Do I need a website if I have a Facebook page?

The short answer

If you’re a roofer or a plumber with a busy Facebook page, you’re not doing anything wrong. Lots of good tradespeople get work that way. But a Facebook page and a website do two different jobs. For most people in the trades, the honest answer is to have both.

We build websites, so keep that in mind as you read this. We’ll give you the real reasons, and we’ll also tell you when a Facebook page is enough.

What Facebook does well

Facebook is a good place to be seen by people who already know you. Your cousin shares your post. Someone on your street tags you in a local group when a person asks for a painter. You put up a photo of a finished deck and a few people comment. That’s real, and it costs you nothing.

It’s also easy. You can post from the truck in two minutes, and people can message you without hunting for your number. If you like doing that, keep doing it.

Where a Facebook page falls short

The trouble starts when someone doesn’t know you yet. Picture a homeowner with a leak who has never heard your name. They go to Google and type the trade and their town. What comes up first is usually a map with a few businesses, then a list of websites. A Facebook page can show up there, but it isn’t built for that kind of search the way a site with your services and towns on it is.

Even when they do find your page, it’s hard work for them. Your phone number might be a few taps away. Your services are buried in old posts. The photo of your best job from last spring has scrolled out of sight. Some people aren’t on Facebook at all, and they can get a pop-up asking them to log in before they can look around.

Then there’s the fact that it isn’t really yours. Facebook decides who sees your posts, and that’s often only a small slice of the people who follow you. It can change the rules whenever it wants. If your account gets hacked or locked, you can lose your page right when you need it. With your own web address, nobody’s feed decides whether people see your phone number.

The moment after someone hears your name

This one matters most if you live on referrals. Someone hears your name from a friend. Before they call, they usually look you up. That’s the moment they decide if you seem real and if you do what they need.

If they find a clear site with your name, your trade, the towns you work in and a way to call, it backs up what their friend said. If they find a page where the last post is two years old, they may wonder if you’re still in business. A website doesn’t replace word of mouth. It supports it.

When a Facebook page is enough

You may not need a website right now if one of these sounds like you. You’re booked out for months and you don’t want more work. You’re retiring soon. You only work for two or three contractors who already have your number. You do side jobs now and then and you’re not trying to grow.

If that’s you, save your money. A filled-out Google Business Profile and a tidy Facebook page will do fine.

What to do either way

Claim your Google Business Profile. It’s free, and it’s what puts you on the map when people search for your trade. Do this whether you ever get a website or not. Then make sure your business name and phone number are the same everywhere, and put your services and towns where people can see them on your Facebook page.

If you decide on a website, keep it simple: what you do, where you do it and how to reach you. Link it to your Facebook page and link your page back to it. That’s how we do it. You keep your page, and your site gives people one clear place to find your services and your number. We build the draft first, so you can look at it next to your Facebook page and decide.

One warning. No website puts you at the top of Google overnight, ours included. Showing up in local search builds over months.