Why I switched from Wordpress to Squarespace (after being such a Squarespace hater!)

OK, so I didn't hate Squarespace... That's a little dramatic of me. But I didn't understand the hype around it, or why why dozens of my friends were switching from Wordpress to Squarespace.

I tried it for a day and decided that it was OK, but not as good as Wordpress. I even wrote a blog post outlining the pros and cons of both and favoring Wordpress. (That post has since been updated with a fair amount of pros for both.)

However, a conversation with a friend totally changed my opinion of Squarespace. 

As we sat drinking frappucinos one afternoon, we began talking about work. I told her everything was going well and I was still enjoying my business. But I wished things were a little more simple. 

I explained that one of my goals this year is to achieve a simple business. I thrive most when things are simple, easy and clean. I've noticed this spans into my personal life too, not just my business. I like simple interior decor, simple outfits, and I much prefer a simple and quiet life over a busy city life.

I've slowly realized that when my business systems and strategies are simple, I feel happier and more relaxed. And my business blooms a lot more when I feel that way!

I told my friend that I'd simplified a lot of my systems, but things still didn't feel 'easy' enough. I'm a big believer that business should be easy, or else it isn't fun. 

"You wrote a blog post on Wordpress vs. Squarespace, right?"

I nodded. 

"I know Wordpress is awesome and offers everything you could ever need in a website, and I know that you love it. But maybe what you need is a simpler platform, with less updates and plugins and themes. Like Squarespace."

She'd been raving about Squarespace all year and I'd just rolled my eyes. But it was when she said that (or something to that effect, anyway) that I decided to give Squarespace one last try.

I signed up for another trial of Squarespace and set myself a little excercise: see how long it takes to rebuild my website on Squarespace, getting as close as I could to my Wordpress design.

And here's the amazing thing: it took just two days, and that was in between doing client work. 

Here the other amazing thing: I think my Squarespace sites looks better than my Wordpress site. 
It's amazing how much better my second Squarespace trial was. Maybe it's because I actually gave myself an assignment instead of fiddling with a theme I wasn't interested in. Either way, I've found myself jumping on the Squarespace bandwagon. Not because it's better than Wordpress but because it has something Wordpress doesn't: severe simplicity. Anyone could learn Squarespace in a day, and that really appeals to me. 

A few more reasons why I switched from Wordpress to Squarespace (after being such a Squarespace hater):

• I knew my clients would love it. I design brands and websites for small business owners, and they usually like to maintain and update their website themselves when our project is over. Squarespace is the perfect platform for them to maintain their site easily without getting confused or stressed out.
• I love the drag and drop feature. I barely have to touch any code!
• I love that it's limited, which is ironic because that's one of the aspects I disliked to begin with. But I love that my clients and I can only choose from a certain amount of themes. It stops us from overthinking things.

I'm very happy with my decision to switch from Wordpress to Squarespace. In fact, I'm thinking of creating a mini-series on it for you very soon!

In case anyone is wondering, I'm using the Galapagos theme. It's a very popular theme for bloggers because of how simple and clean it is, so I highly recommend you try it if you're a Squarespace user!

I'd love to know- are you thinking about switching to Squarespace? Do you have any questions or concerns?

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Squarespace or Wordpress?

UPDATE: Since moving my website from Wordpress to Squarespace, this post has been updated.

Amy, an event planner, emailed me the other day and asked this:

Should I choose Squarespace or Wordpress? I like Squarespace- it's easy to use and the themes are clean and gorgeous. But I've heard a lot of people use Wordpress and it's apparently the better option. Help?

Both are fantastic website builders, but I'd like to point out that every business owner is different. Just because Squarespace or Wordpress works for someone else, doesn't mean it's the best fit for you. The only way you can decide which platform is the right one for you is by doing your research and testing them both.

I used Wordpress for 4 years before switching to Squarespace, so I have a pretty rounded-out view of both. Here are the pros and cons I've discovered:

Flexibility

• Wordpress is an open source platform, which means that you or your web developer can customize their codes and make your website truly unique.
• Squarespace isn't an open source platform, which stops a lot of people from using it. But if you sign up for the Professional package (which most users go for) you get access to the developers platform, which allows you to make changes to your website's html etc. 
• There are thousands of themes available for Wordpress users, so you have a lot more choice on what your website looks like. Choice is great! But you have to be careful what theme you choose- some are coded awfully and don't offer any kind of customer support when things go wrong.
• Squarespace doesn't offer hundreds of themes. But because the Squarespace team have focused on their select variety of themes, they are coded amazingly and are constantly being updated.

User Interface

• Wordpress is fairly easy to use, but it takes a bit of getting used to when you first join. For instance, you need to learn what plugins, themes, child themes and widgets are. 
• Because of its limited flexibility, Squarespace is really easy and simple to use. It has a drag and drop feature, so you don't have to tweak any code. You just drag a photo or a text block into place.

