A Facebook page and a website do different jobs. Facebook is good for staying visible to people who already know you. A website is what gets you found in Google search, ranks in the map pack, and makes a stranger trust you enough to call. For booking new jobs, a website wins, and the two work best together.
Key takeaways
- Most people looking for a plumber, electrician, or landscaper search Google, not Facebook. A Facebook page barely shows up there.
- On Facebook you don’t control the layout, so your phone number, service area, and reviews are buried under posts and platform clutter.
- A website ranks in local search, supports your Google Business Profile, and makes you look like a licensed pro rather than a hobbyist.
- Facebook still earns its place for repeat customers, community presence, and quick updates. It’s a supplement, not a replacement.
- The strongest setup is a simple website plus a Google Business Profile, with Facebook as the third leg, not the whole stool.
Plenty of trades run their entire online presence off a Facebook page. It feels like enough because it exists, it’s free, and posting a job photo now and then is easy. The problem is that a Facebook page is built to keep you in touch with people who already follow you. It was never built to win a new customer who’s searching for your service at 9pm with a leak spreading across the floor.
Here’s an honest look at what each one actually does, so you can decide where to put your money.
Where new customers actually look
Picture the moment someone needs you. Their boiler’s dead, or a socket just sparked, or the garden’s a jungle before a party. Almost nobody opens Facebook and searches “emergency electrician.” They open Google, type “electrician near me,” and tap one of the first results that looks legitimate.
That search is where jobs are won, and it’s exactly where a Facebook page is weakest. Facebook pages rarely rank in Google for local service searches. So if Facebook is your whole presence, you’re invisible at the precise moment a ready-to-book customer is looking. A website, especially one paired with a Google Business Profile, is what puts you in front of them.
Facebook page vs website: a straight comparison
Both have a place. This is how they stack up for the job that matters, turning a search into a booked job.
| What matters | Facebook page | Your own website |
|---|---|---|
| Shows up in Google search | Rarely | Yes, when built for local SEO |
| Ranks in the map pack | No | Supports your Google Business Profile |
| You control the layout | No | Yes |
| Phone number front and centre | Buried under posts | In the header on every page |
| Clear service area and pricing | Hard to show | Its own space, easy to find |
| Looks like a licensed pro | Reads as a personal feed | Yes |
| Reviews on display | Yes, but mixed with posts | Placed exactly where people decide |
| Staying in touch with past customers | Strong | Weaker on its own |
| Cost | Free | One-off build, then low monthly |
What a Facebook page does well
This isn’t a case for ditching Facebook. It genuinely helps with a few things. It keeps you visible to people who already follow you, so past customers remember you when they need you again or want to refer a friend. It’s good for quick updates, seasonal offers, and showing recent work in a low-effort way. And for some local communities, an active page and local groups are a real source of word-of-mouth.
What it can’t do is rank for the searches that bring new customers, or give you a clean, controlled space that makes a nervous homeowner trust you fast. That’s the website’s job.
What a website does that Facebook can’t
A proper website does the two things a Facebook page can’t: it gets found in local search, and it builds trust on your terms.
It ranks and supports your map presence. Built with clear titles, service pages, and a page for each town you cover, a website shows up for “your service plus your city” and reinforces your Google Business Profile so you can land in the map pack.
It puts the important things where people can act. A tap-to-call number in the header on every page, a clear service area, your reviews and real photos near the buttons, and a short quote form for the after-hours leads. On Facebook those are scattered or missing.
It makes you look established. A clean site with your license number, insurance, and a plain list of services signals a real business. A personal-style feed quietly signals hobbyist, even when your work is excellent.
If your current site or page isn’t turning searches into calls, that’s usually a fixable problem. My post on why your website isn’t getting leads walks through the common causes, and my rundown of web design for home service businesses covers exactly what a trade site needs.
Running your business off a Facebook page? A simple website that actually gets found is a bigger lever than another post.
See web design for home servicesThe setup that actually books jobs
You don’t have to choose one and abandon the other. The strongest, simplest setup for a home service business has three legs.
A focused website as the hub: five or six pages built to rank and convert, with your services, area, reviews, and an easy way to call or request a quote.
A complete Google Business Profile as the thing that gets you into the map pack and drives calls straight from search. For many trades this drives more calls than anything else, and the website reinforces it.
A Facebook page as the third leg: for staying in front of past customers, posting recent jobs, and picking up local word-of-mouth. It supports the other two rather than carrying the whole load.
Get those three working together and you’re visible when people search, trusted when they check you out, and remembered when they need you again.
The bottom line
Facebook page or website isn’t really the question, because they do different jobs. If you have to pick one thing to win new work, it’s a website, because it gets you found in search, supports your map ranking, and earns trust in a way a feed can’t. Keep Facebook for what it’s good at, staying in touch, and let the website and your Google Business Profile do the finding and the converting. If you’re relying on a page today and the phone isn’t ringing, tell me about your trade and I’ll show you what a simple site could do. You can also see how a full website build or redesign works.
Frequently asked questions
Can I just use a Facebook page instead of a website?
You can, but you’ll lose the new customers who search Google, which is most of them. A Facebook page rarely ranks in search or the map pack, and you can’t control where your phone number, service area, and reviews sit. It’s great for staying in touch with people who already follow you, but for winning new jobs a website plus a Google Business Profile does far more. Use Facebook to support them, not replace them.
Will a Facebook page hurt my Google ranking?
It won’t hurt it, but it won’t do much to help either. Facebook pages don’t generally rank for local service searches, and they don’t feed your Google Business Profile the way a proper website does. If ranking in Google and the map pack matters to you, that comes from a website built for local SEO, consistent contact details, and reviews, not from your Facebook activity.
Do I need both a website and a Facebook page?
Ideally yes, but they play different roles. The website plus a Google Business Profile does the heavy lifting of getting you found and booked. Facebook is a useful third leg for staying visible to past customers and picking up local word-of-mouth. If budget is tight, prioritise the website and profile first, then keep Facebook ticking over.
How much does a website cost compared to running Facebook?
Facebook is free but limited. A focused home service website is a one-off build, usually in the low four figures, plus a small monthly cost for hosting and care. Think of it as a lead source rather than an expense: it works while you’re on the tools, showing up in search and booking jobs a Facebook page would never reach.