Facebook Shops allow businesses to set up an online store directly on Facebook and Instagram without needing to have a website. With Facebook Shops, you can showcase your products, tell your brand’s story, and sell items right within the Facebook and Instagram apps.
Facebook Shops make it easy for businesses to go online in just a few steps. You don’t need any coding or web design experience. All you need is a Facebook Business page or Instagram profile to get started.
So can you have a Facebook shop without a website? The short answer is yes. Facebook Shops provide an all-in-one ecommerce solution without needing your own website. However, there are some important things to consider before relying solely on Facebook Shops.
Benefits of Facebook Shops
Here are some of the main benefits of using Facebook Shops without having your own website:
- Easy setup – It only takes a few steps to create a Shop on Facebook or Instagram. No web design or coding skills required.
- Reach large audiences – Tap into billions of people who already use Facebook and Instagram every month.
- Free to create – Creating and managing a Facebook Shop is free.
- Sell across platforms – Your products and inventory automatically sync across Facebook and Instagram.
- Integrated payments – Facebook supports multiple payment providers to handle transactions seamlessly.
- Powerful analytics – View key metrics and insights into how your Shop is performing.
- Lower costs – You avoid the costs of building and maintaining your own ecommerce website.
For many small businesses, Facebook Shops present an appealing way to establish an online storefront while avoiding the complexity and expenses of a custom website.
Limitations of Facebook Shops
However, relying solely on a Facebook Shop does come with some limitations to be aware of:
- Limited customization – You have less control over the design and layout compared to your own website.
- Dependence on Facebook – Your business becomes reliant on Facebook’s platform and algorithms.
- No customer accounts – Customers cannot create dedicated accounts and save payment information.
- Less functionality – Options for promotions, custom content, and advanced features are more limited.
- No customer emails – You cannot collect customer email addresses through Facebook Shops.
- Less SEO control – Websites allow greater customization of SEO elements to improve search visibility.
- Require a Business Page – Personal profiles are not permitted to have Facebook Shops.
While convenient, relying entirely on a Facebook Shop means limited branding control and lack of ownership compared to having your own website.
Key Considerations
Here are some key points to consider when determining if a Facebook Shop without a website is the right approach for your business:
Type of products
Facebook Shops work best for businesses selling lower cost products that appeal to impulse purchases and viral sharing. High-touch or high-consideration purchases may need more custom content.
Brand control
If maintaining strict control over your branding and customizing the shopping experience is a priority, a website will provide more flexibility. Facebook Shops conform to Facebook’s layout standards.
Audience targeting
Businesses that can effectively target their ideal audience on Facebook/Instagram can do well with Shops alone. But limitations in organic reach may necessitate a website.
Search visibility
While your Shop and products can appear in search, having your own website opens up more SEO optimization potential to improve search rankings.
Email marketing
The ability to capture emails for marketing is restricted with Facebook Shops. Websites allow collecting emails to build customer relationships.
Data ownership
Facebook owns all data from Shops. A website gives you control over customer data and ability to export it.
Costs
For very new businesses, Shops provide a low-cost way to validate an idea. But as you scale, the benefits of owning your customer data and brand experience may justify the website investment.
Recommendations
In general, here are some best practices on how to effectively leverage Facebook Shops:
- Start with Facebook Shop to test product-market fit while minimizing upfront costs and complexity.
- Focus on selling products aligned to the Facebook/Instagram experience and audience.
- Use website and email capture tools like landing pages to start building customer emails even if you don’t have a full website.
- As you grow, gradually invest in adding a customized website and transitioning away from reliance solely on Facebook.
- Maintain your Shop presence even after launching a website to take advantage of Facebook’s reach.
- Prioritize growing your email list from the beginning to own your customer relationships.
The ideal approach is viewing Facebook Shops as a starting point but not a permanent solution. Leverage the benefits of Shops in the short-term while developing owned marketing and sales channels for long-term success.
Selling Successfully on Facebook Without a Website
If you do choose to solely rely on a Facebook Shop, here are some tips to give yourself the best chance of success:
Create a strong brand identity
Use your Business Page’s cover image, profile image, and About section to clearly communicate your brand story and differentiate from competitors.
Engage your audience
Frequently post engaging content and interact with followers in your Business Page feed to build relationships with potential customers.
Advertise strategically
Use targeted Facebook and Instagram ads to promote your Shop and best-selling products to ideal audiences.
Encourage sharing
Incorporate Facebook sharing buttons prominently on your Shop to tap into viral promotion from customers.
Offer promotions
Run sales, contests giveaways and other special offers to incentivize purchases and word-of-mouth buzz.
Gather reviews
Actively ask satisfied Shop customers to leave positive reviews to build social proof.
Analyze data
Lean heavily on Facebook analytics to gain insights into your audience and make data-driven decisions on how to improve your Shop’s performance.
Facebook Shop Success Stories
Thousands of businesses have found success relying on Facebook Shops. Here are some inspiring examples:
The Candle Bar
| Products | Facebook Followers | Revenue |
|---|---|---|
| Scented candles | 485,000 | $12 million (2021) |
The Candle Bar has grown a huge following on Facebook through viral content and is now one of the leading scented candle brands online selling completely through their Facebook Shop.
Luxe + Willow
| Products | Facebook Followers | Revenue |
|---|---|---|
| Handmade jewelry | 319,000 | $5 million (2020) |
Luxe + Willow leverages Facebook marketing and word-of-mouth to drive sales of its handmade jewelry through its Shop without any owned website presence.
Kerri’s Pickles
| Products | Facebook Followers | Revenue |
|---|---|---|
| Gourmet pickles | 112,000 | $3.5 million (2022) |
Kerri’s Pickles has scaled quickly thanks to viral sharing of its products on Facebook. Its Shop now represents 75% of total sales.
Conclusion
Facebook Shops provide a unique opportunity for businesses to establish an ecommerce presence without the need for a dedicated website. While Facebook Shops come with limitations around branding, customization and data ownership, they offer an unrivaled built-in audience.
For many businesses, starting with a Shop to validate products makes strategic sense. But as you scale, transitioning to an owned website for more control and access to customers is advised. The ideal approach is leveraging Facebook Shops in combination with owned channels.
With the right product-market fit, targeted advertising and viral promotion, it is possible to sell successfully on Facebook Shops alone. However, building marketing assets like email lists and customer data will enable sustaining growth in the long run.