Do tradespeople still need a website if they're on Facebook?

Yes. A Facebook page is a good place to post jobs and chat to customers, but a website of your own still wins you work that Facebook can't. Here's why, and what it should have on it.

People search Google, not Facebook, when something breaks

When a pipe bursts or the lights go out, people type "emergency plumber near me" into Google. Facebook pages rarely show up for those searches. A simple website with your trade and your town on it can.

A website makes you look established

Customers check you out before they ring. A tidy site with your phone number, the areas you cover, photos of real jobs and a few reviews says "proper business". A Facebook page alone can look like a side job, even when it isn't.

You own it

Facebook can change its rules, hide your posts or lock your account, and lead websites can raise their fees. Your own website and domain stay yours, and every customer who finds you there costs nothing extra.

What a trade website needs (and nothing more)

• What you do and where: "Gas Safe heating engineer covering Southampton and Eastleigh".
• A big tap-to-call button for phones, plus a quote form.
• Photos of real work, before and after if you can.
• Reviews, copied from Google, Checkatrade or Facebook (with permission).
• Accreditations: Gas Safe, NICEIC, TrustMark, insurance.
• The areas you cover, listed by town.

Use both

Keep posting on Facebook, and put your website link in your Facebook bio, your van signwriting, your quotes and your email signature. Facebook brings in people who already know you; your website catches the ones searching for someone like you.