Website vs. Facebook page: what local service businesses actually need

Plenty of local businesses run entirely off a Facebook page and do fine. So do you actually need a website? The honest answer: a Facebook page is a good start, but it can't do the two things a website does — and those two things are usually where the money is.

What a Facebook page is good at

Facebook is great for staying in front of people who already follow you: posting updates, sharing photos, and letting happy customers tag you. If community and repeat customers are your game, it earns its place.

What only a website can do

• Show up on Google. When someone searches "roofer near me," Google ranks websites — not Facebook posts. No site means you are invisible for the exact searches that matter most.
• Control the first impression. On your site you decide what people see first. On Facebook, they see whatever the algorithm shows — including competitors' ads next to your page.
• Convert on your terms. A website is built to turn a visitor into a call or a booking. A Facebook page is built to keep people on Facebook.

This is why the strongest local businesses use both: a website as the home base that ranks and converts, and social profiles that feed it. If getting found on Google is the goal, that starts with local SEO and a Google Business Profile, which point back to your site — not your feed.

The bottom line

Keep the Facebook page. But if you're relying on it as your only presence, you're handing away every customer who searches Google instead of scrolling social. A simple, fast custom website closes that gap.