We tell firms that the safest website is one they own, kept current by someone who answers to them. In October 2026 we decided to prove it on our own site first.
Where we started
berrybuckley.com ran on Squarespace. It worked, but we were renting it. The platform loaded its own code on every page, whether we needed it or not. When we measured the site, a large share of what slowed it down on a phone was platform code we had no way to remove. Every edit also meant someone logging into a page builder, which is exactly the job that slips at a small firm.
What we built
On October 13, 2026 we started rebuilding the site as plain pages:
- The words live in simple text files in a code repository we own.
- The site is hosted on Cloudflare in our own account, with no database, no login page and no plugins to patch.
- Every old address still works. We redirected the old Squarespace URLs to their new homes in a single hop, and every post kept its original URL.
- The contact form sends email through Cloudflare and is protected against spam bots without slowing every page down.
Within days, the new site was live on Cloudflare.
How a change happens now
This is the part that matters for a busy owner. I don't log into anything. I ask for a change in plain English, the same way I'd ask a colleague:
- "Change the headline on the contact page to dark blue."
- "Rename the AEO Insights section to AI Search Insights."
- "Can you improve the design of the after-hours page to be more interesting?"
- "Change the favicon to the attached."
For each request, the agent makes the change on a separate preview copy of the site and checks it on a laptop and a phone. That includes headings, spacing, links, page titles and the structured data search engines read. Then I get a preview link and screenshots. Nothing goes live until I reply "merge," and after it does, the agent checks the live page.
Since launch, every change I've asked for has gone out this way, from small fixes to a full redesign of the After-hours page. Every one went through a preview and my approval, and each is saved on its own, so any of them can be undone.
What changed for us
- The site stays current. Small changes no longer wait for a free evening.
- We own all of it. The code, the hosting and the domain are in our accounts. If we ever wanted a different developer, they could pick it up as is.
- The pages are lighter. There's no platform code on them, so they load noticeably faster on a phone.
- I approve everything. The agent drafts and checks, and I decide what goes live.
Why we're telling you
This is now a service. Our Website Agent designs, writes, builds and maintains firm websites the same way, in accounts the firm owns. You get a preview within two business days for a normal change request, and nothing goes live until you approve it.
If your site is out of date or you're not sure who really controls it, the free First Agent Audit covers your website too. You'll get a written brief within one business day.