Business Website vs Facebook Page: Do You Need Both?
Nov 26, 2020
Assuming you own a business and you are asking the question above. In that case, I must congratulate you on embracing the future. Because like it or not, it’s only a matter of time before the digital world engulfs the whole business space.
There are over 600 million websites and blogs, and still counting on cyberspace. Still, I can boldly say that there is more than enough room for anyone who wishes to use the internet to grow their business.
So to answer the question, “Do you need both a business website and a Facebook page for your business?”
The answer is YES, YOU DO!
But suppose you are thinking of settling on just an option (you should know that owning a good business website will require quite a budget to set up and maintain). In that case, it’s good that you understand both platforms’ pros and cons and see for yourself how they complement each other.
Let’s start with the pros and cons of setting up a Facebook business account for your business.
Website vs Facebook Page: The Pros and Cons:
Pros of Having a Facebook Page
Facebook has a reach of more than 2-billion active users who use its platform to socialize with friends and cultures worldwide. Aside from the broad reach, there are other factors why owning a Facebook page should seem like the next logical step to take in growing your business.
1. It is straightforward to set up
We all love to get things done as fast and accurately as possible, and creating a Facebook page for your business falls in this line. It is swift and easy to set up compared to designing a business website. All that is required of you to make this happen is a simple Facebook personal account, and you are good to go.
2. It Gives You a Wider Reach
When you put into account the broad reach that your business tends to benefit from the massive audience on Facebook – and by the audience, I mean the over 1.5 billion people who use Facebook daily – one can easily see their business reaching a valuable number of potential customers.
3. It Gives Your Business a Personal Touch
Facebook was first created for friends and family to link up. No matter how “business” your business is, its Facebook page must always have your personality written over it.
This will help build brand loyalty as your customers can easily relate to you as a person.
4. It Provides You With the Perfect Platform to Create a Community
Suppose people can relate to your business, not just with you but with other persons interested in your industry. In that case, your business is sure to shoot up in no time at all. There is no other place to make this a reality than Facebook since it was primarily designed to connect people.
You could even start a group that involves your customers and prospective customers. This will give them a platform to lend their voices on suggestions and ways your business can serve them better, which can only increase your brand trust and followership in the long run.
5. It Provides You With a Platform to Relate With Your Customers Privately.
Every business thrives on feedback, and while some feedbacks are generous, some aren’t. Facebook Messenger comes in handy to help you relate with a customer or client that feels aggrieved. Here, you can safely address their complaints, away from the public.
Unnecessary negative feedback, if not correctly handled, could potentially damage your brand.
6. It is a Great Platform to Share Your Videos
When it comes to videos, the platforms that first pops to mind are YouTube and Instagram. However, you will be amazed at the advantage of having a well prepared and documented video can do for your business on Facebook. You can even host live sessions and webinars and also have your followers participate in real-time.
7. It is Easily the First Point of Contact for Your Prospective Clients
According to a review taken by review trackers in 2018, 23% of potential customers and clients check out Facebook reviews before checking out the business webpage. This is a considerable amount to take advantage of, especially considering your target audience and where they are likely to be found.
Cons of Owning a Facebook Page
1. You Don’t Have Control Over Your Content
Regardless of your content’s quality or the priceless value if offers, your content may be unpublished because it failed to meet some fickle Facebook guidelines. In other words, you are only allowed to promote your business as Facebook deems fit.
2. You Would Have to Pay to Reach Some Specific Audience
Owning a Facebook business page might be free, but it’s not cheap. Without paying for sponsored Ads and other forms of engagements to boost your standings among similar competitors, your Facebook business page will only be visible to your friends, family, and any other persons you decide to share them with, which won’t give you the coverage you seek.
The only way you can have the edge over competitors on Facebook is merely paying to reach the wider audience that Facebook guarantees your business -there’s just no way around it.
3. A Needle in the Haystack
There is no chance that your business page is the first of its kind on Facebook, and it would not be the last. This fierce competition makes the point I highlighted above necessary if you hope to gain more followers.
