A content strategy for your website and/or social media page is critical for web presence.
Throughout the annals of history we relish the match-up of the wide-eyed wunderkind/newcomer vs. the curmudgeonly crafty veteran.
Ali vs. Foreman in the Rumble in the Jungle.
Rocky Balboa vs. Ivan Drago in Moscow.
Hulk Hogan vs. The Rock at WrestleMania 18.
I could and should go on. (No, I shouldn’t.)
And recently, we witnessed the most recent battle between the “way that was” versus the “wave of the future”…
No, I’m not talking about that four hour dumpster fire of a football game with Adam Levine dancing shirtless with Sponge Bob…(I can’t unsee that.)
I’m talking about websites (The Champ) vs. Social Media (The Challenger). While many will argue, and justifiably so, social media has been dominating websites for years — many new and existing entrepreneurs are making the decision to forego the creation of an e-commerce website and instead focusing all their efforts and finances towards creating a hot social media page/presence.
So, in the traditional/archaic form of breaking down the competitors in categories and seeing who has the upper hand—Without further ado…
Let’s Get Ready To Bumble! I mean Rumble!!!
The Tale of the Tape — Websites vs. Social Media.
Security
Websites — In a previous post for JEG DESIGN INC, I highlighted and outlined why having a secure site is critical for your business. With your site, you’re able to create SSL certificates, keep your software up to date, install plugins, and have passwords so steroid strong they could have played baseball in the late 90’s.
Social Media — Well — I mean — when was the last time the NY Times did an investigation into your practices and policies as they pertained to your business? Or you know, Congress asked you to detail and describe what you did with the information of those who visited your site?
Advantage — Websites
Exposure
Websites — Creating an audience, an email list, or better yet, enough expertise via content to adhere to whatever round of algorithms changes the powers at Google have made, can take years. And as many entrepreneurs will attest, time in business is only rivaled by dog years and the concept of time from the movie Interstellar.
Social Media — This is where things get interesting. On one hand, you can do everything all the books, articles, videos, and blogs may tell you to do about creating a successful social media page. Yet, outside of family members and psychotic ex’s who only wish to stalk and destroy everything you do — your page still has hardly any fans/followers. However, one day you can share a meme of Willy Wonka saying something condescending…
And BOOM! You’ve somehow just gained 100 followers without posting anything relevant to you and your company. Then you get cocky. You start posting pics, videos, blogs, whatever form of content that’s actually relevant to whatever it is you’re trying to do. The next thing you know, you’re living with the shame of liking your own post.
Sure, you can “boost” the post — but couldn’t you do that exact same thing with a Google AdWords campaign for your website?
Advantage — Push
Cost
Websites — Ya, a website can range you from a few hundred bucks — if you decide to do it yourself or hire a kid fresh out of high school who will then take the money and run to the local grocery store to buy $200 worth of Reddi-Whip for him and his two buddies to suck on – or up to a few thousand dollars depending on a glut of variables.
Social Media — Free. It doesn’t cost you a dime to create a Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, or LinkedIn account. (If you create a MySpace page though, it will cost you years’ worth of humiliation and the respect of all those who know you have one.)
Advantage — Social Media
Design
Websites — Just moments ago, you hopefully read about how much it may cost you (And how you may be supporting Chuckies little nitrous oxide addiction) to have a website created. Here is a major reason why—the design of it. You have a number of options ranging from colors, to pages, to videos, to images, to e-commerce, to a ton more. You can put your content where you want it. You can create pages to link one bit of content to another increasing your SEO. And most importantly, you can make any changes whenever, and however you want. What does this equal? Freedom!
Social Media — Ya, you have none of that. Sure, you can put a photo up, a video up, post blogs — yet the restriction differences between your website and a social media page is comparable to switching from boxers to briefs.
Advantage — Websites
Revenue
Websites — Want to sell ad space, sponsorships, hell, naming rights on your site? Go right ahead. It’s yours, you can do what you damn well please.
Social Media — Not…Gonna…Happen…Unless you’re Kim Kardashian being asked to tweet about your favorite type of Vodka or thong—No one is going to pay you for ad space on your Facebook page. If you think they do—I have a really nice piece of ocean front property in Rutland, Vermont to sell you.
Advantage — Websites
Winner
By a unanimous decision — Websites
Sure, social media can land a glancing blow that may send websites to the mat for an eight count—However, websites are a necessary component for any business while social media pages are exceptional at letting people know who you are, what you’re about, and even giving them a sense as to what type of business you are.
But they need to go somewhere.
While many restaurants are opting for food trucks as opposed to brick and mortar locations. While many businesses are opting to have a website as opposed to a store front.
Social media pages need to direct potential customers somewhere to go. And if you lack a website, you may be very well sending them to your competitor.
For more information about this and about what creating a website for your business would entail — contact Jon Gicewicz at JEG DESIGN INC today for a free consultation.
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Written by Keith Hannigan. Keith is a freelance writer with over a decade of experience in marketing and advertising. He’s written for a variety of industries from farming to web design. To contact Keith, email him at [email protected] or find him on LinkedIn.
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This content is the property of JEG DESIGN INC. For more information about JEG, follow them on Twitter and be sure to like their Facebook page.