Support

• There are lots of Wordpress forums that can help you if you get stuck with anything Wordpress-related, but it can sometimes be difficult to get a correct and quick answer. There are also lots of fantastic books on Wordpress, like this one. 
• Because Squarespace limits it's themes, their team are more in control and can provide great support. In fact, they strive to answer all questions within one hour.

Pricing

• Squarespace can cost $96-$288 per year, and they offer a free domain name and free support. Depending on the package you choose, you can end up paying more than you would for a Wordpress website. But if you value simplicity and amazing support, it's worth it. 
• Self-hosted Wordpress is a similar price depending on where you host your website- I recommend Dreamhost. However, you also have to pay for a theme (a one-time payment of about $30-$50) and a domain name (about $10 per year.) You may also end up paying for premium plugins if you really want to.

My opinion

If you're not very tech savvy, you want to be able to maintain your website yourself, and you value simplicity, I'd recommend Squarespace. I use Squarespace for my own website and I love it! I offer a Squarespace website design package if you're interested.

However, Wordpress is more flexible and offers thousands of themes and plugins. If you're good with code, or you want things like membership websites, Wordpress is probably best for you. Squarespace offers the option of password-protected pages, but it doesn't allow you to create membership websites like Wordpress does.

Choosing a website platform is a personal decision and I'm not telling you which one is best for you; this is just my personal opinion. If you have any questions or you need help choosing the right platform for you, I'd love to help! Just leave a comment on this post.

Tell me in a comment- do you prefer Wordpress or Squarespace? 

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How to get referrals from your clients

These are the top 3 ways I find clients:

1. Referrals from my clients.

2. Facebook groups.

3. Referrals from others in my niche.

I've tried a million different ways of getting clients: cold emailing, Twitter, LinkedIn, guest blogging, Facebook ads, advertising... the list goes on. While some of these have worked (I used to have great success in landing small projects through Twitter!) they just haven't worked as magically as the 3 above. Not by miles.

I've already touched on getting clients from Facebook groups. But how do you get clients through referrals? How do you get real people to persuade other real people that you're good enough to take on their project? It seems tricky, but it's not when you try your hardest.

Referrals will keep your business afloat, especially in dry times when you don't have time to market your services. With a steady amount of referrals coming in, you could...

• Halve the time you spend marketing.

• Stop stressing out because you haven't booked enough clients.

• Take time off and still get plenty of inquiries in your inbox.

• Book more clients and earn more money.

Most freelancers who have been up and running for about a year should already have referrals coming in.

If you...

• Are good at what you do

• Have awesome work in your portfolio

• Have kickass testimonials from your clients

• Have a streamlined, organized process that makes working with you easy

...then you should be getting referrals already, and plenty of them! Because when you do all of the above, people will not hesitate to recommend you to their friends and colleagues. People will only refer you if you're trustworthy, talented and efficient. So make sure you're known for being these things!

If you're doing all of the above and still not getting referrals, something needs to change. You need to think outside the box.

Here are 7 smart ways to get referrals from clients and friends:

1. Ask directly. When wrapping up a project, as your client directly if they know of anyone who may be in need of your services.

2. Ask indirectly. If you feel that asking them upfront is a little too forward, then ask them in your testimonial form. (A testimonial form is a short questionnaire you get your clients to fill in about your time working together, and you create their testimonial from combining their answers.) As your final question, ask 'do you know of anyone who may be in need of my services?'

3. Collaborate. Write to a few friends and offer to send work their way if they send work your way. This works especially well if you're both in different creative industries.

4. Create a referral program. Offer your friends and partners 5-10% of every successful referral. So, if they refer a client to you who buys a $2000 package, they would receive 5-10% of that. I know a few well-known coaches and writers who do this, and it works wonders for them!

5. Offer an incentive. Offer your clients a discount or a freebie for every successful referral.

6. Refer work to others. Only refer work to people you admire, trust and respect. People you genuinely think your clients will love. And when you send work their way, let them know you've done so by dropping them an email or a tweet. It opens up the way to a friendship, which could lead to them sending clients your way.

7. Email others in your niche. Sometimes people email me asking if I will keep them in mind for referrals. If their work is good enough and their email is sincere and modest enough, I do!

I'm going to be discussing how I personally find and book clients in The Shelancers Club- an online community for freelance women that I'm launching in April. If you're interested in learning more then sign up for updates before the launch!

Last weekI ran a quiet giveaway for The Shelancers Club, and this week I chose a winner at random: Nicola at Belle Noir Loves! I'll be in touch with you soon. Thanks to everyone who participated!

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5 things you can do to quickly grow your business

Before quitting your day job, you need to be earning a comfortable, consistent amount of money from your business. But it's pretty tricky to do that when you can only work on your business on the evenings.

