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I'd recommend SquareSpace for simple sites and Shopify for eCommerce sites. I think my own recommendation progression has been something like (starting from my

by Tehnix 10y ago

I'd recommend SquareSpace for simple sites and Shopify for eCommerce sites. I think my own recommendation progression has been something like (starting from my early programming days till now): - My own homebuilt CMS - A standard CMS like WordPress etc - A SaaS solution like SquareSpace or Shopify I really feel like the managed solutions are just that more convenient in the long term, also for the clients own sake.

ben_jones 10y ago
And they're only going to get better. Ten years ago a funded company might have done much better rolling their own CMS, but nowadays I agree whole-heartedly that managed solutions are the way to go and I believe ten years from now this conversation will be even shorter.
blahi 10y ago
Your requirements must be very trivial if Squarespace or Shopify fulfills them.
- manigandham 10y ago
  The OP started asking about simple sites for non-technical people. Squarespace and Shopify are perfect for this, especially judging by their success.
  - blahi 10y ago
    Yeah, you are right. I forgot what the original question was. My bad.
- brianwawok 10y ago
  Shopify has an apps hook to call out json web hooks to your own servers. It can do a lot but maybe at that point why use shopify :)
busterarm 10y ago
Have you actually ever thrown up a SquareSpace site? I think even GeoCities WYSIWYG editor was more friendly (and capable). SquareSpace maybe fine if you're limiting what you're trying to do to _exactly_ what's in the template, but figuring out how to work their system otherwise is hours of maddening, (poorly or) undocumented hell. I threw up http://www.pateshop.nyc/ http://www.pateshop.nyc/ for some friends and it took a full day. It would have been faster if I'd just wrote the site myself. It's not even that great -- to get the nav/ux requested I had to compromise a lot to what SquareSpace could deliver. I don't think someone unfamiliar with HTML and CSS would have been successful.
- Tehnix 10y ago
  >Have you actually ever thrown up a SquareSpace site? Several actually, and didn't have much trouble with the WYSIWYG. Worth noting though that the websites more or less fit into the existing templates, but you can also do your own work there. >It would have been faster if I'd just wrote the site myself. It's not even that great Well, the parent was asking >what can I recommend to non-technical people when they need a website quickly and inexpensively and "make your own from scratch" isn't really an answer to that at all...
  - busterarm 10y ago
    The lack of SSL is still a no-go for me.

by Tehnix 10y ago

ben_jones 10y ago

And they're only going to get better. Ten years ago a funded company might have done much better rolling their own CMS, but nowadays I agree whole-heartedly that managed solutions are the way to go and I believe ten years from now this conversation will be even shorter.

blahi 10y ago

Your requirements must be very trivial if Squarespace or Shopify fulfills them.

manigandham 10y ago
The OP started asking about simple sites for non-technical people. Squarespace and Shopify are perfect for this, especially judging by their success.
- blahi 10y ago
  Yeah, you are right. I forgot what the original question was. My bad.
brianwawok 10y ago
Shopify has an apps hook to call out json web hooks to your own servers. It can do a lot but maybe at that point why use shopify :)

busterarm 10y ago

Have you actually ever thrown up a SquareSpace site? I think even GeoCities WYSIWYG editor was more friendly (and capable). SquareSpace maybe fine if you're limiting what you're trying to do to _exactly_ what's in the template, but figuring out how to work their system otherwise is hours of maddening, (poorly or) undocumented hell. I threw up http://www.pateshop.nyc/ http://www.pateshop.nyc/ for some friends and it took a full day. It would have been faster if I'd just wrote the site myself. It's not even that great -- to get the nav/ux requested I had to compromise a lot to what SquareSpace could deliver. I don't think someone unfamiliar with HTML and CSS would have been successful.

Tehnix 10y ago
>Have you actually ever thrown up a SquareSpace site? Several actually, and didn't have much trouble with the WYSIWYG. Worth noting though that the websites more or less fit into the existing templates, but you can also do your own work there. >It would have been faster if I'd just wrote the site myself. It's not even that great Well, the parent was asking >what can I recommend to non-technical people when they need a website quickly and inexpensively and "make your own from scratch" isn't really an answer to that at all...
- busterarm 10y ago
  The lack of SSL is still a no-go for me.