Why you need a website, not just a Facebook page

Great social networks will come and go. Your website can be forever.

With millions of active daily users, you may be asking yourself, “Can I get by with just Facebook?”  To set the record straight, you definitely still need a high quality, professional website. Here’s why.

Facebook limits the creative representation of your brand.

Dan Levy, Facebook’s director of SMBs, recently shared that there are roughly 30 million SMBs actively using Facebook. That’s a lot.

To properly manage 30 million SMBs and the 1.4 billion users of Facebook there has to be one simple layout that suits all.

You pick your profile picture, your cover photo, the content shared. Those are the controllable aspects. Beyond that, little control is yours. Ask yourself, what distinguishes your Facebook from your competition’s Facebook?

In short, the simple layout provided by Facebook causes you to relinquish creative control 100% of the time.

 

A website will give you options. It WILL give you creative control 100% of the time, as long as you are working with a team that is willing to make options endless. Your website can extend your brand experience with your colors, design, and personality. Your Facebook page can’t.

A website will better communicate your ‘call to action.’

Facebook recently added a ‘call to action’ option. You can choose from their seven different options.

• Book Now
• Contact Us
• Use App
• Play Game
• Shop Now
• Sign Up
• Watch Video

While it was a nice addition, it’s still pretty limited.  What if none of those apply to you?

With a website, YOU decide your perfect call to action.  The one you choose can be more tailored, specific, and representative of your brand.

Just some of the things you can do with the call to action on your website:

• Set your customer up for success. Tell them what they will get out of responding to your call to action.
• Use your own action packed text that makes someone want to click.
• Customizable colors! By creating a contrasting color story, people are drawn to your call to action. Color psychology is a real thing. If you have a second, check out this cool infographic depicting color psychology.

As an example, here’s our website’s current call to action:

Facebook won’t protect your best interests.

You digitally signed the dotted line when you created a page for your business on Facebook. Forget what you agreed to? Well here it is.

To speed up the skimming process, let me help. Section 2.1.

“…you grant us a non-exclusive, transferable, sub-licensable, royalty-free, worldwide license to use any IP content that you post on or in connection with Facebook (IP License)…”

I mean, really? Thanks, but no thanks.

All the hard work you’ve put into creating YOUR business and the content for your business is now available to be used by Facebook however they so choose.

We were taught to share, but some things are better left unshared. For example, the high-quality content you write or take photos of for your business.

Organic reach of your Facebook posts are decreasing, & quickly.

The Facebook newsfeed works by showing people the content that is most relevant to their interests and their past likes.  Facebook controls which of your messages are shown to your followers, even if they Liked your page and want to see all of your posts.

Many Facebook business page posts are being seen by as little as 1% of followers.

So how do you make sure your most important information is put out there and visible? Create a website. Make it your hub. Keep it updated. Keep it relevant.  And then use your website to notify customers of new content.

Too legit to quit – a website gives you a professional look.

Gaining credibility is a large part of growing and maintaining a successful SMB. It can be a tough task when credibility and years of experience often go hand in hand. But who says that has to be the case?

By having a website that is professional and informative, you are taking a step in the right direction on the credibility scale. You put out the image of having it together. You’re saying, “We are a legitimate business, OPEN and ready to serve you.”

Also, consider the searcher who might be comparing you to your competitors. If your competitor has a comprehensive, professional website that makes it easy to find answers, and you just have a Facebook page with a few photos, who do you think the customer will choose?

 

Digital marketing is a large part of business today, and Facebook has successfully created an easy way to set up shop. That being said, a properly and effectively managed website can take you forward by leaps and bounds.

Imagine it this way. You have a brick and mortar shop. You can either be surrounded by millions of shops that look just like yours, or you can craft your own shop experience, with your own design, colors, and brand.

Choose to be unique. Let customers see the exact message you want put out there. And, best of all, emulate the idea “Look at all we can do for you, let’s do this.”