squarespace

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  • canoe

    One of my clients is under the assumption that squarespace is,

    - easy to use, a designer can update the website
    - doesn't require any kind of programmer
    - can easily integrate with google analytics, twitter, etc

    Does it make sense from a budget perspective? All the sites will ahve to be branded in color, there will be plenty of tweaks.

    He wants to get rid of having to 'worry' about developers.

    I cringe at the idea because I make money off the design work and I markup the developers when I can.

    btw - I used the filter and I didn't see any previous discussion.

  • benfal0

    webdesign is in danger. so many services are poping like these. only large companies will have custom websites in a near future. maybe.

  • detritus0

    Your client's made up her mind, so let her do what she wants.

    Obviously she's dealt with some pita developers beforehand (haven't we all?) so is keen to avoid that in future. Who could blame her?

    Help her along the way, prompt and advise (honestly) and she'll take that away from her experience with you - not that you were cagey and trying to claw back business. Never very attractive, that.

    if it's not right for her, she'll come back.

    if it is right for her, there's little point fighting it.

    • Thanks. I will be managing the squarespace micrositescanoe
  • jtb260

    ^^ Couldn't disagree more. The threshold for a company needing a designer to get ROI on a website is possibly going up (in terms of company size) but I wouldn't say this is true. Most people grow out of solutions like Squarespace and even Wordpress fairly easily. If you can't differentiate what you do from what Squarespace does, and prove the value then, well yeah. SS is a threat. But I think many designers are capable of making the argument for themselves and their work.

    Canoe, it depends on the size of the client. If they have 1-10 employees and do less than 10K a month possibly/probably. Though if they are doing any kind of ecommerce and they're successful SS is going to be something they grow out of quickly.

    Squarespace sites work great IF (and it's a big if) you have great photography, illustration and copy to go with it. A large number of their themes look great when all of this place, those same themes can look rather shite if not.

    They don't require a programmer. But these are easily outgrown depending on the kind of business they do. If they plan to grow, increase business at best they are kicking the can down the road.

    • My first comment was to benfal not detritus.jtb26
    • s'ok, you used two arrows so it's all good.. now if I *hadn't* managed to post a second before you, you'd be in trouble :)detritus
    • true, i was making a comment without really thinking about it. I do this often some would say :Dbenfal
    • Me too. :)jtb26
  • detritus0

    jtb26 is right though — and it's something I've argued about with a web dev acquaintance, who was vocally pissed at the competition meted out by design comps and Indian coders.

    Really, why the fuck worry about that?

    If that (or something like SquareSpace) is your competition, you're not upping your game enough and are chasing your way down to the bottom.

    Diversify/Specialise — just try and become valuable.

    There's little to no long term value in making dross.

  • canoe0

    My value for this client is more than a one-off website. We've been engaged for several years.

    One of our upcoming projects is a rather passive microsite which will focus on their new service app. It can be simple - few benefits and features, a support and traditional contact form.

    If it's smartest to go with SS, my value to them would be to go with it.

    Any other thoughts?

  • canoe0

    Kanye West Hate Thread

    Those four words make me chuckle.

  • monoboy0

    If it fits the audience and business goals then yes, why not. But no template ever does.

    There's always something that needs tweaking.

    • Agreed. Even for a simple site, 90% of the time there will be some random requirement that the template can't handle.ukit2
  • CygnusZero40

    SS makes sense for smaller sites/clients/budgets. Got a new pizza place and need a site? SS is great for that, and that's exactly who it was built for.

    But SS is not any real threat to web designers for developers. You're out of your mind if you think it will get to the point where everyone is using templates. They aren't nearly flexible enough for larger projects.

  • i_was0

  • organicgrid0

    The Godaddy Website Builder is $5- a month, LMAO.

    NO SKILLS? NO TIME? NO PROBLEM.

    EASY TO USE - build your professional site simply.
    HUNDREDS(!) - of customizable designs.
    FREE DOMAIN and FREE HOSTING.

  • microkorg0

    - easy to use, a designer can update the website
    ================================...
    You don't need any programming skills to update the site. A designer CAN update the site easily and can keep everything looking on-brand. If you let the client loose on the site that may be another story though - they might end up arsing things up that may mean any template tweaking you did previously to all be re-done.

    - doesn't require any kind of programmer
    ================================...
    Yup anyone can do it. You can go for one of the more expensive packages that lets you go in and tweak the HTML or CSS to your hearts desire if you are a programmer though although its not necessary.
    Your client will have to know that you are restricted to the fonts within the template though unless you sign up to the dev version and tweak the CSS yourself.

    - can easily integrate with google analytics, twitter, etc
    ================================...
    Stupidly easy! In the settings you enter in your unique Google Analytics number and Squarespace does the rest automatically.
    Same with pulling in your Twitter feed, instagram feed etc etc - just connect the account in the admin and that's it. Instantly works! No tech knowledge needed.

    Does it make sense from a budget perspective? All the sites will ahve to be branded in color, there will be plenty of tweaks.
    ================================...

    As I said previously your client needs to be aware that they have to stick to the template fonts and CSS styling of stuff.
    In terms of colours/skinning it's not as open as you think without going the dev route and tweaking CSS.
    You can upload your own imagery and logo etc to skin the site so it looks in-brand.

    I've used Squarespace for a music website and pretty much put it together in a weekend. I plan on using it to create a portfolio website too and probably sell stuff from it too (the shop is stupid easy to integrate - no tech knowledge needed!).

  • set6

    Your client is correct on all three points.

    However, there is a big difference between having the same template as everyone else but with your logo on it, and having a custom built website.

    There are always going to be people that want both, so benfal's point 'web design is in danger' is rubbish.

    The kind of client that wants a squarespace site, before squarespace existed is the kind of client that wants to pay 10% of a proper budget and expects to get 100% service, so if anything squarespace is doing us a favour as we can bosh these out in a fraction of the time, add a decent markup, hand them over and wipe our hands of them.

    • Maybe, but I think he's somewhat correct - it does take a lot of smaller, designer-ish sites awayformed
    • Yea maybe that was a little unfair to mr benfal. I don't think web design is in danger but yes it can take away smaller jobs potentiallyset
    • But who wants a client who thinks they can do a better job themselves?set
    • I think for many people Squarespace is just an on ramp to getting a full fledged site. They will eventually end up paying for the real site as they discover Squarespace limitations.ukit2
    • Some will. The biggest danger is that it looks good. So many WP templates or GoD are just horrible, so a do-it-yourself will end up with crap. SS looks pretty good.formed
    • Only if you have a nice logo and great photography, as mentioned before.set
  • canoe0

    http://squarespace.com/seven/dev…

    It appears they have a development platform to build and customize. Thus, making it more like WP, Joomla.