Website Or Facebook Business Page

According to official Facebook data, as presented at a recent conference (November 2013) in San Francisco, there are currently around 25 million Facebook business pages operating worldwide. The numbers speak for themselves, and Israel is not far behind. The question therefore arises, can a business Facebook page replace a website and what is actually the best way to gain effective online marketing. 
 

Well, in order to answer that we will need a lot more than one letter. However, we decided to lay out the main points for you in this short list. The examples that will be presented below will serve as a sifted sieve (a little that holds the majority). 
 

We all have long known the power of Facebook, the leading social network in the world. With over a billion registered users, and millions of business pages, it's clear that the feature around Facebook is only increasing. More than once, when you ask experts who deal with internet marketing which is better – Facebook business page or website – The answer will be "both and". Namely, to combine the advantages of a website with the advantages of a professional Facebook page. However, if you are interested in operating on one platform, it is important to remember that a business Facebook page, however professional and marketing it may be, can never completely replace a website. 
 

Well, if you're wondering why, you're not alone. A study conducted by Network Solutions (a subsidiary of the internet marketing giant – Web.com), which studied the activities of small and medium-sized businesses, found that 9% of all businesses in the US"See Facebook as a complete replacement for their website. Although most of the business owners who participated in the study stated that they understand the importance of a website, but when one out of ten business owners is ready to transfer the full weight of the weight to social media, this is no small matter. 
 

Diane Boiseau, the founder and CEO"Lith of the company Ability Commerce (a successful American company for establishing virtual stores), was recently interviewed on the subject for the online magazine CIO. According to her, "Although Facebook business pages will continue to grow and improve, social media marketing will never replace professional website work in front of search engines.". 
 

For example, in the field of virtual stores, Facebook is unable to match a graphical user interface that is specifically adapted to the target audience. "At most, a virtual store on Facebook can present selected items from a new collection, promote attractive sales or create media buzz on certain topics", Boiseau notes, "At the end of the day, the pizza'Rims that are open to a virtual store that operates on a private website are many and varied – And above all, designed on a custom level immediately". 
 

Another element to pay attention to is that a business page on Facebook is, at the end of the day, a platform on which marketing messages can be dressed up. This is not a website whose visibility the business owner controls, but rather a pre-dictated template. As a result, when Facebook decides to change the appearance of the template, or when it determines various issues regarding information security or maintaining privacy, all business owners must "align according to the line". 
 

Moreover, there are certain actions on the business page that may result in Facebook deciding to close the page. Unlike a website that will be up and running without problems, business owners who rely only on Facebook have to comply with strict regulations. Well, if that's not enough, here are some major disadvantages of social media business pages versus a personal website:

1. Limited functionality – Compared to a website, the functionality of business pages on Facebook is still lacking and limited. 

2. Lack of full control over how the information is presented – The owner of the business page cannot fully control the visual form in which the information is presented to surfers. 

3. Low level of analysis – Facebook does provide analytical information on business pages, but there is nothing to compare it to the level of analysis that is possible by analyzing network traffic on a website. 

4. Facebook is popular today, and what's next – True, Facebook is a very popular social network these days. However, this is also a kind of trend that can at some point pass and/or change form completely. Therefore, building a reputation and a brand in cyberspace is usually done solely thanks to a private website. 
 

Proper management of a business page on a popular social network like Facebook is definitely an important marketing step for those who understand the power behind these platforms in the online space. The direct relationship with the customers, the possibility to easily launch current promotions, the ability to create a media buzz, the possibility to advertise in a targeted manner to segmented audiences are just some of the advantages of Facebook from a business point of view. However, despite its amazing capabilities, Facebook is still not an adequate substitute for a website. 
 

Indeed, experts who deal with internet marketing know very well how to explain that there is nothing like a custom designed website to attract potential customers and enjoy quality conversions. In conclusion, the right way to act is by setting up a website that interfaces with a Facebook business page. curry, "both and". In any case, if you are debating between one and the other – It is usually advisable to start with building a personalized website and then proceed to connect it to social networks.