Does Your Barrie Business Actually Need a Website in 2026?

You've got a Facebook page and word-of-mouth keeps you busy. Do you really need a website?

The short answer is yes. Here's why, without the sales pitch.

Facebook Isn't Yours

Your Facebook page lives on Facebook's property. That means Facebook decides who sees your posts, when they see them, and whether your page shows up at all.

Algorithm changes happen constantly. One month your posts reach 500 people. The next month, that same post reaches 40. You didn't do anything wrong. Facebook just changed the rules.

You can't control your visibility. If Facebook decides to push Reels over business page posts, your updates get buried. If they change how local search works inside their app, your page might disappear from results overnight.

And here's the big one: Facebook pages don't rank on Google. When someone in Barrie searches "landscaper near me" or "best hair salon in Barrie," Google isn't pulling up your Facebook page. It's showing websites.

Your content, your reviews, your photos, your hours of operation -- all of that lives on someone else's platform. If Facebook shuts down your page tomorrow (it happens more than you'd think), you lose everything.

Google Is Where Customers Start

When someone needs a plumber at 9 PM on a Tuesday, they don't open Facebook. They open Google.

Nearly half of all Google searches have local intent. People are searching for "electrician Barrie," "Barrie pet grooming," and "restaurant near me" thousands of times a month. Those searches lead to websites, Google Business profiles, and map results -- not Facebook pages.

A website gives you a shot at showing up in those results. A Facebook page, on its own, almost never does.

This matters because the people searching on Google are ready to buy. They're not scrolling. They're looking for someone specific to solve a problem right now. If you don't have a website, you're invisible to those customers.

Credibility in Three Seconds

People make snap judgments. When a potential customer hears about your business and looks you up, what they find in the first three seconds shapes their opinion.

A clean, professional website says: this business is real, established, and takes itself seriously. A Facebook-only presence -- or worse, nothing at all -- raises doubt. Fair or not, that's how people think.

This is especially true for services where trust matters. If you're a contractor, a cleaning company, or a financial advisor, your customers are handing you their home, their space, or their money. They want to see that you look legitimate before they pick up the phone.

You don't need a fancy website to get this right. You just need one that loads fast, looks clean, and tells people what you do.

Your Website Works While You Sleep

A Facebook page depends on you being online. Someone sends a DM at 11 PM? They're waiting until morning for a reply. By then, they may have already called your competitor.

A website with a simple contact form captures leads around the clock. Someone visits at midnight, fills out the form, and you get the message first thing in the morning. No missed opportunities.

Your services, pricing, and hours are available for anyone to check without messaging you first. Customers can answer their own questions before they reach out, which means the people who do contact you are more likely to actually hire you.

That saves you time and gets you better leads.

It Doesn't Have to Be Complicated

This is where most business owners get stuck. They picture a massive website with dozens of pages, a blog, an online store, and a chatbot. That's not what you need.

Most local businesses in Barrie do perfectly fine with three to five pages:

• Homepage -- who you are, what you do, and where you are
• Services -- a clear list of what you offer
• Contact -- a form, your phone number, and your address

That's it. No blog required. No online booking system. No membership portal. Just a clean, professional presence that shows up on Google and gives customers the basics.

You can always add more later. But starting with a simple site that works is better than waiting for the "perfect" one that never gets built.

A straightforward website doesn't cost a fortune and it doesn't take months. It just needs to exist, load quickly, and answer the question every customer has: can I trust this business with my money?

If your answer to that is yes, your website should make it obvious.