Hi, I’m Mel!
And I’m maybe not your typical web designer.
I have a master’s degree in urban planning, am a former marketing manager and I founded a wellness company. But in the process, I’ve created and maintained a lot of websites!
I also know what it’s like to run a website as a business owner: you want something that’s beautiful, effective & simple to maintain.
So I created Five Design Co.—a place for small business owners, freelancers and entrepreneurs to learn how to build custom websites, without having to learn how to code them yourself.
Web design // Blogging // Membership Content // SEO // Entrepreneurship
My philosophy is that websites should be beautiful, functional & easy to use.
This page includes affiliate links, through which I may earn a small commission if you choose to purchase, at no additional cost to you. I only share products I personally use & love!
WHY SQUARESPACE?
I share resources specifically for Squarespace, my favorite website platform for small business owners & entrepreneurs.
In my experience, Squarespace is the simplest website platform for busy small business owners to learn to use and maintain. (And that’s important, because how useful is a beautiful website if you can’t keep it up-to-date?!)
The Squarespace editing interface allows you to create a sophisticated custom website that you can easily work with to make simple updates, publish blog posts, or add new products to an online shop. And, it’s well-integrated with other important business tools like email marketing, appointment scheduling, social platforms and more.
Here’s more about why I think Squarespace is the best website platform for small businesses!
Use code PARTNER10 to take 10% off your first year of Squarespace services!
Why MemberSpace?
Membership content is increasingly important in online business—things like online courses and trainings, resource libraries, video archives and more! These membership-based resources can be offered as free products to grow your email list or paid products to add new income streams to your business. 🙌
For years, I’ve used MemberSpace as my tool of choice to membership-protect content on my own Squarespace website, as well as my clients’ sites.
Squarespace now offers their own membership-protection tool (Squarespace Member Areas), which can be a great native option for some Squarespace users. However, MemberSpace is a much more flexible and robust tool, is compatible with most major website platforms, and is the membership tool I still recommend in most cases.
Here’s more about the difference between Squarespace Member Areas and MemberSpace, and what to know about choosing the right membership platform for your needs!
Do you work for MemberSpace?
Not until recently! But now, yes. 😊
In June 2021, I joined the MemberSpace team as Head of Design.
The membership resources on Five Design Co. were created prior to my employment with MemberSpace, from my perspective as a web designer. Though I do personally use and prefer MemberSpace, and find it’s the best option for most of the membership programs I’ve consulted on, I only share my honest opinion on membership programs and software here.
WHY “FIVE”?
Five Design Co. is named after my five favorite things in good web design: beautiful, simple, effective, user-friendly & inviting.
But it’s also homage to my first business: Four Wellness Co.