A Facebook page is free, quick to set up, and where a lot of local chat already happens. So why bother with a website at all? Because the two do very different jobs, and only one of them is truly yours.
Reach: who actually sees it
A Facebook page reaches people who are already on Facebook and either follow you or stumble across a shared post. That’s real, but it’s a closed circle.
A website reaches people the moment they search Google for what you do, including people who’ve never heard of you. When someone types “emergency plumber Matlock” or asks an AI assistant for a good local electrician, a Facebook page rarely shows up. A website built for local search does.
Ownership: whose is it, really?
This is the big one. You don’t own your Facebook page, Facebook does. They decide who sees your posts, they can change the rules overnight, and pages do get restricted or suspended, sometimes by mistake. If that happens, your “online presence” vanishes and there’s little you can do.
A website and its domain name are yours. No platform can take them away or throttle who sees them. We explain why ownership matters so much in our comparison with relying on a Facebook page.
Trust: what customers expect
When someone’s about to spend real money, a rewire, a new bathroom, a garden redesign, they want reassurance. A clean website with your services, prices, photos and reviews says “established and reliable.” A Facebook page alone can feel less substantial, especially to older or more cautious customers.
Control: showing your best self
On Facebook your latest post, good or bad, is the first thing people see. On your own website you decide the first impression: your best work, your clearest pitch, the exact phone number you want them to call.
The honest verdict: use both
This isn’t really website versus Facebook. The smart play is both, working together:
- Website: your permanent, ownable home that ranks on Google and AI, builds trust, and captures new customers.
- Facebook: for updates, chat and reaching your existing followers.
Link them so each points to the other, and you cover every base.
If you’ve only got a Facebook page today, that’s a fine start, but it’s worth giving your business a home that’s actually yours. Get a free preview of what a proper site could look like, or run a quick free website check first.