Yes, You Still Need a Website

It’s pretty safe to say that the internet has gone through a few major transitions over the years. Remember when all you did was open a browser on your desktop computer and type in the domain address? Now we’re shuffling between dozens of different apps on every kind of device — we’re following all of our favorite brands on Facebook and Instagram, and we know that when we need the latest info, we can just pull up the feed of everything they’ve posted recently. Ann likes to say, “You have the answer in your pocket.”

In fact, those days of pulling up websites using an internet browser seem like a distant memory! And if you’re a business owner or entrepreneur, you might be wondering whether you still need a website if you have active profiles on all the leading social media platforms. Isn’t a website a waste of time and money?

Short answer: You absolutely still need a website. No, it’s not a waste of time and money. A website is the hub of your online presence, and without a reliable website, you could be putting your brand at major risk. Here’s why:

You Get Complete Creative Control 

Your website is something you have complete control over — and the same can’t be said for social media platforms. Even when you fill out all the details for your profile and add plenty of photos (and video) to reflect what your company is all about, you’re still limited by what the platform allows you to do. Sometimes a social media platform gives you only 200 characters for your “About Us” section and allows you only one profile photo. That’s not the case on your website — with your website, you can have a detailed “About Us” section with five of your favorite photos going across the top of the page if you want to. You can also control every aspect of the aesthetic, such as font and color scheme, to make your brand more memorable.

In addition, you can create all the features and sections you want on your website, which you’re not able to add to a Facebook profile. Your website can have a testimonials section, a sales page, contact pages, and anything else that’s necessary to tell people about your biz.

You Don’t Have to Worry About Change

Let’s face it — social media platforms love to change things up whenever it benefits them. Remember when Facebook announced it was changing its algorithms to bury posts from business pages? All of a sudden, companies that were counting on Facebook for exposure were at a disadvantage.

Sure, it’s always nice to have the extra boost of exposure from social media, and that’s why you should never forgo a social media presence — you just shouldn’t be dependent on it in lieu of a website.

Websites are great for linking to social media 

If all you have is a page on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or LinkedIn, you don’t have anywhere you can send your followers for more information. A website is a place where you can link across all your social media platforms instead of trying to share the same update on each. Case in point: your sales page. Why set up selling options on Facebook and Instagram when you can simply create posts linking back to your website to close the sale. In fact, conversions tend to be higher on websites than they are on social media.

A website actually belongs to you, but your social media presence belongs to the platform.

Let’s imagine a worst-case scenario — your favorite social media platform kicks you off over a misunderstanding. It’s going to take a few days before you have your account back up and running again. So do you just fall off the face of the digital planet until then? If you have an active website, you don’t ever have to worry about your online presence being taken away from you, even if Facebook were to shut down completely.

A website is a mark of professionalism. 

Call it simplistic, but it’s unprofessional not to have a website in 2021. A website lends credibility to your brand’s image and helps people to trust you. Anyone can set up a Facebook page with zero to little effort, but having a professional-looking website with a real domain name tells people that you’re serious about what you do. That said, you want to make sure your website really is of a professional quality — you should have well-written copy, good photos, and easily findable information. Remember that unlike your social media presence, which requires fresh content every day to keep people engaged, your website needs to be updated only when necessary.

If you’re ready to commit to a website but you’re not sure where to start, our team at ASMM Digital can help. Reach out today by emailing ann@asmmdigital.com or calling 443-679-4916.