Social media has become an absolute must-have for any business, serving as a business card, a showcase, and a means of communication with customers and partners. In an era when most brands are actively present on social media platforms and many also have their own mobile apps, do companies still need websites? Irina Pritsker, a leading expert in design, advertising, branding, and communications with over 15 years of experience, shares her insights. Throughout her career, she has collaborated with major industry players such as the American cosmetics brand House of Sillage, Japanese watch brands Casio and Seiko, and other key international market players.
Does a Company Need a Website, and Why?
A corporate website remains the core of a brand’s digital identity, despite the dominance of social media and mobile apps. A website consolidates all channels, enhances a company’s reputation, improves brand visibility in search engines, and creates a solid foundation for growth. Social media is undoubtedly convenient—it allows for quick content distribution, audience engagement, and community building. However, it essentially serves as a showcase and traffic channel for brands. A website, on the other hand, is a full-fledged digital home. Here are several reasons why businesses still can’t do without one.
A Space for Brand Presentation. A website remains the primary and most effective tool for in-depth communication with customers, partners, and potential investors. It’s a space where a company can fully present its brand, values, products, services, and more, without the format limitations often found on social media, such as post length or video duration. An Instagram or other social media account typically helps a potential customer make initial contact with a brand, serving as an attention-grabbing point. If a user is genuinely interested in a product or service, they’ll likely click the link in the profile bio to visit the website for more details: terms, prices, product range, etc.
Full Control Over Content and Design. Your digital home can look exactly how you envision it. A website enables long-term user journey mapping, integrating e-commerce, CRM, and other critical business tools—something difficult or impossible to achieve solely through social media. A website is an ecosystem: you can add new sections, features, and integrations to meet business needs without restrictions. It can host a private portal, marketplace, academy, API service, chatbot—anything you can imagine.
Reputation and Trust. A website is a company’s “digital office.” Its presence is seen as a sign of maturity, stability, and transparency, while its absence may raise doubts about credibility. This is especially important for the B2B sector, investors, media, and new partners—they usually check the website first, not Instagram or other social platforms. A website allows brands to display official information—documents, certifications, partnerships, press releases—which builds trust.
SEO and Search Visibility. Social media is poorly indexed by search engines, meaning it doesn’t contribute to long-term brand discoverability. A corporate website is the foundation for content marketing, SEO, and link-building, ultimately driving sustainable organic traffic. A blog, case studies, and product pages help capture demand at all funnel stages—from informational to transactional.
Long-Term Capitalization. Unlike social media accounts, a website is an asset that can deliver value for years through indexed content, sales funnels, and customer databases. Brand infrastructure on a website doesn’t disappear due to algorithm changes or platform shutdowns.
Independence from Third-Party Platforms. On social media, you play by someone else’s rules: accounts can be blocked, algorithms can change unexpectedly, and access can even be restricted at a government level. A website equals digital independence—you control both the content and the platform itself.
Numbers and Case Studies
Statistics confirm that business owners still view websites as an effective marketing tool. According to a recent UK study, 78% of small businesses have websites, and 83.5% of their owners stated that their website plays a crucial role in operations. Only 14.6% believe their website isn’t highly significant, and just 1.5% said it’s rarely used. Among businesses without a website, 69% believe they need one.
Among real-world examples proving the power of a strong digital home is a series of promo websites for Casio’s watch lines, G-Shock and Edifice, which Irina oversaw as creative director. The development focused on visual storytelling, fast loading, and mobile adaptation. The sites excelled as product showcases—users actively engaged with the content, as shown by metrics like scroll depth and e-commerce CTR. Moreover, these platforms allowed the brand to highlight specific collections beyond standard online store pages or social media.
The key was creating an emotionally engaging digital experience. For G-Shock, the emphasis was on the brand’s visual energy, ties to extreme sports, and technological edge—the site became part of lifestyle communication, not just a showcase. For Edifice, the focus was on motorsports and premium positioning. These sites demonstrated how smart digital design can amplify a brand, transcend traditional product presentation, and boost recognition among target audiences.
For B2B platforms, a website can also be more than just a presence—it can be an irreplaceable communication hub. One notable example is the redesign of a corporate website for a company in energy construction and electrical equipment supply. The focus was on showcasing large-scale projects, logistics capabilities, partner networks, and EPC expertise. This boosted trust among potential clients and improved the company’s search visibility, especially for industry-specific queries.
This case also illustrates how a high-quality website enables seamless user journeys, unlike the fragmented experience on social media. The redesign involved analyzing user roles: partners, clients, tender participants, and supply specialists. Each segment got a logical path—from the homepage and case studies to conversion points (contact forms, technical briefs, certification sections).
