I <3 Squarespace

Squarespace is a content management system (CMS), robust enough for skilled developers, yet intuitive enough that most non-technical people can use it without fear of destroying their website or worse... breaking the internet.

You don't need to download and install any software. Squarespace is a web-based service, so you don't need hosting in order to use it. You pay a subscription fee that covers your hosting costs and access to the content management interface. A Squarespace subscription costs about the same as hosting regular web site.

But what exactly is a content management system (CMS)?

A CMS is a tool that allows users to edit text, photos and other files on a website via a WYSIWYG editor (What You See Is What You Get). Updating content is as easy as editing an MS Word document or sending an email. No specialized coding experience needed.

This is what the editing interface looks like as I created this post.

What's really cool about Squarespace as a web-based product is that you can access your site and the editing interface from any computer connected to the internet. Squarespace even has a few great mobile apps that will allow you to make certain updates to your site directly from a mobile device.

I <3 Squarespace!

And while I have developed web sites using other platforms, I strongly recommend Squarespace to most of my clients for the simple reasons outlined below. I have no affiliation with Squarespace, just great affection.

Squarespace:

• Empowers even the most technically-challenged to be able to make content changes to their site;
• Allows for the rapid development of a professional web site at a reasonably low price;
• Is totally customizable and includes features such as blogs, photo galleries and custom forms; and
• Is a supported service, which means there's always someone available to help.