Your Squarespace Template Isn't the Problem. Your Copy Is.
I hear some version of this almost every week.
"I need a new website. Mine just doesn't look right."
So I pull up the site. And honestly? It usually looks fine. The template is clean. The fonts are reasonable. The colors are on-brand. Nothing is broken.
But the copy — the actual words on the page — is doing almost no work at all.
The homepage says something like "Welcome! I'm so passionate about helping people like you." The services page lists what the business offers with no explanation of why it matters. The about page is a resume. There's one CTA somewhere near the bottom that says "Get In Touch."
That's not a template problem. That's a copy problem. And no new template is going to fix it.
What copy actually does (that design can't)
Design gets someone to stay on the page for the first five seconds. Copy is what gets them to do something.
A beautiful layout with weak copy will get you compliments from friends and zero inquiries from clients. Copy that speaks directly to what your ideal client is feeling, what they're looking for, and why you're the right fit — that's what moves someone from "this looks nice" to "I'm booking a call."
Think about the last time you bought something online. What actually made you decide? Was it the color scheme? Or was it something you read — a headline that named your exact problem, a testimonial that sounded like someone you trust, a product description that made you feel like it was built specifically for you?
It was the words.
The most common copy mistakes I see on Squarespace sites
The welcome headline. "Welcome to [Business Name]" or "I'm so glad you're here" is not a headline. It tells a visitor nothing about what you do, who you serve, or why they should stay. Your homepage headline has about three seconds to convince someone they're in the right place. Use it.
A better headline answers: what do you do, for who, and what outcome does it create? Even something like "Squarespace Websites for Small Businesses That Want to Be Found" is doing infinitely more work than "Welcome."
The about page that's actually a resume. Nobody lands on your about page because they want to read a timeline of your credentials. They're there because they're deciding whether to trust you. The most effective about pages lead with the client — their problem, what it feels like, why it matters — and then introduce you as the person who can help.
Your credentials belong on the page. They just shouldn't be the opening line.
Services listed without benefits. "Branding, Website Design, Email Marketing" tells someone what you offer. It doesn't tell them why it matters to their business or what life looks like after they work with you. Every service should come with a sentence or two about the outcome — not the deliverable.
The CTA that asks for too much too soon. "Buy Now" on a cold visitor who just found you is asking for a proposal on the first date. Soften the entry point. "Book a Free Discovery Call" or "Let's Talk" is a much lower-commitment ask — and it converts significantly better for most service businesses.
Writing for yourself instead of your client. Read your homepage copy out loud and count how many times you use the word "I" versus "you." Most business websites are accidentally written from the owner's perspective — what they love to do, what they're passionate about, what they offer. The most converting copy is written from the client's perspective — what they're struggling with, what they're hoping for, what happens when they work with you.
So what actually makes a template worth buying?
I'm not saying design doesn't matter. It does. A poorly designed site loses trust fast, and a clean layout makes copy easier to read. But the template's job is to make the copy easier to absorb — not to carry the weight of the site on its own.
Here's what I look for in a Squarespace template:
Clean typography and clear hierarchy. The visual structure should guide a reader's eye naturally from the headline to the subhead to the body copy to the CTA. If the layout fights with the reader, that's a template problem worth addressing.
Good mobile layout. The template needs to work on a phone without you having to manually fix every section. Test it before you commit.
Flexibility without complexity. You want to be able to update the content without rebuilding the page every time something changes in your business.
But the actual colors, the fonts, the header style, the section spacing — most of those can be customized. What you cannot easily customize is the quality of what you say. A mediocre template with compelling, client-focused copy will outperform a premium template with placeholder text every single time.
How to start fixing your copy today
You don't have to hire someone to improve your copy — though if you've been staring at your own site for so long that everything sounds fine to you, a second set of eyes genuinely helps.
But if you want to start on your own, here's where to focus:
Rewrite your homepage headline first. One sentence. What do you do, for who, and what do they get? Put it above the fold where it's the first thing someone reads.
Read your about page and find the first place you talk about your client. If it's not in the first paragraph, move it there.
Look at your services page. After each service, add one sentence that starts with "So you can..." or "Which means..." and completes the thought with an outcome, not a feature.
Add one clear CTA in the top half of your homepage. Not three CTAs competing with each other. One.
Those four things, done this week, will do more for your conversion rate than a new template ever will.
If you've been considering a redesign because you feel like your site isn't working, let's look at it together before you spend money on a new template. I can usually tell within five minutes whether the problem is the design or the copy.
Book a free discovery call and we'll find out.