4. Privacy Hacks
If it’s on Facebook, then it’s free information to the public. Don’t expect any form of privacy once you accidentally post information that shouldn’t have been posted. Besides that, the data you release on your page can also be used to access other private areas of your business, which fraudsters could use.
Having known the Pros and Cons of owning a Facebook business page, let’s see what owning a business website has to offer.
Pros of Owning a Business Website
On a personal level, I tend to take your business more seriously if you own a website, and I know I speak for so many in this regard. Having a website for your business gives a credible vibe to your potential clients, but that’s not all it does to your business brand as you are about to find out;
1. You Have Full Control
Remember when I said Facebook would only permit you to post content that is community-friendly to your business page? Well, that won’t be a problem if you own a business website.
With your business website, you are free to post anything you want on your space without any form of restriction from anywhere. It also allows you to express your imaginations freely, and you get to choose what’s offensive and what’s not. You are in complete control!
2. Different Contact Options
Owning a business website lets you determine how you want your clients to contact you. It also gives you the luxury of referring them to all your social media channels and handles with just the click of a button.
3. People Know More About Your Brand From Your Website
The information about your brand or your business is better expressed on your business website. It provides you with the right platform to properly tell your customers what your business is all about in great detail. It also provides them with other content values they can use in improving their lifestyle as relating to your brand.
A Facebook business page doesn’t necessarily provide such information the way a business website does it.
4. You Get to Know What’s Appealing to Your Client on a General Note
This can be likened to using a net for fishing and using a hook to fish. While Facebook messenger will get you acquainted with your clients on a one-on-one basis, which is essential for any business growth, a business website will tell you where to improve in terms of services rendered in a broader note by the contact forms, lead generation offers, blog subscriber forms, and others.
A business website helps you generate leads on a wider scale that wouldn’t have been possible on only a Facebook business page.
5. It is the Best Place to Sell Your Product
A business website is the safest platform to trade goods and services between you and your clients. It is safer and authenticated, compared to what you tend to get from a Facebook business page. A website is your business’s face to the world.
6. It Runs Itself
If a business website is designed properly, you wouldn’t have to make any serious input. Most of the responses can be made automatically, such as sending emails, being notified when a form is filled, etc. You can better spend your time on tasks that require your direct attention. You can easily automate your business website to carry out routine, tedious tasks.
Cons of Having a Business Website
1. Time of Setup
I don’t care what any web developer says, but you can’t build any good website in a matter of minutes. It takes sufficient time to get the best website for your business. Many who are not aware of this fact easily fall into the wrong hands, thereby jeopardizing the company’s integrity they are trying to promote.
2. Cost of Setup
Okay, I will say this in no uncertain terms; owning a standard business website will take a huge chunk of your budget. However, investing in a good website is well worth the expense.
3. Slow Growth
Your business website will have to rely on SEO (Search Engine Optimization) to build a broad audience. This could take you anywhere from 6 months to a year to achieve. It would be best if you cultivated the virtue of patience to reap the rewards from your efforts.
4. It Can Take a Lot to Maintain
It’s one thing to own a business website, but it’s a whole ball game to keep it up and running. By this, I mean keeping your information updated at regular intervals, getting the latest leads, creating content for your blog section, and so much more. This is not something you’ll want to handle on your own, especially if you run a sizable business enterprise.
So Which is Preferable, A Business Website or a Facebook Page?
When you consider the Pros and Cons of both a Facebook business page and a website, you can easily see that they complement each other’s shortcomings.
It doesn’t stop there, though. It might take about six months to get your business website properly ranked on google. But a strong social media presence can shorten that timeframe by a considerable margin. In other words, your Facebook business page helps to drive traffic to your business website if appropriately handled.
There is no separating the two if you want your business to grow.
Conclusion
Growth is not accidental but intentional. When it comes to growing your business to the level it should be, you should take all the required steps necessary to make it happen. Look into all the available options for growth and see the one that works best for you.
Success does not rest on its laurels, and neither should you.
