Do You Need a Website If You Have Facebook?
For some businesses a Facebook page is plenty, at least to start. For others it's a risky place to keep everything. Here's how to tell which group you're in, what each one does better, and how to run both without twice the effort.
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The short answer
If your customers already know you and mostly want to see what's new, such as this week's market, today's specials or the job you finished yesterday, a Facebook page can carry a small business for a while. If people find you by searching for what you do and then weigh up a few options, or if losing the page would cut you off from your customers, a website is worth having alongside it.
It's rarely one or the other, because the two do different jobs. Facebook is good at keeping followers up to date. A website is where anyone, on Facebook or not, can check what you do, where you work, how to reach you and why they should trust you, and it stays exactly where you put it.
Below we set out what each does well, the risk most owners don't think about until it happens to them, and the cases where a page on its own really is enough.
How Australian businesses split between social media and websites
The ABS asked businesses which kinds of online presence they had in the year to 30 June 2025. Across all businesses, 50.9% used social media and 55.1% had their own website or app. The split varies widely by industry, and in several industries social media is the more common of the two:
| Group | Used social media | Own website or app |
|---|---|---|
| All businesses | 50.9% | 55.1% |
| Businesses with 0–4 people | 42.0% | 44.6% |
| Arts and recreation services | 82.5% | 73.9% |
| Accommodation and food services | 68.0% | 58.3% |
| Retail trade | 66.0% | 62.3% |
| Other services (includes mechanics, hairdressers and beauty salons) | 63.5% | 51.8% |
| Health care and social assistance | 47.8% | 68.4% |
| Professional, scientific and technical services | 48.0% | 68.1% |
Read the rows together and a pattern shows. Businesses people visit for an experience or browse for a product, such as venues, gyms, cafes and shops, lean towards social media. Businesses that sell expertise, such as health practitioners, accountants and consultants, lean towards a website, where there's room to set out qualifications, services and fees. Smaller businesses are less likely to have either, so a sole trader with a page and no site is in common company.
The audience matters as well. Plenty of your customers will be on Facebook, but not all of them, and anyone who doesn't use it has a harder time checking out a business that exists only there. A plumber's or bookkeeper's customers are less likely to be following them than a cafe's regulars are, so the gap matters more for businesses people look up once, when they need them.
What a Facebook page does well
A page has real strengths, and they're the reason so many businesses start there:
- It costs nothing to set up. A page can be running in an afternoon, and the only cost is your time.
- You update it yourself, from your phone. A photo of a finished job, a new menu item or a public holiday closure takes a minute to post, with nobody else involved.
- Customers can message you. Plenty of people would rather send a quick message than ring, especially after hours.
- It's easy to share. When someone recommends you in a local community group, a page gives them something to tag.
- It shows you're open for business. Recent posts tell a visitor the business is still trading, which a website nobody has touched in two years can't do.
For a business that runs on regulars and frequent news, such as a food van, a market stall, a dance class or a cafe, those strengths cover a lot of what's needed day to day.
Where a page on its own falls short
The gaps show up once people who don't already know you start looking. Here's how a page alone compares with a page backed by a website:
| Question | Facebook page only | Page plus a website |
|---|---|---|
| Who sets the rules? | Meta's terms and policies, which Meta can change | The site sits on a domain registered in your name; the page still follows Meta's rules |
| Can people who don't use Facebook find you? | Only by going to Facebook | Yes, through a search, a link, your signage or a business card |
| Does information stay put? | Posts slide down the page as new ones go up, so last year's price list or service menu gets buried | Services, areas, prices and answers to common questions stay on their own pages until you change them |
| What does an enquiry look like? | A Messenger message, often just "how much?" | A form that asks what you need to know: suburb, type of job, photos, a good time to call |
| Business email address? | Not included | An address on your own domain, set up when the site goes live |
| Who decides the layout? | Facebook, the same for every page | You, built around what your customers need to see first |
| Cost | Free | With us, from $399 to build, then $30 a month hosting and about $20 a year for the domain |
Google's listing rules point the same way. Its Business Profile guidelines ask for a website that represents your business, and say not to give URLs that redirect or refer people to landing pages other than the business's own, with pages created on social media sites named in the same sentence. A site of your own gives the profile a proper address to link to, and our guide to Google Business Profile and local search covers how the two support each other.
The risk of having only one place online
The issue owners tend not to think about is access. In a July 2024 submission to a parliamentary committee, the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman (ASBFEO) said more than 1 in 8 of the cases it handled in 2023–24 involved a dispute with a social media platform. It called losing access to an account through cybercrime a common problem for small businesses, and explained that while a hacker holds the account, the business often can't start the platform's dispute process, because that process needs account access.
The submission also describes what that costs: money lost to fake ads paid for with the business's own saved payment details, and lost income when a business loses its main, and sometimes its only, sales channel. A website won't stop a Facebook account being hacked. What it does is give customers somewhere else to find your number, hours and services while you get the page back.
The ombudsman's guide to using social media securely suggests steps worth taking whether or not you ever build a site:
- turn on two-factor authentication;
- give people only the level of page access they need, rather than full admin rights for everyone;
- pay for social media ads with a separate card that has a spending limit;
- remember that if a personal profile linked to the business account is hacked, the business account can be compromised or disabled as well;
- keep a presence on more than one platform, so the business can carry on if one account is shut down.
