Is only having a Facebook Page enough for your business?

Lately I’ve run into several businesses that have opted out of having a custom website and instead are only using a Facebook Business Page.  After several weeks of research on the pros and cons of this approach, I thought it would be good to talk about the advantages, as well as the disadvantages of only having a Facebook Page for your business.

My dog Shooba as a puppy.

Advantages of Facebook Page only:

1. Virtually free-In today’s economy, saving money is a focus of nearly every small business in America.  Although setting up a Facebook Page for your small business is free, customizing a Facebook Page to be optimal for conversions typically requires involving a web designer.
2. Minimal Maintenance-Not having a website means less maintenance for your business.  It is important to remember that regularly posting on Facebook as well as responding to comments can be rather time consuming.
3. No SEO required-Although there are some ways to increase the visibility of your Facebook Page, most businesses don’t have to worry about getting your website found through relevant keywords.
4. Large User Base-with over 800 million users, 1 in every 8 minutes online spent on Facebook, people are definitely already using Facebook on a regular basis.

Disadvantages of Facebook Page only:

1. Ownership-You don’t own your Facebook Page, Facebook does.  Facebook regularly changes its policies.  Sometimes these changes may hurt your business presence on Facebook such as the proposed changes last year that would have devastated many small businesses’ Facebook Pages.
2. Design Changes-In early 2011; Facebook changed the width of page tabs to 520 pixels.  If you had a Facebook Page custom designed, this change could’ve meant an overhaul to your tabs and applications.
3. Lack of Control Over Search Ranking-Google has increased the importance of having a website for ranking in local search.  Only having a Facebook Page limits the amount of control you have over Search Engine Optimization (SEO).
4. Conversions-While having a custom Facebook Page can allow you to “reveal” certain aspects of your page to customers who “like” your page, optimization for conversions is limited.  With a marketing website, you can use any colors, information, and pictures that you wish.  Call to action forms as well as contact information can be strategically placed which leads to more conversions.
5. Competitor Advertising-While a customer is reading your latest post on your Facebook Page, a competitor’s ad maybe showing up on the right side of their screen.
6. Not Everyone is on Facebook-800 million users is a lot, but there are still a lot more internet users that are not on Facebook.   Limiting yourself to Facebook as your only means of online marketing will mean missing out on other potential customers.

So, what is our conclusion?

While having a Facebook Page is vital to your business, we encourage you to have a website and a Facebook Page.  A Facebook Page and a marketing website go together like peanut butter and jelly, each half making the other better.  When a customer searches products or services that you offer, they will not only see your website (if you have done SEO properly), but they will also see your Facebook Page.  Social Media also helps your search ranking-it’s 7% of the Google Algorithm according to this year’s study done by SEOmoz.  Facebook can also be a great source for leads to your website where conversion rates can be optimized.

What do you guys think?  What advantages would you list for Facebook?  What about the disadvantages?  Leave a comment below and let us know!