If you’ve postponed building a website because you want to control your costs; it’s important to understand the opportunities you might be missing. Social media is a powerful tool to tell a story and generate followers: but it has its limitations when it’s the only way your customers can reach you online.
Is it time to build a website?
If your business has outgrown what social media offers on its own, it could be time to build a website. Let’s take a look at some of the challenges you could be experiencing when you depend on social for your online business presence.
1. It’s not your brand space
When you represent your business on social media, you’re effectively promoting your brand in another company’s space. Social media platforms have limited options for customisation compared to websites.
As a business you have less control over the layout, design, and functionality of your social media pages. That can make it a challenge to stand out from the competition and create a unique brand identity and user experience.
2. You don’t own your social media pages
As a business you do not own your social media pages; they’re hosted on third-party platforms. This lack of ownership means you’re subject to the rules, algorithms, and policies of the social media platforms, which can change without warning and affect visibility and reach. It also means if anything goes wrong you have little or no control over fixing it.
3. You don’t control access to your audience
Social media platforms use algorithms to determine the content that users see in their feeds. Changes to these algorithms can impact organic reach and engagement, making it difficult for businesses to reach their target audience without investing in paid advertising.
4. Your social media platform defines how you communicate
Social media platforms have restrictions on the types of content that businesses can post, including limitations on copyrighted material, sensitive topics, and certain advertising formats. Your businesses may face censorship or content removal if posts fail to meet platform guidelines.
5. The challenge of capturing and converting leads
Social media pages are not designed for capturing the details of potential customers and they do not have the tools to convert leads into actual customers in the same way that a website can. Your business may struggle to capture and nurture leads effectively if you rely on social media alone.
6. There are limitations to online selling through social
Most social media platforms offer e-commerce features but they are often less robust than dedicated e-commerce platforms or websites. Businesses may encounter limitations in the range of products they can sell or how they can list them, information sharing, payment options, and a lack of smart tools to prompt customers to complete or repeat purchases.
7. Outages and technical issues are outside your control
Like websites, social media platforms can experience technical issues, outages, or even shutdowns. These can include security breaches and page takeovers. Unlike your own website you have no ability to prevent or fix those issues if they happen, leaving you dependent on the social media provider for resolution of any problems.
If you rely on social media for your online presence, any form of failure could disrupt your ability to connect with your audience and maintain your online presence.
8. It’s not easy to stand out when you’re part of the crowd
Building a sustainable brand presence and reputation can be challenging on social media alone. If your competitors have websites then your lack of one could be seen as a sign of transience or lack of professionalism.
Having your own website gives you the opportunity to stand out and build a relationship with new and existing customers. While social media pages offer valuable opportunities for businesses to connect with audiences and promote their brand, relying on social media alone has significant drawbacks in terms of control, ownership, branding, data privacy, and lead generation.
Build your first website with caddie digital
Build the best position for your business online with a dedicated website that represents your brand and your business. caddie digital supports new, start up and growing businesses across Hawke’s Bay and Gisborne. We build beautiful, successful websites.
Start your journey online with a One Page Website
Our one page websites look like a complete website solution but offer a more cost-effective way to represent your brand and tell your story. We specialise in websites built in WordPress and Shopify: giving you the flexibility to build a website that delivers the best user experience for your customers while being optimised for search engines and setting you up for future success.
Once launched, the team at caddie can support you with all your website development needs. We offer clear and comprehensive training to ensure your team has the skills needed to take control of your website and grow your online presence alongside your business.
For future support we also specialise in Email Marketing, Content Strategy and Search Engine Optimisation (SEO), making it easier to access the expertise you need to grow.
