Which Squarespace package should I choose

22 Jun

Here is a simple guide and analysis of the different packages that you can choose in Squarespace, so that you can work out which will be the best fit for you.

Remember - if you start your template in the BOSS account, you’ll get 20% off your first payment. Simply email us on hello@BOSScentre.com.au with the template that you would like to use and the email address that you’ve used to start your own Squarespace account. We’ll then start the template and add you as a Contributor, and the 20% will be automatically applied at checkout. PLUS you’ll get a 6 month trial period (playing around / building time) rather than 2 weeks.

Personal - $16/month (or $22 / month if you're paying month by month)

Great for most businesses who don't need eCommerce.
Unlimited pages, bandwidth and storage
2 contributors
All the basics that we love from Squarespace, such as mobile optimisation (both how it looks on a mobile, but also removes unnecessary formatting for mobile usage which Google LOVES), 24/7 support (with a native-English speaking PERSON!), and the ability to create an SSL secure site.

Business - $25/month (or $35 / month if you're paying month by month)

All the above features plus:
An eCommerce facility for taking orders and payments (3% transaction fee)
Additional marketing tools such as Promotional Pop-ups and an Announcement Bar
The ability to fully customise the site using CSS and JavaScript coding
Gift Cards

Basic Commerce - $34/month (or $40 / month if you're paying month by month)

All the features of the Business plan plus:
Some added eCommerce tools such as label printing, and integration with Xero
Even more analytics, such as sales funnel stats (e.g. where you're losing sales)
Customer Accounts - so customers can see their purchase history and save their details on your store for easier and quicker future purchases
No additional transaction fees on payments

Advanced Commerce - $52/month (or $61 / month if you're paying month by month)

The Big Daddy of eCommerce website building!
All of the above plus additional features such as Abandoned Cart autorecovery (for capturing potential lost sales)

One thing to note is the 3% transaction charge on the Business plan for eCommerce transactions. This is in addition to the credit card processing fee (e.g. PayPal which can charge 2.6% or Stripe which charges around 1.75%).

I've worked out the crossover point of when it makes sense to upgrade from a Business to a Basic Online account, and it is this. Once you are receiving $300 (or $167 if on a month by month package), you're better off paying the extra $9 (or $5 month to month) of the Basic Commerce plan in order to avoid the extra 3% transaction fees. If you only have the facility there for very occasional purchases, you're likely better off staying on the Business plan and just working the extra fees into your pricing.

As always, any questions, please drop me a line! :)

Liz

Liz Haselgrove is a Squarespace Authorised Trainer (one of only a small handful in Australia) and loves working with businesses to create a killer website that not only looks great, but also draws people in to press the all important BUY button.