Rebuild
Sanity CMS Website | Squarespace to Custom Code Rebuild
- Client
- Seetha The Comic, corporate entertainer and stand-up comedian. Client project (Upwork), Phase 1.
- Role
- Developer: Squarespace to custom code rebuild, Sanity CMS setup, Netlify hosting
- From → To
- Squarespace → Custom code + Sanity CMS + Netlify
- Stack
- HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Sanity CMS, Netlify, GitHub
- Key result
- Yearly hosting cost down from over $200 to $0, with every changing section editable in Sanity
01 / The brief
Seetha is a corporate entertainer and stand-up comedian in the US. His website ran on Squarespace, and he was paying more than $200 a year to keep it there. He wanted a fresh design, and he needed to keep updating his own content: new shows, reviews, podcast episodes and client logos, often several times a month.
Before: Squarespace site. After: Phase 1 custom code rebuild with Sanity CMS, hosted on Netlify.
02 / Why a rebuild
Squarespace doesn't let you export your site's code. You can take some content out, but the design, layout and structure stay locked inside the platform. So moving to a new host wasn't an option. The only way off was to rebuild the site from scratch.
That turned out to be the right call. A rebuild meant a new design, code the client owns, and a content setup made around his business rather than a generic template.
03 / What I built
- A new design, built in custom HTML, CSS and JavaScript.
- Sanity CMS for every section that changes: shows, episodes, reviews, client logos, gallery, FAQs and free resources, all editable without touching code.
- A note on every field, so a non-technical client edits it alone.
- Hosting on Netlify, with the code in a GitHub repo.
04 / Content he manages himself
Everything that changes on the site lives in Sanity:
- Shows: venue, date, description and whether a show is public and selling tickets
- Podcast episodes
- Reviews
- Client groups and corporate client logos
- Stages and festivals he has performed at
- Photo gallery
- FAQs
- Free resources, such as The HR Survival Kit and a free cheat sheet
- Legal pages and site-wide settings
05 / Built for a non-technical editor
Sanity Studio: editing a show, with a guidance note on every field.
Seetha isn't a developer, so the Studio had to explain itself. Every field has a short note under it saying what to enter and how it shows up on the website. The venue field shows an example of how a venue should read. The date field explains that the ticket stub takes its day and month from it. The description field warns that more than two lines will push the ticket button out of line.
He doesn't need a guide or a call with me to add a show. The Studio tells him as he types.
06 / The cost
- Before: Squarespace, more than $200 a year
- After: Netlify's free plan for hosting and Sanity's free plan for content. Hosting the site now costs him $0.
07 / The result
- Off Squarespace, with code he owns
- Every changing section editable in Sanity, with guidance on each field
- Yearly hosting cost down from over $200 to $0
- This project led to a second contract on the same site, a full redesign
08 / Client feedback
“Sohail didn't just build a website — he built a platform that represents my brand and helps me attract the right clients.”
What I'd do for you
Paying every year to keep your site on Squarespace? Send me the link and I'll tell you what moving off it would take.
Send me your site