A key solution was creating deep-expertise sections: case studies, logistics infographics, and compliance documents. This not only increased time-on-site but also strengthened trust. Adaptive navigation elements were added to help users find information faster, on both desktop and mobile.
Social Media and Apps vs. Websites
Social media is a convenient tool most businesses actively use in their marketing strategies. However, it has serious limitations for brand-building.
Firstly, it lacks full visual and conceptual autonomy. You operate within platform templates, where you don’t make the rules. Algorithms can limit reach, change display logic, or hide important posts from users’ feeds.
Secondly, there are no complex, multi-level interaction scenarios. Social media can’t guide users from discovery to conversion. It’s hard to deeply immerse users in product details, business missions, or case studies. A corporate website is the only space where a brand can fully express itself, with the right tone, messaging architecture, and calls to action. Only a website can integrate e-commerce, CRM, marketing analytics, and SEO—and, most importantly, build long-term digital ecosystems.
Today, social media fatigue is becoming increasingly noticeable. Surveys report that 32% of users feel exhausted by social media, leading to burnout and stress. Among younger audiences (18–24), 60% believe social media negatively impacts their mental health. Users are increasingly frustrated by content overload, intrusive ads, and opaque algorithms. Social platforms have become crowded spaces where valuable content gets lost in noise and entertainment streams.
Additionally, the rise of fake and unreliable information erodes trust, pushing users to seek more credible sources. Against this backdrop, brand websites are seen as official, verified channels where information is accurate, structured, and free from third-party influence. The renewed interest in websites reflects a demand for clean, focused, controlled spaces for brand-user interaction.
Mobile apps also play a key role in business today, but they complement, rather than replace, websites. Apps have undeniable strengths: they enable communication anytime, personalized notifications, news updates, and special offers. However, apps only work when users already have regular engagement with a brand—they’re useful for loyal audiences. For new customers, statistics show that people hesitate to install apps they’re unsure about or quickly delete unused ones. As of 2025, 71% of small business mobile apps fail within their first year.
Meanwhile, a website is a universal entry point—for new and loyal customers, SEO, press, and business partners. Thus, a website serves as the foundational platform, with mobile solutions as extensions within a unified ecosystem.
A Brand’s Digital Face in 2025: Key Trends
What qualities should a brand’s digital home have today to drive profitability, attract customers, and strengthen reputation? Several key trends stand out in corporate website design:
1) Minimalism and Simplicity. Companies increasingly ditch cluttered interfaces for clean, straightforward designs. This makes navigation intuitive, reducing the time users spend searching for information.
2) Responsive Design. Global internet traffic distribution by device in 2025:
– Mobile: 68.62%
– Desktop: 29.81%
– Tablets: 1.57%
Nearly 7 in 10 site visits come from mobile devices, making responsive design a necessity—not just a trend. UX/UI design prioritizes intuitive, user-friendly interfaces. High-quality design helps users navigate the site effortlessly, ensuring a maximally comfortable experience. Dark mode is particularly important: with the growing popularity of dark interfaces, more and more companies are integrating this feature into their websites. This option reduces eye strain and conserves battery life on mobile devices.
3) Personalization. Leveraging user data to create tailored experiences proves highly effective. For instance, websites can adapt content based on users’ interests and past behavior, serving them material that aligns with these established patterns.
4) Narrative UX. Where websites used to be collections of sections and menus, they now often transform into complete stories told through interfaces. This is storytelling where users don’t just click through items—they follow a meaningful narrative. As they scroll down the page, a micro-story unfolds, with each screen flowing logically from the previous one, engaging users, explaining concepts, and guiding them seamlessly.
5) Interactive Content. Maps, calculators, process visualizations—anything that simplifies complex business procedures. Today’s users don’t just want to read; they want to engage. Interactivity not only retains attention but transforms even mundane information into captivating experiences. ROI calculators, 3D factory tours, product configurators—all these tools bring companies and products closer to users, making them more relatable and understandable.
6) Technological Transparency. More companies now showcase their processes, partners, and data, fostering trust. Users may want to know how a company operates, who it collaborates with, and how it generates revenue. Open knowledge bases, public reports, and partner registries are becoming essential components of digital presence.
7) Eco-Conscious Digital. The trend of mindful web design thrives in an era of digital overload: websites that load quickly, avoid unnecessary data consumption, and don’t strain devices are now paramount. Minimalist code, compressed images, responsive design, and lightweight scripts—these are hallmarks of a responsible digital approach.
