How to Choose the Right Squarespace Template for Your Therapy or Coaching Website
Squarespace makes it so easy to get your private practice website up and running quickly, and with their predesigned templates, you can rest easy knowing that your website will look professional, even if you don’t have extensive knowledge of web design.
“But how do I choose a Squarespace template?”
I know the long list of templates can be overwhelming, but don’t worry. In this blog post, I’m going to show you how to narrow down your options and select the right Squarespace template for your business.
Step 1: Plan your website
While it might be tempting to just pick a template and dive in (no shame if you want to do it this way - heck, that’s what I did when I created my first website!), a little planning can save you a lot of time in the long run. Knowing how you want your pages to be laid out, for example, can help you narrow down your template choices.
To plan your website:
Collect website inspo. Take note of the websites that you’re drawn to - what do you like about them? What do they have in common? (Note: copying websites is never okay. This is copyright infringement and is illegal. Be inspired, but do not copy.)
Draw your website. I don’t know about you, but I’m a visual person, and drawing out my vision always helps me clarify and define what I’m trying to create.
Once you have a clearer vision of what you want your website to look like, you can move on to the next step!
Step 2: Make a list of website features that you need
Squarespace templates are sorted by “template families.” Each family has a different set of features, so it’s really just about finding the template family that has the features that you need.
To search within a specific family, go to the Squarespace templates page, and type the family into the search bar.
Here are some common website features that you might be looking for, followed by the template families that can accommodate them:
Index Pages
Index pages organize multiple pages into a single collection. This could be a grid of images, with each image leading to a different page, like this:
These templates have a Grid Index feature: Montauk Family, York Family, Flatiron, & Supply.
Index pages can also be laid out vertically (stacked) in a series of scrolling banner images, like this:
Website featured: Filtering Light Counseling (using the Hayden template).
These templates have a Banner (Stacked) Index feature: Bedford Family, Brine Family, & Pacific Family.
Parallax Scrolling
Some Squarespace templates use a visual effect on header and banner images called parallax scrolling. The banner image moves slower than the rest of the content on the page when scrolling, creating a feeling of depth. This is what it looks like:
Website featured: The Nest Creative Therapy Center (using the Rover template).
To include parallax scrolling on your site, choose a template within the Brine Family.
Blog Summary Page
Many of my clients like to format their blog landing page as a grid of thumbnail images, so their website visitors can browse through all of their posts in one place (as seen below). If you’d like the same feature, check out the Skye Family of templates.
For additional features, like navigation formatting, footer content, and gallery pages, pay attention to each of these features on the templates you’re considering. Choose the template that has the specific features you want on your new site.
Step 3: Select a template
Once you know what features you want to include on your therapy or coaching website, you can select a template and get to work! As you’ve likely noticed, Squarespace creates demo sites to showcase their templates, so remember to pay attention to the features and design of each template, not the demo content.
For example, I used their Brine demo site (a website showcasing pickled vegetables) to create a client’s coaching website. The content can always be changed to suit your unique business.
Most of all, remember, you can always change your template on Squarespace. If you decide to change things up later on, you can. Just choose a template that meets your needs now, and adjust as you go. You’ve got this!
If you need a little more direction, I created a free guide to my favorite Squarespace templates for therapy and coaching websites. Download it for free in my Members-Only Resource Vault.
