Expert Tips When Hiring
a Squarespace Web Designer
Your business is gaining momentum — social media is active, referrals are coming in, and now it's time to build a professional online presence that works as hard as you do.
Before hiring a Squarespace web designer, a little preparation goes a long way. The clearer your brief, the faster and smoother your build — and the better your final website will perform.
As a Perth-based Squarespace specialist with 500+ websites built since 2013, here's exactly what Hot Lizard Designs recommends having ready before your project kicks off:
Your Domain Name
Before anything else, secure your domain. It’s no coincidence that Squarespace featured this aspect in the 2026 Superbowl adverts! It's your business address online — and consistency matters. Ideally your domain matches your business name and your social media handles.
We recommend purchasing through a third-party provider like GoDaddy so you retain full ownership regardless of which platform you ever build on
A Professional Email Address
A hello@yourbusiness.com email address builds instant credibility with potential clients. Most businesses use Google Workspace — it connects neatly with Google Analytics and Google Search Console, both of which we link to every website we build.
A Rough Idea of Your Page Structure
You don't need a finalised sitemap — that's something we work through together. But arriving with a rough sense of what you need saves time. Home and Contact are a given. What else? Individual service pages, a Team page, a portfolio, a blog?
Our guide to essential pages for a small business website is a useful starting point - Essential Tips for a Successful Business Website - which walks through the key pages most small business websites need.
Your Website Copy
Possibly the trickiest part of the whole process — it's always hard to write about yourself.
If budget allows, a professional copywriter can make a real difference. But if you'd rather DIY it, try this: grab your phone, hit record, and describe what you do as if you're talking to a brand new customer. Play it back, transcribe it, and tidy it up. It's surprisingly effective and completely sidesteps writer's block.
Remember — Squarespace makes it easy to edit and update your copy at any time, so nothing is set in stone. And if you'd like help crafting your website copy, just let us know — it's something we can assist with.
Images
Great images communicate your brand within seconds — before a visitor has read a single word. Provide high-resolution files in JPG or PNG where you can, including your logo and any team or product photography.
If you don't have professional imagery, that's not a problem. Stock photo libraries have improved enormously, and sourcing royalty-free images that suit your brand is something we do as part of every project.
For more on why imagery matters so much, read our blog post - Is a Picture Really Worth a Thousand Words?
Selling Services or Digital Products Online?
Selling online or taking bookings? Having clarity upfront saves significant time. What are you selling, how many offerings will you launch with, and how are customers paying — one-off, subscription, or appointment-based?
Acuity Scheduling integrates directly with Squarespace and handles everything from free discovery calls to paid bookings and class schedules. If you have an existing system you'd prefer to keep, we can work with that too.
Mailing List and Social Media
If growing an email list is part of your plan, mention it early. Squarespace has its own email campaigns tool built in, or we can integrate your existing provider. Have your social media handles ready — Squarespace connects to them neatly, and blog posts can be automatically pushed to certain platforms the moment you publish.
Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy
This one is a legal requirement, not a nice-to-have — and you'd be surprised how many websites are still operating without them.
Australian law requires any website collecting visitor information — including basic contact form submissions — to display a Privacy Policy. Selling online? Terms and Conditions are strongly recommended too. Marketing internationally? You'll also need GDPR compliance and a cookie consent banner.
At Hot Lizard Designs, we take care of this for you — with a tailored third-party solution that stays up to date as legislation evolves, so you're always covered.
Quotes From Web Designers
When comparing designers, look carefully beyond the price. Are you being quoted for the same scope of work? Does their portfolio reflect the quality you're looking for? Did they actually read your brief — or send a generic reply within minutes?
The right designer will ask questions before quoting. That curiosity about your business and requirements is usually a good sign of how the entire project will go.
Design, Business Strategy, and SEO — All in One
A great-looking website that doesn't bring in enquiries is just expensive decoration. And a website that nobody can find on Google isn't much better.
The best results come when design, business understanding, and SEO all work together from the start — not as separate considerations bolted on at the end.
It's why every Hot Lizard Designs project starts with strategy, not aesthetics. With an MBA and 500+ websites built across industries, we bring design quality, business thinking, and SEO foundations to every project — so your website looks good, communicates clearly, and gets found by the right people.
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“New website looks great and was an easy process to get it started and completed. Very good price for lots of pages. I would recommend Hot Lizard Designs to other organisations looking to overhaul their messy website for something fresh and easily managed.”
Brent Bell, CEO
HepatitisWA, Perth