Do I need a website if my business has Instagram?

They do different jobs. Instagram gets you discovered by followers; a website makes you findable on Google by strangers searching for your service right now, answers customer questions 24/7, and is the only online channel you own. Most established NZ businesses need both, social to feed the funnel, a website to convert it.

When is social media alone enough for a business?

If you're a side-hustle selling to friends-of-friends, have a full client list, or are still testing an idea, you don't need a website yet. Revisit once you're turning people away or want strangers to find and trust you.

Is a website worth the cost for a business?

If your average job is worth $499 and a website brings one extra customer a month, that's $6,000 a year from a one-off cost of about $1,000–$3,000. A sharp one-page site with clear services, proof, and one obvious contact button outperforms a bloated site every time.

Guides · NZ Business

"I've got Instagram, do I really need a website?"

By Tuscan Oguz, Vela Studio, Auckland · July 2026 · 4 min read

Fair question. Instagram is free, you already know how it works, and your customers are on it. So is a website just an expensive box-ticking exercise? Here's the honest answer, including the cases where social media genuinely is enough.

When Instagram alone is actually fine

If you're a side-hustle baker selling to friends-of-friends, a personal trainer with a full client list, or testing an idea before committing, you don't need a website yet. Anyone who tells you otherwise is selling you one. Save the money, keep posting, and revisit when you're turning people away.

When it starts costing you real money

You can't be found by strangers. Instagram shows you to followers. Google shows you to people who need you right now, "plumber henderson", "cake maker north shore", "physio near me". No website means you're invisible for every one of those searches, and your competitor isn't.
You look like a hobby. Rightly or wrongly, buyers checking a $2,000+ purchase look for a website before they call. No site reads as "not established". For trades, clinics, and professional services, that first impression decides who gets the enquiry.
You're renting your audience. One algorithm change, one hacked account, one ban-by-mistake, and your entire business presence is gone. It happens to NZ businesses every week. Your website is the only channel you own.
You can't answer the boring questions. Prices, hours, services, location, FAQs, buried across 400 posts on Instagram, one click away on a website. Every question a customer can't answer alone is a DM you have to handle or a sale you lose after hours.

The simple maths: if your average job is worth $499 and a website brings you just one extra customer a month, that's $6,000 a year, from a one-off cost of about $1,000–$3,000. It's not a cost. It's the cheapest employee you'll ever hire, and it works 24/7.

The right setup for most NZ businesses

It's not Instagram or a website, they do different jobs. The setup that works: Instagram/TikTok to get discovered and stay familiar → website to look credible, answer questions, and capture the enquiry → Google Business Profile so locals find you on Maps. Social feeds the funnel; the website converts it.

You don't need ten pages. A sharp one-page site, what you do, who for, proof, prices or "from" pricing, and one obvious contact button, outperforms a bloated site every time. That's a $1,000 build, not a $10,000 one. (Full pricing breakdown: how much a website costs in NZ.)

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