In January of 2020 Squarespace officially launched their latest version of the platform, 7.1. This launch was a big deal because a lot of changes have been made - from design capability and functionality to the back-end design experience. I wanted to jump on it and give you some insight on what’s changed if you haven’t had a chance to check it out yet. Here are some of the most notable changes…
Templates
The biggest change we see outside of user interface is the template families - or lack thereof. In previous versions, selecting a template meant that it came from a family that had specific design functionalities, and may have been limited. For example, some templates didn’t have a sidebar option, which would be tough for bloggers and require them to turn to custom CSS or manually building one. In 7.1, although the template exploration page displays a variety of templates based on popular designs and web design categories, they all stem from the same family and all have the same capabilities. Which in my opinion, is AWESOME and a more streamlined experience. No more worries of “does this template have x feature?”
Back-End Interface
The site styles navigation bar is different to reflect a breakdown of different design sections for fonts, colors, products, and images rather than all on one page (formerly “Site Styles”).
There are now on-screen design changes as well, including insertion points for content blocks, and especially for adding index pages. Rather than clicking on adding a new page in the sidebar, you can now simply click on the “+” button at the bottom of the current page you’re working on, or in between two existing pages.
The ability to alternate between mobile and desktop view is now different - Squarespace has removed the tablet view, only giving you the option to view mobile or desktop, and has moved to the top right corner of the screen. The ability to expand the webpage view is also now in the top right corner of the screen.
There are a lot more (differently illustrated) page layout options by page type but still a blank page option.
No more
In 7.1, Squarespace has opted to get rid of the following features:
Gallery content blocks (now replaced with actual gallery pages or portfolio pages that you can add to an existing page to create an index)
Parallax scrolling
Cover pages
Developer mode
Index pages as an option for a new page (you can now manually create them as stated earlier but just clicking on the “+” button)
New Design Capabilities
One of the awesome things that Squarespace has incorporated into 7.1 is a ton of new design capabilities that make the design process easier and more fun. This includes:
Premade font combos - but still having the option to customize your fonts
Color palette creation - the option to create your own OR use a premade one
Removal of the “click & style” process from previous versions, design changes are now based on the item you’re styling...leading me to the next point:
Back end styling is broken down into different categories, which is actually quite helpful and intuitive to use (such as fonts, colors, images, products, etc.)
You can now edit your site header separately and more intuitively than before
Design lock pages
Design checkout pages
The only caveat is that some content blocks that you could update once before such as the gallery, cannot be adjusted because it is now its own page.
All in all, if you are new to web design - whether you’re designing sites for clients or yourself, 7.1 is a great place to start, and the process is extremely streamlined. Not only that but you have premade font combinations and color palettes, so if the branding design aspect is one that you are or were struggling with, you now have professional recommendations at your fingertips for your website.
If you’re used to the previous versions 7.0 or below, it may take some getting used to, but ultimately I think it’s an innovative change and will make the design process smoother overall.
