you just have to find a studio template and you’re good to go.
Right?
Well, maybe not.
Below are three reasons why I think Squarespace templates actually maybe aren’t a good idea ↓
Three Reasons to Avoid Squarespace's Built-In Templates
Copy Drives Design
When you create a website, you want your messaging to lead the way.
💡 Your words should drive the layout and build of your website, not the design - especially design created by someone who doesn’t know you and your business and website goals.
Trying to design the most important part of a website - your messaging - around predefined blocks and images makes things feel cluttered and unintentional. Plus it makes it harder to guide your web visitors on the journey you want to take them on.Originality
Most self-published websites on Squarespace are drag-and-drop from the template in your specific industry. That means, for example, entrepreneurs in the wellness industry will all have websites that resemble each other in design, even if they swap out the fonts or the colors.If you make yourself stand out with a different design, you’ll be setting yourself apart from the crowd. And that is a good thing!
Creativity
Once you start thinking outside the box, you’ll allow room for more creativity to flow. You’ll be able to create a website that works for you and your customers. And you’ll be able to create a website that fits your branding and personality to a T.Using your own brand colors, importing graphics you created from Canva or Adobe Illustrator, getting funky with the layout - these are all things you can do to let your website sing!
So…. what do I do then? 🤔
So at this point, you might be thinking, Janessa, how exactly do I create my own Squarespace website from scratch? Won’t that just take too much time I don’t have?
It’s actually super easy. Barely an inconvenience. (If you get that reference let’s be friends!)
I’ll show you how! Keep reading 👇
How to create your own Squarespace website without starting with a template
01. Create a blank starter page
(ie ‘Home’, ‘About’, ‘Services’ or 'Contact')
Head to the ‘Pages’ navigation on the left-hand side.
Click the plus sign next to the ‘Main Navigation’ header, and from there, click the very first option, ‘Blank Page’.
This will start you with a clean slate. You get to add your content, then find creative ways to design around it! 💪🙌
02. Create a new blank section
Once you’re on the page you want to work on, click the “Add a Section” on the upper left-hand menu, and from there click “Add a blank section”. You can create text, images, forms, schedulers, and more in your new blank section.
(A section means the individual sections that can be found on each page of a website - the actual number you have on your website is up to you and driven by your content.)
And voilà!
Crafting a one-of-a-kind website, sans Squarespace template, will breathe life, personality, and unique flair into your brand.
Building your own site? Grab your launch checklist here 👇
