How Do I Unpublish a Squarespace Blog?

Unpublishing a blog post on Squarespace involves a few steps to ensure that the post is no longer visible to your website visitors while preserving the content for potential future use. Squarespace provides several methods to achieve this, each with its own implications. Here are detailed steps and considerations for each method:

Method 1: Mark the Blog Post as Draft

Steps:

1. Log In to Your Squarespace Account:

2. Go to Squarespace and log in with your credentials.

3. Navigate to the Blog Section:

4. From the Home Menu, click on "Pages."

5. Locate your blog page, often titled “Blog” or another custom name, and click on it.

6. Select the Post to Unpublish:

7. In the blog section, find the post you want to unpublish.

8. Click on the title of the post to open the blog post editor.

9. Change the Post Status:

10. On the right-hand side, you’ll see the “Post Status” options.

11. Change the status from “Published” to “Draft.”

12. Save or Update the Post:

13. Click “Save” or “Update” to apply the changes.

Considerations:

• Visibility: The post will be removed from your live site and will only be visible in the backend with a “Draft” label.
• SEO Impact: There might be some temporary impact on your SEO as the post URL will no longer be available to visitors and search engines.

Method 2: Unpublish by Setting Visibility to Private

Steps:

1. Log In to Your Squarespace Account:

2. Log into your Squarespace account.

3. Navigate to the Blog Section:

4. From the Home Menu, click on "Pages."

5. Click on your blog page.

6. Select the Post:

7. Find and click on the post you want to unpublish.

8. Change Visibility Settings:

9. In the post editor, find the visibility settings (usually at the bottom or under a “⋮” menu).

10. Change the visibility to “Private.”

11. Save or Update the Post:

12. Click “Save” or “Update” to apply the changes.

Considerations:

• Selective Access: This option is useful if you want to give access to specific individuals via a direct link while keeping it hidden from the general public.
• Internal Use: Private posts can be used for internal updates or reviews by team members before making public.

Method 3: Temporarily Hide the Entire Blog Page

Steps:

1. Log In to Your Squarespace Account:

2. Log into your Squarespace account.

3. Navigate to the Pages Section:

4. From the Home Menu, click on "Pages."

5. Find Your Blog Page:

6. Locate your blog page from the list.

7. Hide the Blog Page:

8. Click on the "settings" icon (gear icon) next to the blog page.

9. Under "Page Settings," toggle the "Page Enabled" option to off.

10. Save Changes:

11. Click "Save" to apply the changes.

Considerations:

• Site-Wide Impact: This method hides all posts under the blog page, not just specific posts.
• Versatility: Useful for redesign or maintenance without affecting individual posts.

Method 4: Use a Password to Protect Blog Content

Steps:

1. Log In to Your Squarespace Account:

2. Log into your account on Squarespace.

3. Navigate to the Blog Section:

4. From the Home Menu, click on "Pages."

5. Click on your blog page.

6. Select the Blog Page Settings:

7. Click the settings icon (gear icon) next to the blog page.

8. Under the “Password” section, set a password.

9. Informational Prompt:

10. Input a password that viewers will need to enter to access the content.

11. Optionally, add an informational prompt or disclaimer.

12. Save Changes:

13. Click “Save” to apply the changes.

Considerations:

• Controlled Access: Useful for restricted access. Visitors will only be able to see the blog content if they have the password.
• Professional Use: Ideal for members-only content or allowing access to clients only.

Limitations and Final Considerations:

• Indexing by Search Engines: Changing the status or visibility of posts can affect how your content is indexed by search engines. After turning posts to draft or making them private, update your sitemap via your Squarespace settings or Google Search Console.
• Backups: Ensure that you have backups or copies of the post content if needed for future use. Squarespace allows exporting content in XML format though some formatting might be lost.
• Access Rights: Ensure that you maintain proper access rights and share them securely if you're using the password-protection method.

By following these detailed steps, you can effectively unpublish blog posts on Squarespace, catering to various needs ranging from SEO considerations to controlled visitor access.