Kristine Neil on Smart E-commerce Systems & Client Boundaries

PodcastsBusiness

8 Sept

In this episode of Looks Good From Here, Nick chats with Kristine Neil, a powerhouse Squarespace designer and strategist known for building smart, scalable e-commerce systems. Kristine recently relaunched her personal brand website and shares the messy middle behind beautiful work—from managing client expectations to choosing the right tools for maximum efficiency. Watch the video or continue reading below.

Why Your E-Commerce Story Isn't About You

One of Kristine's most powerful insights cuts straight to the heart of why many online stores fail to convert: they're telling the wrong story.

"Most people probably spend too much time thinking or writing about themselves and not enough time focusing on the customer," Kristine explains. "I see this a lot in product descriptions where people feel like they have to say 'I ventured to this place to hand-source this product material and this has been my life's work.' That's great, but what's going to compel somebody to add to cart is if you explain how your product benefits them."

This mirrors the StoryBrand framework—positioning your customer as the hero of the story, not your business. By the time visitors reach your website, they're often past the awareness stage. They want to know one thing: how do you solve their problem?

Key strategies for customer-focused e-commerce copy:

Lead with benefits, not features or your company history
Address specific problems your product solves
Make the path to purchase as frictionless as possible
Focus on how customers will feel when using your product

Squarespace vs. Shopify: The Real Conversation

When clients ask about platform choice, Kristine's approach might surprise you. "It's actually getting easier to recommend Squarespace because what you're selling to them is the results of that platform," she notes. "If you tell them 'I can tell your brand story and I can get people to add to cart and I can get the money to your bank account,' that's what they're interested in."

The technical revelation that often surprises designers? You can actually sell more products on Squarespace than on Shopify in many cases. While Shopify allows unlimited products, they cap variants at 100. Squarespace allows 10,000 products with 250 variants each—often more than enough for businesses selling customizable products like t-shirts in multiple colors and sizes.

When Squarespace excels for e-commerce:

Businesses prioritizing creative storytelling and brand presentation
Products with multiple variants (colors, sizes, styles)
Small to medium businesses wanting all-in-one pricing
Clients who want to manage their own content updates easily

The Power of Simplicity in Business Tools

Despite being deeply tech-savvy and having tested "every project management tool," Kristine's actual system might shock you: Google Docs and email threads.

"I don't want someone to have to be 'working with her was just so hard,'" she explains. "I think we ask our clients to come too much into our world and play with the tools that we love. Clients are like 'there's a reason why I sell soap down at the farmers market and it's not to be in Notion.'"

This approach extends beyond client communication to her entire business philosophy. Rather than forcing complex systems, she meets clients where they are—a strategy that consistently earns feedback like "you made this easy."

Simplicity strategies that work:

Use tools your clients already understand
Create canned email responses for common situations
Focus on outcomes, not impressive-looking processes
Automate where it genuinely saves time, not just because you can

Design Confessions: Not Every Project Needs to Win Awards

One of Kristine's most refreshing perspectives addresses something many designers struggle with: the pressure to create portfolio-worthy work every single time.

"Not every piece has to be portfolio worthy and that's okay," she shares. "You are not personally responsible for your client's poor business decisions. If they make really ugly choices, if they pick horrible fonts and disgusting colors and they have the world's crappiest photos, there is nothing you can do about it unless they hired you to specifically do those things."

Her example of a client who sells car wash soap illustrates this perfectly. The website is "very basic and not flashy," but the client loves it, it functions perfectly for his customers, and—most importantly—he's referred other clients because of the positive experience.

Key takeaways for project satisfaction:

Happy clients matter more than award-worthy portfolios
Some projects pay the bills and that's perfectly valid
Client referrals from satisfied customers often outweigh impressive portfolios
Not every business needs cutting-edge design to succeed

Building Authentic Client Relationships

Kristine's approach to client relationships centers on transparency and meeting people where they are. Whether that means working through Google Docs instead of fancy project management tools or being honest about project timelines, authenticity builds trust.

Her hard-learned rule about rush projects demonstrates this wisdom: "If somebody says in their contact form that they’re launching in 3 weeks and there's a level of panic, these are not my people. There's someone out there who does websites in a week, but I don't perform well in that instance."

By being clear about her working style and ideal timeline, Kristine attracts clients who value the strategic, thoughtful approach she provides—and avoids the stress of projects that don't align with her strengths.

The Future of E-Commerce Design

As the digital landscape continues evolving, Kristine's insights point toward a future where success comes from understanding customer psychology, not just technical capabilities. The businesses that thrive will be those that:

Prioritize clear, benefit-focused communication over flashy features
Choose tools that serve their actual needs, not what looks impressive
Focus on customer experience over internal processes
Build sustainable systems that don't require constant developer intervention

Ready to Transform Your E-Commerce Approach?

Whether you're building online stores for clients or launching your own e-commerce venture, Kristine's insights remind us that success comes from serving customers well, not impressing them with complexity.

The SquareKicker Extension can help you create those compelling customer journeys Kristine talks about—with no-code tools that let you focus on what matters most: telling stories that convert browsers into buyers.

Ready to elevate your Squarespace sites? Start your 14-day free trial of SquareKicker today and discover how the right tools can help you create exceptional online experiences that serve both you and your clients better.