"I have got a Facebook page — do I actually need a website?" It is the most common question we hear from sole traders and small business owners in Sussex. The answer, honestly, is usually yes — but there are times when Facebook alone is enough. Let us go through it properly.
Why Facebook feels like enough
Facebook is free. You can post photos, reply to messages, collect reviews, and share updates in seconds. For a new business with no budget, a Facebook page is a perfectly sensible first step. Many trades, salons, and food businesses have built real customer bases on it.
So what is the catch?
What Facebook cannot do for your small business
1. It cannot rank on Google
When someone searches "plumber in Crawley" or "hairdresser near me", Google almost never shows a Facebook page at the top. It shows websites and Google Business Profile listings. If your only online presence is Facebook, you are invisible to 90% of local searchers who never open the Facebook app.
2. You do not own it
Your Facebook page belongs to Meta. They can change the rules, throttle your reach (they already do), get hacked, or shut your page down if an algorithm flags you incorrectly. Ask anyone who has lost an Instagram account without warning how fun that experience is.
A website on your own domain is yours. Nobody can take it away on a whim.
3. It looks less professional to serious customers
For a small cash-in-hand job, a Facebook page is fine. For a £3,000 bathroom refit, a £500 haircut package, or a wedding caterer, most customers want to see a proper website. It is a trust signal — it tells the buyer that this is a real business, not a side hustle.
4. You cannot collect leads properly
Facebook messenger is fine for quick chats, but try exporting a year's worth of enquiries into a spreadsheet for your accountant. A website contact form dumps enquiries straight into your inbox where they belong — searchable, forwardable, yours.
5. Google reviews live somewhere else
Facebook reviews are useful but limited. Google reviews, attached to a Google Business Profile and a proper website, are the gold standard for local trust. Customers trust them more and they feed directly into your Google Maps ranking.
6. Your opening hours, prices, and service list get buried
On Facebook, important information vanishes under the next post. On a website, your prices, services and opening hours have a permanent home. Customers do not have to scroll past six holiday photos to find out if you are open on Saturday.
When a Facebook page actually is enough
Be honest with yourself. A Facebook page alone might genuinely be fine if:
- You are testing a side hustle that may not last six months
- Your customers are all local, all on Facebook, and all find you by word of mouth
- You do fewer than five jobs a week and have as much work as you can handle
- Your average job is under £50 and trust is not a major factor
If any of those change — you start getting more serious enquiries, start doing higher-value work, or want to grow beyond your current customer base — it is time for a website.
The best combo: website + Facebook + Google Business Profile
For almost every UK small business in 2026, the right setup is all three:
- Website as the hub — professional, Google-friendly, owned by you
- Google Business Profile pointing to the website, collecting reviews, showing on Maps
- Facebook page for community, updates, and chatty content
They feed each other. Facebook posts can link back to your website. Your website footer links to Facebook. Google reviews build trust for both. No one channel is doing all the work.
What does a proper website cost?
Less than you think. Our Starter site is £120 one-off. A multi-page Growth site is £240. Hosting is £4.99 a month. That is less than most people spend on takeaway in a month — and unlike Facebook, it is yours forever.
If you want to talk through whether a website makes sense for your business, drop us a quick brief and we will give you an honest answer the same day. Including "no, stick with Facebook for now" — if that is what we genuinely think.