The short version
A $99 template is the right call for plenty of businesses. It gets you online cheaply, and you can change it yourself whenever you like. We cost more and take longer, so we only make sense once your customers need more than a template can give them.
| A template or site builder | Olive Branch | |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | New businesses, ideas you’re testing, tight budgets, and people who like doing it themselves. | Established businesses whose customers ask questions and compare before they call. |
| Who does the work | You do, or someone you hire. | We do. We can stay on to keep improving it, and the quote says what that costs. |
| The design | A starting design that others can buy too, which you then make your own. | Made for your business, with pages that answer what customers ask before they call. |
| Getting online | As fast as you can write the words and choose the photos. | Longer. We’ll give you dates in the quote. |
| What it costs | From free to a few hundred dollars a year on the lower plans. Prices below. | More. We quote after a first conversation. |
| What you own | Depends on the tool. Wix says your content “belongs to you,” and that your site “must run on Wix’s servers.”1 | You can own everything outright, or spread the cost over a partnership. |
| Making a change | Log in and do it yourself, any time. | Send a request in your portal and watch it move from Received to Done. |
| Beyond the website | You pick and connect other tools yourself. | If it helps, we can build a client portal, a CRM or follow-up that answers every inquiry. Tools that work stay. |
When a template fits better
We’re not for everyone, and we’d rather say so up front. A template is the better call if:
- You’re just starting, and you don’t yet know what your customers will ask you.
- You’re testing an idea, and you might change it or drop it in a few months.
- Your budget is tight, and the money would do more good somewhere else.
- You like doing it yourself, and you’d rather change your own site tonight than send anyone a request.
- You have all the work you want, and nobody looks you up first. A simple, fast page may be all you need.
- Price is the main thing you’re choosing on, or you want a site built once and rarely touched.
If that’s you, use the template. Clear words and real photos on a template will do more for you than a custom site that would stretch your budget.
Where we come in
We come in when you’ve outgrown the template. It often shows up in small ways:
- Customers keep phoning with questions your site should answer.
- You get a good referral, and you hope they don’t look at your site first.
- Your services no longer fit the template’s pages, so you keep working around them.
- Updating the site has become a job you keep putting off.
Our list of 9 signs your website needs a redesign shows how to test each one.
Most clients start with a redesign. If that’s all you need, that’s the whole job. If more would help, we can build a client portal, a CRM or follow-up that answers every inquiry. Tools that work stay, and we can connect them if it helps.
Moving a site is where things can go wrong, so we plan for it and put it on the quote. We list the addresses on your old site and redirect each one to its closest new page. If you control your domain, old links and bookmarks keep working. Google says “it’s important to map your old site’s URLs to the URLs for the new site,” and to keep redirects “generally at least 1 year.”2 It also says to expect “temporary fluctuation in site ranking during the move,” so we won’t promise that your rankings will hold still.
Your pages usually get rebuilt, and your words and photos get copied across. Squarespace exports “certain content,” in a file made for WordPress,3 and a Wix site can’t move to another host.1 That’s how these builders work, and it’s fine if you plan for it. Before any move, check who owns your website, starting with whose name is on your domain.
Can AI build my website?
Yes, it can build a first draft, and that’s often enough if you need a placeholder this week.
Wix says you can “create a website with AI by describing what you want.”4 Squarespace says its builder “produces a personalized, multi-page website starting point.”5 You can try both for free. Wix asks for a Premium plan to connect your own domain or take payments, and Squarespace asks for a paid plan to publish.
A draft is made from what you type in. It doesn’t know what customers ask you on the phone, or why they choose you over the next name on the list. You’d still have to add that yourself, whichever tool you use.
Google judges the page, not how it was made. It says AI gives content no “special gains.”6 It also warns that generating many pages “without adding value for users” may break its spam policy.7
We use AI too, and we’ll tell you where. If it helps, we can set up follow-up that answers every inquiry, or an assistant that answers your customers’ real questions.
What it costs
“A $99 template” is shorthand. Some cost less, and some cost more. Here’s what the big names publish, read on each company’s own page on 30 October 2026. Prices change, so follow the links.
| Option | Published price |
|---|---|
| Squarespace | $19 to $99 a month billed yearly, or $25 to $139 monthly. Free for 14 days. Templates and hosting are included.8 |
| Wix | A free plan at $0, with hosting and templates. A Premium plan connects your own domain, and taking payments needs Core or above. Wix says prices and currency “vary by location,” so check the page for yours.9 |
| Shopify | For online stores. $29 to $299 a month billed yearly, or $39 to $399 monthly, plus card rates from 2.5% + 30¢ to 2.9% + 30¢.10 |
| Shopify themes | There are free themes. Paid ones shown on its theme store ran from $170 to $500.11 |
| WordPress themes | On ThemeForest, from $13 to $119 on the page we read, before tax and handling fees.12 You also need a host to run WordPress.13 |
For scale, a year on Squarespace’s Core plan is 12 × $29 = $348, billed yearly. Our guide to what a website costs in 2026 covers what you’ll pay after launch, and what studios publish.
Our builds are custom, so we don’t publish one price, and a custom build costs a lot more than a template. We quote after a first conversation. You can own everything outright, or spread the cost over a partnership.
Wix, Squarespace, Shopify, ThemeForest and WordPress are trademarks of their owners. We aren’t affiliated with or endorsed by any of them.
Common questions
Should I use a template or hire a studio?
Use a template if you’re new, testing an idea, on a tight budget or happy doing it yourself. Talk to a studio if you’re established, your customers compare you before they call, and you’ve outgrown what a template can do.
Can AI build my website?
It can build a first draft, and Wix and Squarespace both offer this. That’s often enough if you need a placeholder this week. You’d still need to add what it can’t know, like what your customers ask and why they choose you.
How do I know I’ve outgrown my template?
Customers keep asking questions your site should answer, you’d rather a referral didn’t look at it, or your services no longer fit its pages. If none of that’s true, keep your template.
Can I start with a template and move to you later?
Yes, and if you’re just starting, we’d suggest it. Keep your domain registered in your own name, and keep your words and photos somewhere you can get at them. That makes a later move much easier.
Will I lose my Google rankings if I leave my template?
A move can change them for a while. Google says to expect “temporary fluctuation in site ranking during the move.” We redirect each old address to its closest new page so old links keep working, but we won’t promise your rankings will hold still.
Can you move me off Wix or Squarespace?
Yes. A Wix site can’t move to another host, and Squarespace exports only some content, so we rebuild your pages rather than import them, then redirect your old addresses.
Do I have to replace my other tools?
No. Most clients start with a redesign. Tools that work stay, and we can connect them if it helps.
Do I own the website?
You can own everything outright, or spread the cost over a partnership. We’ll set it up the way that fits.