Website or social media, which should you choose?
Do you need a website when you already have a Facebook page or an Instagram account? The question comes up often, and the right answer is both. They do not play the same part, and your website plays one that no network can play in its place.
The one place where you speak about your company the way you want
On your website every word is yours. You choose what you say, in which order, with which images and in which tone, and what your visitor finds once they have finished reading: a button to call you, a form or a shop.
Nobody speaks in your place there. People cannot leave comments, unless you have a blog that allows them, and then you can moderate them. Nothing appears under your pages without your consent.
No algorithm decides who sees what either. What you publish stays in place, visible to everyone who comes, for as long as you decide.
The same goes for television, radio or newspapers. An advert is paid for at every showing and lasts as long as a spot, then the person who saw it types your name into Google. Your website is where they land.
Your website is the only medium you control from A to Z.
Social networks are made for conversation, and that is their strength. You talk with your clients there, by the platform's rules. Your website is where you speak in your own name, by your own rules.
Website vs social media, side by side
Each one has its strengths. Here they are, next to each other.
| Your website | Social media | |
|---|---|---|
| The voice | Yours alone, from the first word to the last. | Shared, your clients can reply and comment. |
| The rules | Yours. | The platform's, which it keeps evolving. |
| The space | Unlimited. Pages, videos, a shop, forms. | Set formats, square, vertical or short. |
| The lifespan | A well-written page is found for years. | A post lives a few hours to a few days in the feed. |
| How people find you | Through Google, assistants like ChatGPT or some directories. | Through your followers, their shares and the algorithm. |
| The reach | The people looking for you, day after day. | Sometimes far beyond your followers, when a post travels. |
| What you own | The domain name, the texts, the images and the code. | Your content, on an account hosted by the platform. |
| The cost | A build, then hosting by the year. | Free to post, paid to reach more people. |
| Their strength | Convincing and prompting action: a call, a quote, a purchase. | Being discovered and staying in touch. |
Social media, so your clients do not forget you
Your clients do not visit your website every day. Facebook or Instagram, on the other hand, they open in bed at night, while waiting for the train or during a break. Each post they see brings you back to their mind for a moment.
Something pleasant is enough: a project you have just finished, a moment with the team, a glimpse behind the scenes of your trade. Something warm, something human.
On these networks two approaches live side by side. Staying warm and fairly neutral, which suits most companies, or seeking virality, which is another exercise altogether.
Virality, a double-edged chance
On a social network a post can travel far beyond your followers and reach people you had not planned to reach. People's reactions decide, amplified by the algorithm. A website does not work the same way, a page only travels when someone shares its link, on those same networks or elsewhere.
Picture a post that takes off on a Friday evening. It is fine visibility, and the messages and comments keep coming all weekend, even if nobody is watching your accounts. And virality does not choose its audience. A harmless post can be misread and catch fire. Seeking virality means preparing for the best as well as the worst.
A quieter virality, on your website
A website can spread your name differently, more slowly, and almost without effort on your side. It happens in three steps.
- Being found. Pages that answer your clients' real questions, in several languages if your business lends itself to it, are recommended day after day by Google and by assistants like ChatGPT. That is what brings the first visitors.
- Making people feel something. Once on your website, your visitor lives a moment that makes them react. A smile, a surprise, an emotion, the pride of a challenge taken up or the pleasure of finding exactly what they were looking for. That feeling is what people want to pass on, far more than a piece of information.
- Giving them ways to share it. Several simple ways to pass that feeling on to someone else: a link that shows a fine image and a careful title in WhatsApp, Messenger or LinkedIn, an image ready to post, a button to send it to a friend. All with an interface as simple as possible.
Every share brings new visitors, and it all starts again, a little more each time.
That is what I am building with Stiip, my free hilly route planner for cyclists. Nearly nine visitors in ten arrive from Google, and the app is designed to be shared, with challenges, an image to post and route names that make people smile. It is all told in the Stiip case study.
Website or Facebook page? Build both
If you are torn between building a website and opening a Facebook page or an Instagram account, the best answer is to build both. Start by creating your accounts, even if you do not post on them straight away. Your company's name is then reserved for you on every network. The networks get you discovered and keep the bond alive. The website reassures, explains, and turns interest into a call, a quote or a purchase.
Every post can also lead to a page of your website, because that is where you have the most room and the best control to convert. The network catches the attention, the website keeps it.
Choose the networks that match what you share
The best is to choose the networks that match what you have to share:
- Images, your work, your products
Instagram and Pinterest - Texts, your advice, your view on your trade
your own blog or Medium - Your company life, your hires, your projects, your successes
LinkedIn - News and quick exchanges
X or Bluesky - Local life, your events, your community
Facebook - Video
YouTube, TikTok or Instagram
Publish once, everywhere
Running several channels takes less time than you might think. Meta Business Suite publishes the same post on Facebook and Instagram in one go, and Instagram can share each post to your Facebook page automatically. Buffer schedules your posts across several networks at once. For your website, Zapier or n8n can send each new article to your networks automatically, or the other way round.
Instagram is a little more closed than Facebook, links in posts are not clickable there. The one in your bio counts double, so point it to your website.
A medium at the service of your communication
A website tells your story and shows your work, but every page can also pursue a precise goal, and the networks help it get there. Take an example.
You have just signed a big contract. To deliver it, you need new people in the team, and fast.
The page
You have a landing page built for it. It presents your company, the advantages of working with you, all the job offers, and the form to apply, which is its real goal.
The sharing
Once it is online, you share it on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn, and your team shares it in turn.
The boost
If time is short, a paid advert gives it a boost of visibility, on the network best suited to reach the profiles you are looking for.
One page per intention, and each one leads the visitor to the action you have chosen.
It is only an example. There are many others, like a new product you launch, a special event, an open day or a contest. That is the whole principle of the landing page, a page designed for one precise task.
Your questions
Is a website still useful when you have a Facebook page?
Yes. Your Facebook page makes you known to your followers, your website makes you findable by everyone searching Google for what you offer. It is also what inspires trust when a client hesitates, and it belongs to you, with its domain name, its texts and its images.
Which social network should a business choose?
The one that matches what you share, Instagram or Pinterest for images, LinkedIn for company life, your blog for texts. Two networks well kept are worth more than five.
Can you post on Facebook, Instagram and your website at the same time?
Yes. Meta Business Suite posts to Facebook and Instagram in one go, and Zapier or n8n can send each new article from your website to your networks.
Should you be on social media when you have a website?
It is not compulsory, but it is advisable. Your clients do not visit your website every day, while the networks bring you back to their minds every time you post. At least create your accounts to reserve your name, then post on the network where your clients are.
How long does it take to create a website?
A coming soon page can be online within a week. A landing page takes two to four weeks, and a multi-page website gets its own schedule with the quote.
How much does a website cost for a small business?
It depends on the number of pages, the languages and the features. At EYN Studio a website designed to measure begins at €950 excl. VAT, with a free mockup so you can see the result before committing.
Curious to see what a website could do for your company? Everything is explained on the page dedicated to website design.
Thanks for reading
Written by
Lexy Callemeyn
Graphic designer & web developer
Hello! I'm Lexy, a graphic designer and a developer of websites and apps for 12 years. Every project is unique to me: I draw logos and I build custom websites for freelancers and companies, from the first sketch to going live, to help them reach their goals with a strong identity online.
A question, a project in mind? Write to me, or discover my work through the links below.
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