In today's marketplace, both online and off, you must have a website. Regardless of whether your business model even needs an online presence, you should have one. It doesn't necessarily have to be an expansive website, and I would argue it doesn't have to be the prettiest website (though it should).
But something should be there. When somebody searches for your company on Google, there's going to be websites in those search results.
And at least one of them had better be yours.
Even Bad Is Better Than None
Websites come in all sorts of flavors. Big ones, small ones. Highly functional and in-depth ones, and single basic pages. Straight HTML ones, dynamic server-side-language (SSL) ones. Informational, e-commerce. And so much more.
Beyond the demands of your business model, all that matters is that one exists, for your company, and that you are in charge of it. It could be literally nothing more than a blank white page with your company's name, address, email, and phone number on it, but it must exist!
Granted, such a lackluster website would be tantamount to useless, but at least it's done one thing...
If someone Googles your business name, that website, in all its (not)glory, will appear. If someone hears of your business, they're very likely to search for it online to learn more. If they don't find your website there, then they will look elsewhere. And that's scary.
Why? Because at this point whatever they learn about your company will be information out of your control. If someone can't hear it from the horse's mouth, then they'll hear it from the horse's friends, and possibly also enemies.
Every review on Yelp, for good or ill, is now the sole source of information about your company. You will now be dependent on some Facebook Fan page for conveying your company's vital information: like business hours, services, contact info, etc. And if any of these third-parties are incorrect in any of that information, then your once-potential customer has now been led astray.
A Humble Shingle Is Still A Home
A website should fulfill a purpose. It is, ultimately, a marketing tool. And as part of that function it must exist so that people who wish to find you can find something. And that something lies within your direct capability to edit and change as necessary. To let customers know of your new address, new phone number, new services, etc. To let customers know your company even exists.
A basic, single page website may not be much. It's essentially akin to hanging a shingle, letting people know that your business is "over that way" even if it's not fully representing your company. But that shingle is all-important, because it'll be swinging where people are looking: online. And if it's not there, within sight, then you will be out of mind.
Every company must have a website. It is as vital as having a business license. Or even a business name. It secures your own brand and gives you an outlet, even to a simple degree, of presenting yourself. Even if all those terrible Yelp reviews are totally justified, you should at least have some sort of counter-picture to present. Even if you have a company Facebook Page, that's not enough. It still needs to lead back to a standalone website; there must be a domain name, a URL, that people can bookmark. A place where customers can return to if they need to double-check your open hours.
Yes, customer reviews will always exist. And Facebook doesn't appear to be crashing offline anytime soon. Yes, you could in theory squeak by without your own website and rely on these other, third-party sites.
But you can set up a simple Wordpress.com blog/site for free, and the cost of buying your own domain through them is less than a extra-large pizza. That alone is enough, just barely, but enough. Because it'll be your shingle, and it'll be your website that people will see when they Google your name.
And that alone makes it a basic requirement. And it should be a mandatory one.
Would you take a company seriously if they didn't have a website? Voice your thoughts in the comments below.