What are the differences and advantages in choosing between Social Media vs Website?
If you had to choose just one, which one would you consider? Of course it will depend on a number of factors: What is your audience, how much content you have to share, are you going to offer products or a service, the overall goals of your business, what is your budget and how much time do you plan to invest are some things to think about.
The Importance of a Website – Website vs Social Media Pages
Pages within social media sites are not the same as an actual website. Social networking presence is essential and a great way to quickly engage and connect with visitors and potential clients. Ideally it can be used to send traffic to your homepage or landing page of your website. Social media pages such as Facebook and Twitter can be used to engage visitors while promoting your service or business. With a website, you have multiple options as to how, where and when you can promote your business or service. To take advantage of the best of both worlds, it would be beneficial if you were to make use of both social medial and a website to expand awareness.
Presented below is information discussing Social Media vs Website and the importance of both. If you have questions or need more information, contact The Port Web Design and we will do our best to help answer your concerns.
Websites
Cost and simplicity are the main reasons why so many people turn to social media. So why consider to build a website for your business when you could use free social media platforms to market your business online? Read on to learn more:
Website Pros:
- Cost effective
There are a variety of options available, ranging from free to expensive. Free websites, depending on your budget and business needs, may be a good starting place. You can always add to or improve upon your free site later. You also have the option to consider seeking guidance from a professional web-designer such as The Port Web Design during the set-up process.
You have the ability to sell ad space to generate revenue. You can set your rates and manage the ads; you have full control of where and how the ads will be displayed. - Credibility
People expect companies to have websites today. They trust a business more if it has a website and the ability to talk one-on-one with a knowledgeable person in a timely manner.
Full control – When you own your own website, you have more options to making your website unique as opposed to social media where one size fits all. You can personalize the appearance of your website, pages and have more choices in ways to display your content. You own your website and have complete control over content and branding.
Better marketing choices – With your own website, you have more options to sell your business or service to your customers. A website offers diversity allowing more marketing space to include ads, videos, blogs, coupons and promotional offers. Your choices are only limited by your ideas! - Website Pro: Initial start-up costs
You don’t have to spend a fortune on a website. Free tools like content management system WordPress offers the perfect solution to owning your own website.
You can easily add e–Commerce (store to sell products) within you website. With the help of The Port Web Design, you can have your very own eCommerce store with perks and whistles and the ability to update and change your eCommerce content and products when you want.
If you find you have a question about your store or want help with making changes or updates, give us a call and we are ready to help!
Website Cons:
- Maintenance
Depending on the size of the site, keeping content up-to-date will require some time and effort. You have the option to hire a trusted website designer, such as The Port Web Design to help maintain and update your website. - Increased complexity
The more sophisticated the design and functionality, the more money and time it will take to design and set up. It would be advantageous to start with the basics and add on when the need arises. - More marketing effort
You have to work to get traffic to your website. That means you have to have a marketing strategy and implement it. This is where you can use social media, such as Facebook, to help drive traffic to your website. - Depending on your website development skills, you may be in need of hiring a web-designer to assist in the initial set-up. If you are limited with time, a web-designer could update and refresh your website when the need arises. Contact The Web Port Design and let us help you build a website your competitors will take notice to..
- Ranking – SEO
If you want your website to rank well in search engines for certain keywords, like your business name, it will require an understanding of some basic on-page SEO. If you don’t know anything about SEO then you might consider hiring someone to assist you with the set-up and implementation of SEO.
Social Media
Social media profiles and pages are easy to use and quick to set up. Generally it takes less than an hour to get things up and running.
Social Media Pros:
- Quick, easy and free
Social media pages are easy to set up and mostly free. - Minimal-commitment
You determine the amount of time you wish to develop or maintain your page. - Engagement
Social media encourages interaction which tends to humanize the visitors experience. The perfect environment to easily communicate and build relationships. - Branding
Inform customers about your business’s values, direction and purpose, with updates, sales and more. - Social media has a platform which makes the business pages search engine friendly. Such platforms are search engine optimized (SEO) which means your page shows up high in search engine rankings when potential customers search for your business.
Social Media Cons:
- Limited design
Social media has one size fits all when it comes to their layout. You can tailor your header and profile picture, however, you are also limited to layout options. - When it comes to Facebook, you are dealing with a third-party. You must follow and accept the company’s terms and service, which constantly change, or stand the chance of having your account deleted.
- Lack of control and ownership
The social media provider’s terms and conditions controls what content and promotions can be presented. - When changes are made within your social media page, you generally find out after the new design shows up on your page. You have no say with this process.
- The space which you have to promote your product or service is quite limited. Social media like Facebook has complete control and can change the appearance of your page at any time without advance warning.
Working Together: Website AND Social Media
Social media provides the perfect marketing platform to drive traffic to your website. You can use that traffic to expand your email and customer base. You can also communicate with your visitors and customers anytime, anywhere.
Your Website is the “Heart” of Your Online Presence – Use Social Media as your Marketing Tool
Have Questions or Need Help Deciding Between a Website vs Social Media? Contact The Port Web Design today!
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