Why should I:

have a website anymore?

02/12/2010

"Why should I invest money and time in a website when I can get my information posted online for free using social media resources?" I've heard this question more and more often as social media ideas seep out into the mainstream consciousness. Facebook pages have contact information, photos, and a way to share information. What more do you need?

This thinking is at the center of misconceptions about what a full-fledged website does for a business and why a business needs one.  Your website isn't just a place where people get your contact information. It's an online home base for your business. The rest of your online presence serves as billboards saying, "If you lived here, you'd be home now."

Your Online Presence Differentiates Your Business

Is your bookstore just like another bookstore down the street?  Of course not.  It has its own personality and brand that is reflected in how the books are arranged, the colors on the wall, the furniture, and the people.  People instantly know if they are in a Borders or a Barnes and Noble, whether or not they can see the sign. The design of a store is unique to each business, even if they are selling the same type of product.  A website should be the same way, reflecting its business.  In contrast, everyone's Facebook page looks the same and there isn't much to differentiate your business from someone else's, whether they are selling books or broccoli.

Some Technology Trends & Fads Are Just That

What will you do when Facebook goes away?  Right now, it's the subject of countless books, articles and raves, but that won't always be the case.  MySpace.com was in that spot a few years ago.  MP3.com is no more, nor is  Pownce, and not only that-they took their data and their links with them.

Yes, their links.

A thousand bookmarks on a thousand computers became useless when those companies closed down.  And when Facebook is no longer the "big thing," there is that chance that bookmarks to your business pages won't be saved.  Nor will the pages themselves. If you have your own website and your host closes down, you own the content of your site and you can move it somewhere else.  Your customers bookmarks will still work. 

Besides, not everyone is on Facebook.  Some of them are on LinkedIn or on mySpace, or just have a Twitter account.  And if you're on Facebook and someone else isn't, they have no way to connect with you; that's bad for business.  To make this work, you have to play whack-a-mole with social networking sites as people move around, setting up new accounts and maintaining old ones as tastes change and new sites (like Google's Buzz) gain popularity.

But Don't Let Us Stop You

Social media importance should not be overlooked. There are many valuable uses for Facebook, Blogs, and other promotion mediums, and you should definitely stay open-minded and experiment with what works best for YOUR business. However, before you rely entirely on a page people will "fan and forget," make sure you have a solid home base where people can always find you, and put some effort into it so they will use social media FOR you and share it with all of their friends!

~Rob Archer
Developer