A lot of small businesses in Suffolk run entirely on Facebook. A page, some photos, a phone number in the bio. It works, up to a point. Customers find you, message you, see what you're up to. So why spend money on a website too?
Here's the honest answer. Facebook is good at some things and genuinely bad at others. Once you know which is which, the decision gets a lot clearer.
What Facebook does well
Facebook is free, quick to update, and it's where people already are. Post a photo of today's specials and it's live in seconds. Reply to a comment and you've made a sale. For a lot of local businesses, that immediacy is exactly what's needed.
It's also social by design. People share posts, tag friends, leave reviews. That word of mouth effect is hard to replicate anywhere else.
What Facebook doesn't do
You don't own it
Your page lives on Facebook's servers, under Facebook's rules. Accounts get suspended over nothing. Algorithms change overnight and your reach drops by half. None of that is in your control, and there's no one to call when it happens.
It doesn't show up on Google
Someone searching "wedding venue Bury St Edmunds" or "plumber near me" is searching Google, not scrolling Facebook. Facebook posts rarely rank in search results. A website can, especially with the local SEO work behind it.
It looks the same as everyone else's
Every Facebook page uses the same layout, the same blue banner, the same boxes. There's no way to make yours look distinct from the takeaway next door or the competitor across town. A website is entirely yours. The design, the structure, the story it tells, all built around your business specifically.
It's slow for anyone actually trying to find information
Opening hours, menu, pricing, location. All of that is buried in tabs and posts on Facebook. A website puts it front and centre, one click away.
You can't sell properly through it
Facebook Shops exist, but they're clunky. A proper website can take bookings, show a full portfolio, handle enquiries through a proper form, and guide someone from "just looking" to "ready to book" in a way a Facebook feed never will.
Why the answer is usually both
This isn't really a choice between the two. Facebook is brilliant for daily updates and community engagement. A website is what makes you findable, credible, and easy to do business with. They do different jobs.
Think about what happens when someone unfamiliar with your business searches for what you do. If a website exists, it usually appears first, often above the Facebook page itself. That website is doing the first impression work. Photos, clear information, a way to get in touch, all in one place, all under your control.
Without one, that same person lands on a Facebook page that might be badly organised, out of date, or simply hard to navigate on mobile. First impressions matter, and Facebook wasn't built to make a great one for every type of business.
What a good small business website actually needs
It doesn't need to be huge. Most independent businesses in Suffolk do well with:
- A clear homepage that says what you do and who it's for
- Photos that actually show your work, not stock images
- An easy way to get in touch or book
- Opening hours and location, clearly stated
- Pages built for how people actually search for you locally
That's it. No bloated features nobody uses. Just something that works, looks professional, and gets found.
The bottom line
Keep the Facebook page. It's still worth having. But if it's the only place your business exists online, you're relying entirely on a platform you don't control, that doesn't show up in search, and that looks identical to every other page on there.
A website gives you the other half. Somewhere that's genuinely yours, built to be found, and built to turn a visitor into a customer.
If you're running a business in Suffolk on Facebook alone and want to know what a proper website would actually look like for you, get in touch. No pressure, just an honest conversation about what would help.