Get found online
Do I need a website if I have a Facebook page?
By Bhavesh Narsai · Published 21 September 2026
Plenty of good local businesses run entirely on Facebook, mostly by posting in local groups. It works, up to a point. Here is the blind spot nobody mentions, and the simple thing that fixes it.
Do I need a website if I have a Facebook page?
A Facebook page is a good start, but not enough on its own. Most people look for a local service on Google at the moment they need it, and your Facebook posts do not show up there. A simple website is where your best work, prices, area and contact details live so people can find you when they search. Keep the Facebook page, and add the website.
What local Facebook groups are genuinely good at
Let us be fair to the groups, because they earn their place. A post in a busy local group can put you in front of hundreds of neighbours in an afternoon. People trust a recommendation from someone in their own town. It is free, it is quick, and for a lot of local businesses it brings in real work. None of what follows is a reason to stop.
The blind spot: where people actually search
A group post has a short life. It is seen by whoever happens to be scrolling that hour, it slides down the feed, and by tomorrow it has gone. The problem is that most people do not decide they need a plumber, a groomer or a photographer while scrolling Facebook. They decide when the tap is leaking or the wedding is booked, and the first thing they do is open Google or Maps and search.
At that exact moment, your best Facebook post is nowhere to be seen. Group content is often private to members, individual posts do not rank, and Google shows websites and Google Business Profiles instead. Someone in your town is searching for your service right now, and the business they can actually find is the one that gets the call.
What a website does that a group post can't
- It shows up when people search. Paired with a Google Business Profile, a website is what appears when someone Googles your service in your town, at the moment they need it.
- It holds your best work in one place. Your photos, reviews, prices and the areas you cover, all together, instead of scattered down a feed and lost.
- It works around the clock. A group post fades in hours. A website keeps bringing in enquiries while you are asleep, on a job, or on holiday.
- You own it. Facebook can change its rules, limit your reach or suspend an account overnight. Your website is yours, and no platform can switch it off.
That is the beacon. It sits outside Facebook and points people to you the moment they go looking, which is the moment that matters. There is more on this in getting found beyond Google and why social media on its own is not enough.
You don't have to choose
This is not "leave Facebook." Keep posting in the groups, keep the buzz going. Just add the piece the groups cannot do: somewhere people can find you when they search, that shows your best side and turns a bit of local attention into an actual enquiry. The two work together. The group gets you noticed, the website gets you chosen.
The honest bit
A website does not put you top of Google overnight. It makes you findable, which is the first step, and the rest comes from a complete Google Business Profile, genuine reviews and a bit of time. But you cannot be chosen if you cannot be found, and right now, if your whole presence lives inside a Facebook group, most of your town cannot find you at the moment they are looking.
Common questions
Isn't posting in local Facebook groups enough to get customers?
Local Facebook groups are great for buzz and repeat customers, but a post is seen by whoever happens to be scrolling that hour and then it is gone. It is not there when someone Googles your service later, and it does not hold your reviews, prices or best work in one place. The groups bring you local attention. A website is where that attention lands and turns into an enquiry.
Can people find my Facebook page on Google?
Sometimes your main Facebook page appears, but individual posts inside local groups almost never do, and group content is often private to members. When someone searches for your type of service in your town, Google tends to show websites and Google Business Profiles, not group posts. That is the gap a website and a Google Business Profile fill.
Is a website better than social media for a local business?
They do different jobs, so it is not either or. Social media creates attention and keeps you in front of people who already follow you. A website and a Google presence catch people who are actively searching for your service, which is usually where the ready-to-buy customers are. The best results come from doing both.
How much does a simple website for a local business cost?
For a typical local business, a professional site is usually a few hundred pounds from an independent, far less than most people expect. At BAV Tech Solutions a Starter build is £595 and Done For You is £895, both including the first year of hosting, with a free mockup before you commit.
I only get work from Facebook. Why change anything?
You do not have to change what is working, just add to it. Every enquiry you get from Facebook is one you can see. The ones you never hear about are the people who searched Google, did not find you, and called someone else. A website is how you stop losing those.
Also worth a read: why social media is not enough for a small business.
If your business lives in local Facebook groups and nowhere else, I can build you the beacon: a simple, findable site with your best work, prices and area, from a free mockup before you spend a penny. Fixed prices, plain English, Bolton based.