The short answer
If you only have time and money for one, get a website. A Facebook page is a good support act, but it should point back to something you own. A website works for you around the clock, shows up when people search for your trade in your area, and does not disappear if a platform changes its rules or shuts your account down.
That does not mean Facebook is a waste of time. It just does a different job. The two work best together, with the website as the foundation and the page as one of the ways people find it.
What a Facebook page is good at
Facebook is built for staying in touch with people who already know your name. It is quick to set up, costs nothing to start, and it is a natural place to post recent jobs, before and after photos, and the odd update. When someone scrolling sees your latest fence build or switchboard upgrade, that keeps you front of mind for when they, or a mate, need the work done.
It is also handy for reviews and quick back and forth messages. Plenty of customers are comfortable sending a Facebook message to ask a question, so for word of mouth in a local area, a page can pull its weight.
Where a Facebook page falls short
The biggest problem is that you do not own it. The page lives on Facebook, the rules are set by Facebook, and your reach depends on an algorithm you cannot control. Accounts get locked, restricted or hacked, and getting help from a real person can be slow. If that happens, everything you built there can go quiet overnight.
A page is also hard to find in a search. When someone types electrician near me or emergency plumber Perth into Google, a Facebook page rarely shows up the way a proper website does. People mostly land on your page because they already know you exist. It is a shopfront on someone else's street, and it can be hard to look professional inside the boxes Facebook gives you.
What a website does that a page cannot
A website is yours. You control how it looks, what it says, and how someone gets in touch. You can lay out your services clearly, show the areas you cover, put your phone number and quote form where people can actually find them, and answer the questions you get asked every week before anyone has to ask them.
A website is also where people who do not know you yet can find you. Search engines send you traffic when your site is set up to show what you do and where you do it. That is the difference between waiting for referrals and having new enquiries turn up on their own. A tidy, fast, honest website tells a stranger you are a real operator worth calling, and it does that at any hour without you lifting a finger.
The setup that works: both, in the right order
Get the website sorted first, then use your Facebook page to feed it. Post your recent work on Facebook, and make sure the page links straight to your site so anyone interested can see your full range and request a quote. Let the page keep you visible to people who already know you, and let the website do the heavy lifting of turning interest into booked jobs.
This is the setup we build for trades and local operators across Western Australia. Our One Page website at $699 is a solid, honest starting point if you mainly need somewhere professional to send people. The Multi Page website at $1,099 suits you if you offer several services or want to be found for more search terms, and the Growth Platform from $1,499 is there when you are ready to bring in more enquiries over time. You fully own whatever we build, with no lock-in contracts, and ONARA Care is optional if you want us to handle hosting and support so you can stay on the tools.
Thinking about a new website?
ONARA Studios builds enquiry-focused websites for trades and local service businesses, with clear pricing and full ownership. See our website packages or get a free quote.