Why Squarespace is the Best Website Builder for Indie Authors
You know having your own author website is critical. Especially as an indie author, it’s your single most important marketing tool.
It’s your author platform and the foundation of your community of readers.
It not only legitimizes you as an author, it’s how you communicate with others and how you sell books.
YOU have control.
With that control, however, comes choices. Choices take time. And what if you make the wrong one?
Fortunately, this post helps take the guesswork out of choosing which website builder to use and delves into the reasons why Squarespace is the best option for indie authors.
Why Squarespace is Perfect as Your Indie Author Website Builder
Squarespace was created in 2003 to help small business owners (that’s YOU!) create and maintain their own websites.
With an origin story like that, it’s easy to see why Squarespace is the go-to website builder for busy authors who don’t have time to learn how to code nor to get a degree in graphic design.
Plus, Squarespace continues to add features for indie authors who need an all-in-one platform that grows with them.
Easy to Use Templates
With 100+ free templates, Squarespace offers options by industry and by design, and you can install, preview and change templates whenever you wish.
Each template is fully customizable and serves as an excellent jumping off point, whether you’re looking for inspiration or want to simply plug in your information and have your site ready to launch!
Since the templates are fully customizable, you can definitely make your site your own! Simply choose your colors, fonts and images. The drag-and-drop feature makes it easy to play with various layouts.
Plus, with a click of a button, you can make sure your site looks good on mobile, too!
Easy to Edit and Update
Since Squarespace was made for entrepreneurs with no coding or graphic design knowledge, it is inherently easy to edit and update yourself!
As your business grows, you’ll want your author website to grow and evolve with you and your needs.
You’ll likely want to update your author website quite frequently!
New book
New cover
Showcase reviews
Signing events
Speaking engagements
New photos
Merch and swag
Add socials
Add newsletter
Write a blog
Please know you don’t have to do it alone! No matter where you are on your author and website journey, Mint Copy Services has affordable options!
Built-In SEO Optimization
With Squarespace’s built-in SEO optimization, there is no need to pay for and to install additional plugins.
This feature truly removes all of the guesswork, hours of research and industry know how. And while plugins do add additional cool features to your website, they also complicate it and add an additional expense. All of this makes it even more challenging to edit and update yourself, so please carefully consider their addition.
Your Site is Secure
Squarespace runs their own servers. This means that there is no need for you to pay for a separate hosting service nor to install any software.
Since you’re not able to self-host with Squarespace, they are responsible for security. Talk about creating peace of mind!
Speaking of security, the free SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) certificate shows Google your site is secure, thus further boosting your site’s SEO 🚀
You Can (Likely) Use Your Author Name as Your Domain Name
Additionally, if you pay annually, you get a free custom domain name. This is huge, as you can claim your author name at no extra cost!
To see if your domain name is available, click here.
Integrated E-commerce Allows You to Sell Your Books Directly!
Buying directly from their favorite authors, rather than throwing more money at major retailers like Amazon and Barnes & Noble, is something that many readers WANT to do to help support YOU!
Readers spend hundreds of dollars to meet their favorite authors at book signings and to get their books personalized. By offering this on your website, you are providing yet another layer of book love to your ride or die readers 💖
Affordable Options
Squarespace offers a two-week free trial. Before starting this trial, take time to write your website copy, gather your photos, and create links to your books.
Then, when you’re ready, start your free trial and build your indie author website before paying for a subscription. Use this time to play with different layouts, colors and fonts, and make your site your own, one that:
YOU AND YOUR READERS WILL LOVE 🥰
Click here for current plans and pricing.
Free Customer Support
Squarespace’s free customer support is available 24/7, and they really are very helpful and timely in their responses! In fact, I have found this to be more than adequate without having to pay for any upgrades.
Easy to Understand Analytics
With a click of a button, Squarespace’s built-in analytics help you make design and marketing decisions.
How much time are readers spending on my Home page?
Are they taking time to read my About page?
Which button yields the most book sales?
Are readers subscribing to my newsletter? Is this because the form to complete it is not “above the fold,” or is it due to a different reason?
Am I being contacted through my Contact form? Does it need its own page?
Does each of my books/series need their own page?
Keeping your eye on such analytics allows you to keep your finger on the pulse, to make educated decisions about your author platform, and to create a true community of readers.
Built-In Integrations
Squarespace seamlessly integrates with:
social media platforms
payment platforms
client management systems
newsletter platforms
Squarespace truly excels as a platform for small business owners, has anticipated your needs, and makes it easy to add features as the needs of you and your readers evolve.
Squarespace is Constantly Adding New Features
Since it’s constantly being updated, Squarespace also evolves to meet accessibility standards, responsiveness and performance.
Going hand-in-hand with their built in integrations, Squarespace has added Squarespace Campaigns, for example, which can be used to manage your author newsletter.
Be sure to take advantage of these new features to help ensure your author website grows with you and your readers!
Ease of Contact
Using Squarespace’s forms, it’s easy to create a form through which others can contact you.
Those who want to do business with you will first look to see if you have a website. Its presence legitimizes you as an author. In fact, it may just be your website that catches an agent’s or a publisher’s eye.
Furthermore, prospective stakeholders will likely contact you through the information provided on your website to ask if you’d be interested in attending an upcoming signing, a speaking engagement, to be a guest on their podcast or blog, or to serve as a retailer for your books.
Regardless of where you are in your journey, having your own indie author website is imperative. It is your single most important marketing strategy, and it’s the way you build community!
It’s easy to feel overwhelmed, and you might feel like you don’t have the time, energy or bandwidth to add one more thing to your already-overflowing plate.
Mint Copy Services offers affordable options.
From never having a website before, to having a full-blown multi-page site, and everything in between, Mint Copy Services has got you covered.
Not sure what you need? Let’s chat and plot next steps together!
Your supportive side character,
Lisa