When a Facebook page on its own is enough
We build websites, and we'd still say a page alone is a sensible choice if:
- you're testing an idea or a side business and want to see whether there's demand before spending anything;
- you sell at markets, events or pop-ups, and most customers first meet you in person;
- your customers are a close community, such as a club, a class or a small town, and they already follow you;
- almost everything you need to say changes weekly, like stock, specials or event dates, and nobody searches for your kind of business by name;
- repeat customers keep you fully booked and you don't want new ones yet.
In those cases, spend the money elsewhere for now. Two cheap moves keep your options open: set up a free Google Business Profile so a search for your name shows your hours and number, and register your business name as a domain so nobody else takes it before you're ready.
Signs you've outgrown a page
- Messages keep asking the same things: where you are, which areas you cover, what things roughly cost.
- Customers mention they couldn't find you when they searched for your kind of business nearby.
- You've started quoting for bigger jobs, or for councils, schools, strata or property managers, who often want something more formal to look at and pass on.
- You want enquiries to arrive with the details you need, rather than a one-line message you have to chase.
- You'd be in real trouble if the page vanished tomorrow.
If two or more of those sound familiar, a small site is likely to pay its way. Nobody can tell you in advance how many extra enquiries it will bring, but our guide to the cost of not having a website has a break-even table you can fill in with your own numbers.
Running both without doubling the work
- Give each one a job. The website holds what rarely changes: services, areas, how your pricing works, licence or registration details, hours and contact options. Facebook carries what's new: recent work, specials, closures and events.
- Link them both ways. Put the website address in your page's details and in a pinned post, and link to the page from the site.
- Keep your details identical. Use the same business name, phone number and hours on the page, the site and your Google profile, so nobody has to guess which one is right.
- Send price questions to the form. When someone asks "how much?" in Messenger, a short reply with a link to your quote form gets you the suburb, the job and the photos in one go.
- Use your best posts as raw material. The clearest job photos and the warmest customer comments often become a site's gallery and reviews. Keep the original photo files from your phone rather than screenshots, and ask a customer before quoting them.
Keeping a site current doesn't have to mean another login. With our hosting, changes to the text and photos on your existing pages are included: you email us what's changed and we update it.
What it costs to add a website
Our fixed prices are $399 for one page, $899 for up to three pages and $1,499 for up to eight, with no GST added and the same price wherever you are. A domain registered in your name is about $20 a year, and we set up email on it.
You supply the words and photos, and we arrange and format them into the pages. If you've run a Facebook page for a while, most of what's needed probably exists already: a description of what you do, a folder of photos and some kind words from customers. If you don't have a logo, we'll help with one at no charge. We don't manage social media or run ads, so your page stays yours to run as you do now. To see what other kinds of provider charge, read our small business website cost guide.
What a website costs with us
Most Facebook-first businesses start here
One page
$399
What you do, where you are, opening hours, a photo gallery, reviews, a contact form and links to your Facebook and Instagram, on one scrolling page.
Up to 3 pages
$899
A home page plus room for a menu, price list or services page and a separate contact and location page.
Up to 8 pages
$1,499
For businesses with several services, locations or programs that each need their own page.
- Payment. No deposit. We build your draft first, you ask for as many changes as you like, and you pay once you approve it. If you don't go ahead, you owe nothing.
- GST. WebCraft Studio isn't registered for GST, so no GST is added.
- Timing. Most sites are live within 5–10 days of us getting your words and photos; bigger sites (up to 8 pages) take 2–3 weeks.
- Hosting. After launch, hosting is $30 a month: hosting, security monitoring, backups, email support and unlimited text and image changes on your existing pages. New pages or features are quoted first. No contract, cancel anytime.
- Domain and email. We register your domain in your name (about $20 a year), connect it to your site and set up your business email.
Questions about Facebook pages and websites
Can a Facebook page go in the website field of a Google Business Profile?
Google's Business Profile guidelines ask for a website that represents your business, and say not to give URLs that redirect or refer people to landing pages other than the business's own, naming pages created on social media sites in the same sentence. Read the current guideline before relying on a Facebook link there. Once you have a site, list it in the profile and link to your Facebook page from the site.
Is Instagram any different?
The trade-offs are much the same. Instagram is built for photos, which suits food, beauty, design and trade work, and it's free to run yourself. Like Facebook it's owned by Meta, so the same access risk applies, and the ombudsman warns that if a linked account is hacked, a business account can be compromised or disabled as well. A website gives both somewhere to point people.
What should a business do if its Facebook page is hacked?
The ombudsman's guide points to Meta's help pages at facebook.com/hacked, and says to report the problem to Meta straight away, keep a copy of the report details and number, and communicate only with Meta, not the hacker. Small businesses that can't get it resolved can contact the ASBFEO. Meanwhile, a website keeps your phone number and services in front of customers.
Will a website bring more customers than a Facebook page?
We can't promise that, and nobody honestly can. A site makes it easier for people who search for your kind of business, or who hear your name and want to check you out, to see what you do and get in touch. How many do depends on your area, your competition, your reviews and how quickly you reply.
Do you look after Facebook pages or run ads?
No. We design and hand-code websites, host the sites we build, and set up the domain and business email. Your Facebook page stays in your hands, and we can link to it from the site.
How long does it take to get a site live?
Most sites are live within 5–10 days of us getting your words and photos; bigger sites (up to 8 pages) take 2–3 weeks. If your Facebook page already has good photos and a clear description, gathering those often takes very little time.
Give customers a second place to find you
Send us a link to your Facebook page and tell us what you'd like on the site. We'll reply with a fixed price, build the draft from your words and photos, and you pay only once you've approved it.
We reply within 24 hours. Prefer email? info@webcraftstudio.com.au