Squarespace Launch Checklist
So you launched a Squarespace website, now what?
I get it. Web design, building and launching is a feat in and of itself. It’s so tempting to just stop there and hope for the best. But let me encourage you not to do that!
If you can set aside just a couple hours every month (maybe even less!), your site will perform better, you can track that performance, and you’ll be met with less far unwelcome surprises.
How do you make a Squarespace website live?
It’s pretty simple! Once design is complete, you need to do 3 things to launch a Squarespace website:
Connect your domain. Although you can purchase your custom domain name through Squarespace and it will be automatically connected, we most often purchase our domain names from a third party like GoDaddy. Your designer will be well-versed in helping you point your domain at your new website, but you can also follow this guide from Squarespace.
Upgrade your hosting. You can’t take up room on the internet for free, so you have to pay Squarespace to host your website once your free trial is up / you’re ready to launch. You can upgrade your Squarespace hosting 2 easy ways: either click the blue “subscribe” button floating at the bottom of the screen when you’re on the backend of the site and follow the prompts, or navigate to Settings > Billing and follow those steps.
Remove the password. The simplest step of them all! On the backend of your site, just go to Settings > Site Availability and change to "Public”. Note you cannot make this change until your hosting is paid for.
Congrats, you’re live! But you’re not done!
Follow these 5 steps to after launching to ensure your new Squarespace website is reaching its max potential:
Google Analytics
Google Search Console
Check your website regularly
Edit & update your website
NEW WEBSITE ANNOUNCEMENT
You’ve worked hard on your new website, so flaunt it! After you’ve launched your new website, make sure to blast the news to the world. You can do this on social media, forums related to your industry, and any relevant networking groups you’re a member of. Getting traffic to your site is a big part of helping Google know it’s authentic, so don’t be shy!
After the initial announcement, I highly recommend keeping your digital marketing strategy going by using popular marketing tools or hiring a digital marketing agency, like my trusted colleague Chatham Oaks, to take the reins.
GOOGLE ANALYTICS
Squarespace has a pretty barebones analytics dashboard, so I always recommend setting up Google Analytics immediately. This makes it much simpler to see the patterns of your visitors so you can easily predict your next move.
Here’s how to add Google Analytics to Squarespace:
First, sign up for Google Analytics. Next, find your Google Analytics tracking number and add it to your website by navigating to Settings > Advanced > External API Keys. Here’s more info from Squarespace on getting it connected.
GOOGLE SEARCH CONSOLE
In my opinion, this is one of the most important steps after launching a new website. In the simplest terms, verifying your website with Google Search Console is telling Google that your site is real and asking it to index (basically, read) all of your website pages. It, of course, does much more than that as well.
Think of it this way, everyone’s goal with a new website is to get it to rank on Google… so why not tell Google directly that your site is ready? Search Console and Google Analytics play very nicely together, so be sure to complete both steps. You can learn more here.
CHECK YOUR WEBSITE REGULARLY
I’d say this is the step that people with brand new websites tend to skip. You have a new site, you’ve approved it with your designer, so what’s the point of checking it regularly?
Squarespace releases big updates pretty regularly, which we designers love, but it often breaks custom code and CSS on your site (which we don’t love). Most of the time, the fix is pretty simple, so taking just a few minutes every couple weeks to scroll through your website builder on desktop and mobile can help catch bugs before a visitor does.
EDIT & UPDATE YOUR SITE
One of the worst things you can do is leave your website stagnant. Visitors and Google alike like to see that you’re making regular updates to your new site after launch.
I do always suggest consulting with an on-page SEO expert before making changes to headings / copy (you don’t want to mess with your keywords!), but there are tons of ways to keep your site fresh without risking your Google ranking: everything from simply updating your online store to changing out photos to writing a blog (content is king and writing a blog is one of the best things you can do). At the minimum, just be sure the content on your site is always accurate and up to date.
So, how do you edit a Squarespace site anyway? Depending on your designer, you may be able to ask them for a bit of training when your new Squarespace website is complete. Here at AJM Design Studio, we provide all clients with a screencast video showing them how to make basic website edits so they never feel out of the loop.
DOES ANY OF THIS SOUND OVERWHELMING?
Don’t stress! That’s what we’re here for. You can always hire AJM Design Studio to handle everything after launch with our Beyond Launch services. Our monthly Squarespace website maintenance packages allow you to relax and know that it’s all taken care of so you can start selling!