You can't focus on your freelancing while you work full-time, but you can't quit your day job until you get more clients and more money. It's a never-ending, unfair cycle.

A recent reader said that her job often feels toxic and tends to mess with her creativity, which isn't good for freelancing. She wants to quit, but she has a mountain of bills that she can't reduce and not enough freelance income to cover them. She feels totally stuck.

Sound familiar?

A lot of the women I network with on social media have expressed the same feelings, and it makes me sad for them! Reeeally sad. Everyone deserves to do what they love. Everyone deserves to wake up each morning and actually feel excited to work. Everyone deserves to feel the satisfaction and fulfillment I feel when I help businesses transform their brands and websites.

A few weeks ago, I wrote of 3 things you can do while working full-time to prepare for freelancing. Today I'm here to sprinkle some hope on your day by sharing a few more helpful tips!

5 things you can do to quickly grow your business:

1. Plan. Did you know that businesses that plan grow 60% quicker than ones that don’t? I keep a simple business plan that I update and tweak all the time. And since I’ve been doing this, my business growth has rocketed. When you plan how much money you want to earn and how you're going to get it, business growth seriously speeds up!

2. Build connections. Without them, you’ll struggle to find clients. Connect with others in your niche, connect with ones on social media, and you’ll find that you’ll get clients referrals and friends from it.

3. Take on small jobs. You can't take on big jobs when you work 9-5, that’s just a recipe for burnout. What you can do is take on small jobs. They will still provide you with experience, and possibly recurring clients or referrals.

4. Collect testimonials. Even if you only do small jobs for people, collect their testimonials! When I was working full-time I designed Etsy banners for small businesses on the side, and I made sure to get a testimonial from all my clients. Testimonials are useful even if they aren’t for the kind of projects you want to be doing because people can still testify to how you work, how organized you are, how effective your communication is… This will help land you bigger clients in the future!

5. Join or create a mastermind group. A mastermind is a small group of business owners similar at a similar level to you, and you all get together maybe once or twice a month to support and encourage each other, usually over Skype or something. Your business can grow exponentially from a mastermind group because your fellow group members will help you, push you, motivate you, and even refer work to you.

Leave a comment and let me know- how have YOU grown your business quickly and effectively?

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How to get clients from Facebook groups

One of the biggest problems freelancers face is finding clients.

Where can you find them?

Where you can you find the right clients?

How do you actually get them to book a spot in your schedule instead of disappearing forever?

Those are just a few of the questions people want answers to.

But today, I'm going to tackle the first one: where can you find clients?

Finding clients is not that hard. And Facebook makes it even easier.

Last year I contemplated deleting my Facebook account, since I rarely used it and I didn't get much traffic from it. But I decided to give it one more shot.

Across the web, I had read other business owners raving about Facebook, saying:

• They get most of their clients from Facebook.

• They've formed wildly profitable collaborations with business owners they met on Facebook.

• Facebook brings their website lots of traffic and gets them lots of subscribers.

My reaction to reading those statements was HOW?

But since then, I've been slowly figuring it out.

My favorite feature of Facebook is Facebook groups. They're fantastic because:

• You can find Facebook groups for any genre- blogger moms, freelance designers, entrepreneurial women... there are groups for everyone!

• You get to connect with like-minded people.

• You can ask for advice and provide advice.

• You can form really great friendships that lead to collaborations, clients, referrals and faster business growth.

So, how do you get clients from Facebook groups? Here are my top 4 tips:

1. Give. Don't promote lots of your content and constantly spam the other members with you, you, you. Facebook groups are about forming a community and giving. Provide free advice to other members. Do free work for them. Be kind. Kindness can lead to clients, or at the very least make you feel good and proud.

2. Participate. If there are daily challenges or questions asked, make sure you join in and get your name seen by the other members. Especially if the questions asked are about your niche. This is a great way of establishing your expertise!

3. Share. In most Facebook groups there is a certain day in the week where all members can share their latest blog post or service. Make sure you share yours and add an image! After all the free advice you've been dishing out, people might want to visit your website and get in touch with you.

4. Search. Search for people who are looking to hire someone like you. If you're a designer, you may want to search 'design' or 'Wordpress'. Then write a sincere comment (don't copy and paste) and leave your web address and email. Or, even better, show initiative and drop them an email yourself!

When I raised my rates in January, my first two bookings were from women I met in Facebook groups. I'm living proof that practicing the tips above works!

But if I'm honest, Facebook groups do something better than help you find clients. They help you find amazing friends from all over the world.

If you're looking for a Facebook group where you can take action on these tips then don't forget to sign up for info on my latest offering, The Shelancers Club. We'll have our own Facebook group where you can connect, seek advice, and help each other build successful businesses!

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