Everyday more people are asking themselves one big question: do they need a website if they are on social media? The answer is a resounding yes. That is not to say social media is not an exciting space. Today more than half of the world now uses social media, to which they devote an average of two hours and twenty seven minutes a day, according to research conducted by Datareportal. Likewise, in a recent Forbes survey of over 500 million online shoppers, 30% said they would buy from a social e-commerce store. So, for all sorts of reasons, businesses should be active on social media. Nonetheless, social media is not a substitute for having a dedicated website for several key reasons. 

           

#1 Control 

Self-evident as it may seem, social media platforms are in business for themselves. A new business solely reliant on one, or a handful of social media platforms, forfeits much of their control to the providers. They, rather than the business, reign supreme over technology choice, what users can see or do, and have the authority to remove users at their discretion.Traffic is also heavily dependent on user retention and growth.  

 

Meta, the parent company of Facebook, reported that users fell in the final quarter of 2021 for the first time in its 18 year history. In today’s ultra competitive social media industry, today’s big social media platforms could quickly end up becoming the next Myspace in a matter of years. Censorship, government policy & regulation, and new privacy policies from big tech firms like Apple are also having a big impact on the social media landscape.

 

A website, in contrast, puts a business in full control of everything. How people view the site, the message, its promotion, and the underlying chosen technology, is solely at the discretion of the business. Think of a website as a blank canvas where a business has the opportunity to express itself nearly restriction free for as long as it pleases. 

 

#2 Traffic

Google processes 3.7bn searches every day and 1.2trn searches a year, says internetlivestats, a site dedicated to google search analytics. If a business doesn’t have a website, they won’t be able to capture that search activity. In other words, the business can’t be found by the very people that may be actively looking to purchase their products or services. Better yet, a website doesn’t have a closing time, nor, unlike social media, doesn’t require constant new content to drive interest. Websites sell your business 24 hours a day across the world to a global audience.

 

Social media, when done well, certainly does draw attention and interest. But platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram are also about engagement. Many small businesses don’t have the budget or time to constantly engage with their clients successfully on social media in order to draw sufficient traffic. Having a website addresses the base need for a digital presence at a much lower cost.    

 

#3 Credibility

 

Not having a website in the 21st century is the equivalent to being delisted in a phone book during the 20th. Would someone trust a company that didn’t have a website? Most people rely on a website to verify legitimacy. For a solely digital business, this concept of credibility is even more important, given the lack of bricks and mortar locations. These days people just expect you to have a website. 62% of consumers will completely disregard a business if they can’t find them online, according to data compiled by Safari Digital in 2022.

 

More importantly, a website reinforces efforts elsewhere, including social media. The majority of people with an interest in a product or services will seek to do further research before making a purchase. Therefore, a website is a necessary complement to any social media efforts. 

      

#4 Growth

 

Lastly, and most importantly, a website isn’t just the start of your digital journey, it becomes the base. An excellent website reduces the need for multiple landing pages to support your digital marketing campaigns. Central to your sales funnel, the place where you can most effectively capture leads and track your wider digital performance accurately, a website is the most indispensable digital tool any business can develop.

 

Many small businesses also neglect to consider how much time saving a strong website can provide. Strong design and well thought out content can reduce the time needed to support clients and customers. A lot of the information they need to know can easily be found online. That saves time and money, allowing business owners to focus on doing what they do best, growing their company.