Is a Facebook page enough for a tradie?

For people who already know you, yes. A page is a good place for before-and-after photos, and customers who were sent by a mate can find you there. If almost all your work is word of mouth, a page covers a lot.

It stops being enough when you want customers who have never heard of you. Those people search Google for your trade and town. Most of the time what they want is a site that says what you do, where, and how to ring.

How common is it to use Facebook instead of a website?

Very. The Australian Bureau of Statistics reports that 51% of Australian businesses used social media for their online presence in 2024-25 (ABS, Characteristics of Australian Business). So you are not behind. But it also means a Facebook page does not set you apart from half your competitors.

What can a Facebook page not do?

  • It is not yours. Meta can change reach, lock the account or remove the page, and you cannot ring anyone.
  • Your number is buried. A customer in a hurry has to tap around to find it. On a website it is one tap, on every page.
  • It is hard to describe. Google and tools like ChatGPT read plain pages. A feed of photos and short posts gives them very little to quote about the suburbs you cover.
  • People without an account hit walls. Some customers will not log in to look at a tradie.

Does Google show Facebook pages?

Sometimes, mostly when someone searches your business name. It is much less reliable when they search "plumber near me". You do not control what shows or in what order. A website you own, with your suburbs and services written out, gives you a proper chance. I cover the full list in how to get found on Google as a tradie.

What do customers think when a tradie has no website?

Most do not think anything bad. They just keep looking. A tradie with a site that shows real jobs, names the suburbs and has a number on every page looks more established than one with only a social page, even when the work is the same. For bigger jobs like a bathroom, a rewire or a roof, people check more before they ring, and the site is where they check.

What about Instagram, hipages and directories?

They are all useful, and all rented. You get leads from them while you stay active and while the platform keeps showing you. A website is the one place where the content, the domain and the hosting are yours. Use the others to send people to it.

Should I stop using Facebook if I get a website?

No. Keep posting your finished jobs. Treat Facebook as the shopfront window and the website as the shop. Link the website from your page and put your page link on the site. They work together.

How do I make Facebook and a website work together?

Put your website link in the Page's About section and in the button at the top. Put your Page link in the footer of the site. Post your finished jobs to Facebook as you do now, and add the best ones to your site's Projects page every few months. Use the same name, phone number and suburb list on both, so Google and customers see one business, not two.

If someone messages the Page asking for a quote, send them to the quote form on the site. It collects the suburb, the job and the photos in one go, and you stop playing message tag.

What is the minimum website that makes sense?

Five pages: Home, About, Services, Projects, Contact. Your photos, your suburbs, a tap-to-call button and a quote form. That is what I build for $990 once, with nothing monthly. I make the homepage free first, so you can see what it looks like with your own photos. The cost post has the five-year comparison.

What if I only want to test the idea?

Then the free homepage is the cheap test. No card, no payment. You see your business on a real page, and you decide. See the examples if you want to judge the standard first.