Social media is a great way to connect with friends and customers. Websites like facebook make it easy to post pictures and share status updates. Being on the various social networks is a great addition to any entertainer’s online identity, but should NOT replace the need to have a website.

I have heard several entertainers who have said that they don’t need a website because they have a fan page on FaceBook. I totally disagree. I think that a website is a MUST for any entertainer who hopes to reach potential customers. Even if you are on other gig websites, a website is still important.

There are different reasons why an entertainer may feel they don’t need or want a website. Some think it is too expensive. Others think they wouldn’t know how to maintain and update it. And others feel that as long as they have something on the Internet, it is good enough.

One reason why I feel that a social media account is not enough is due to the fact that you cannot control what they may change in the future. There is the saying, “Never put all your eggs in one basket.” Every few months, FaceBook changes something about how it works. If the only place your customers can find you is via your fan page on FaceBook, what happens if FaceBook changes the rules and decides to start charging people to keep their fan pages? They already limit who sees updates to the few people who have interacted with the page recently unless you pay to boost your reach. Having a website protects you from loosing contact with your customers or having to reprint all of your business cards if they change the URL.

A website does not need to be expensive of complicated. You can register a custom domain name for about $10/year and find hosting packages for less than $10/month. Is your business worth the $150/year investment in having a website? You can pay a few hundred dollars to have someone help you create the website or you can learn how to create and maintain it yourself. If you are able to send email, upload pictures to facebook, and surf the web, you likely have the basic skills needed to figure out how to run your own website.