Do Small Businesses Still Need a Website If They Have Facebook, Instagram or LinkedIn?

Plenty of small businesses run successfully from a Facebook page, an Instagram account or a LinkedIn profile. It is free, familiar and the audience is already there. So is a website still worth having?

For most businesses, yes — not instead of social media, but alongside it. The two do different jobs, and relying on social platforms alone carries risks many owners only discover when something goes wrong.

What social media does well

• Keeping existing customers and followers informed
• Showing recent work, personality and behind-the-scenes activity
• Word-of-mouth sharing within local or professional networks
• Quick, informal conversations
• Building a founder’s or owner’s personal profile, especially on LinkedIn

Why social media is not a substitute for a website

Search

When someone searches for “roofer in Kendal” or “commercial cleaning Carlisle”, search engines mostly return websites and business listings, not social media posts. Without a website, you are largely absent from the moment a new customer is actively looking.

Trust

Many buyers — particularly for higher-value work and business-to-business services — check for a proper website before making contact. A business that exists only on social media can look temporary or small, even when it is neither.

Ownership and control

You do not own your social media page. Platforms change their rules, reduce how many followers see your posts, and occasionally suspend accounts with little explanation. A website on your own domain is yours.

Depth

Social posts are short and disappear from view within days. A website can explain each service properly, answer detailed questions, show pricing guidance and hold every piece of evidence in one organised place.

Enquiries

A website can capture structured enquiries — the service needed, the location, the timescale — so you can respond properly. Social messages are often informal and easy to lose.

When social media alone can be enough

A few businesses genuinely manage without a website: those booked solidly through referrals, very small hobby businesses or highly visual businesses whose customers discover them only through one platform. Even then, a simple professional website protects against platform changes and gives referrals somewhere credible to land.

How the two work together

The strongest approach uses social media to stay visible and link back to the website, where visitors can read about services and make contact. Each post that links to a relevant service page sends interested people to the place where they are most likely to enquire.

What a website needs to do to be worth having

A neglected, out-of-date website can be worse than none. If you are going to have one, it needs clear service pages, written copy, a working enquiry form and proper search set-up. Our checklist on what a professional small business website should include covers the essentials.

For businesses that want a professional website without a large upfront bill, the Evans Launch Website Build provides up to 8 core pages — designed, written, hosted and maintained — for £99 + VAT per month with £0 upfront build cost and a 12-month agreement. Businesses that want to be found for several services and areas can choose the larger Evans Launch Plus Website Build at £199 + VAT per month.