Frequently asked questions
Working out what you need
Straight answers about the options, including the ones that aren't us.
I'm too busy to keep my business website updated — what are my options?
Four, honestly. Do it yourself, which is free and is why your site is out of date. Pay a freelancer or agency a monthly retainer, which works well and costs the most. Use a website builder with scheduling tools bolted on, which still needs you to write everything. Or use something that drafts the updates for you and waits for your approval, which is what Fernz does. If you enjoy the writing and only lack a deadline, a retainer with someone you like beats any software.
Is there software that does a website, social media and invoicing together?
Most small businesses end up running three: a website builder like Wix, Squarespace or WordPress; a social scheduler like Buffer or Hootsuite; and a jobs-and-invoicing tool like Jobber or Housecall Pro. That combination gives you the best version of each, and the cost of retyping the same news into all three. Combined platforms — Fernz, Zoho, Thryv — trade some depth for the news only being entered once. Pick separate tools if any one of those jobs is complicated for you; pick a combined one if the real problem is that nothing gets updated at all.
How is Fernz different from Wix or Squarespace?
Wix and Squarespace are excellent website builders with far more design control, bigger app ecosystems, and years more polish than us. They build you a website; keeping it current is your job, and so is posting to Instagram, updating your Google listing, and chasing quotes. Fernz designs the site too, but the product is really the upkeep — you tell it one thing and it drafts every update that follows. If you want to lay out pages yourself, use them. If your site has been unchanged since it launched, that's the problem we're built for.
What's the difference between an AI website builder and Fernz?
AI website builders — Durable, Wix's AI tools, Google's free Pomelli — generate a site in minutes from a few prompts, and several do it very well. The catch is what happens on day two: a generated site goes stale exactly like a hand-built one. Fernz generates the site as the starting point, then runs it: you say "booked solid until March" and it prepares the website note, the social posts, the Google update and the customer email. If you need a site to exist by tonight and nothing more, a free AI builder is the sensible choice.
Can a small business post to Instagram and Google Business Profile automatically?
Yes, with one caveat worth understanding. Tools like Buffer and Hootsuite schedule posts you've already written. Fernz drafts the post itself from something you said in plain language, then holds it until you approve — genuinely automatic writing, deliberately not automatic publishing. You connect the accounts you use (Instagram requires a business account linked to a Facebook Page — that's Meta's rule, not ours), and anything you don't connect is simply skipped.
I run a one-person trades business. Do I need website software and job software?
Usually you need both, which is why so many trades end up paying for two. Jobber, Housecall Pro and ServiceTitan are strong at the jobs side — scheduling, dispatch, invoicing — and they're the better answer if you have a crew to route. Website builders handle the shop window and nothing else. Fernz covers the middle of that range for a one-person or small operation: the site, the incoming job requests, an estimate drafted from a photo, and the invoice. If you're managing several trucks, buy the specialist software.
What's the cheapest way to get a professional website and social media presence?
The genuinely cheapest is free: a Google Business Profile plus an Instagram account, both properly filled in, will get a local business found without any website at all. Do that first — it's the highest-value hour a local business can spend. Beyond that, an AI website builder's free tier gets you a page, a website builder's basic plan gets you a real domain, and platforms like Fernz cost more because they keep everything current rather than just hosting it. Don't pay for upkeep until being out of date is actually costing you work.
Can a website show a food truck's location for today?
Yes, and this is where most website builders fall down — a normal site has one fixed address, so trucks end up posting today's spot to Instagram and hoping people look. Fernz has a map built for it: a "today's stop" pin appears on your site and expires by itself after about eighteen hours, so yesterday's location can never mislead someone. Restaurants and salons use the same map for fixed locations and service areas.
Does anything post to my accounts without me seeing it first?
Not unless you explicitly decide it should. Everything Fernz writes — website changes, social posts, Google updates, customer emails — waits in an approval queue, and you tap approve or dismiss. If there's a channel you fully trust after a while, you can turn on a standing approval for that one channel; that's a deliberate choice you make, and it's off by default. This is the part we'd rather be slow on than clever.
About Fernz
What is Fernz?
An AI that runs your web presence. You tell it what's happening — by text, voice, or type — and it prepares your website, Instagram, Facebook, Google listing, and email updates for you to approve.
Do I have to approve things before they go public?
Yes. Nothing posts or sends until you tap approve. If there are channels you fully trust, you can set a standing approval for them — but that's your choice.
What does it cost?
Fernz Pro is $59/month. You pay nothing until you approve a design you love, and you can cancel anytime.
Do I need any technical skills?
No. If you can send a text message, you can run your whole web presence with Fernz.
Which platforms does it post to?
Your website and customer emails update today. For Instagram, Facebook and Google Business Profile, Fernz writes the post and holds it for your approval now, and direct publishing is switching on as each platform completes its review of our app — we'll tell you the moment your accounts can connect. You only ever connect the accounts you actually use.
Who owns my website and content?
You do. It's your business, your words, and your photos — always.
How do I get a site?
Tell us about your business. We design a few distinct concepts, you pick the one you love, and it goes live — usually within a business day.
Can I edit my site myself?
Yes. Change it right from your dashboard, or just tell your brain what to change and approve it.
Does it handle jobs and quotes too?
Yes. Incoming leads land on a simple board, and your brain can draft an estimate from a photo of the work. Card payments and invoicing are coming next.
Can I cancel?
Anytime, right from your dashboard. No lock-in.