If you run a food truck in Wisconsin, Facebook is probably where your regulars find you. So do you really need a food truck website too? Yes. Not a big, expensive one. A clean, one-page website that tells people where you are today, what you're serving, and how to book you for an event.
I'm Matt Denecke. I build websites for local businesses out of Elkhorn, Wisconsin, across Southeast Wisconsin and northern Illinois, and this is what I tell every food truck owner I talk to.
Do food trucks need a website if they have Facebook?
Facebook is great for getting the word out. The problem is finding the one thing a hungry customer needs: where you are today.
Even someone who knows your name and pulls up your page has to scroll through posts to figure out which one is current. Is that Saturday post for this Saturday or last? Did rain move you? That's where you lose people.
The customer who doesn't know your name yet won't find you at all. They search "food truck" plus their town on Google, and Facebook posts don't show up there. Plenty of people aren't on Facebook in the first place.
A website puts today's stop, your menu and how to book you in the same spot every time. Anyone can open it, Facebook account or not.
Can customers find your food truck on Google?
Try this right now. Open Google and type in your truck's name, or "food truck" plus your town. Do you show up? If you don't, that's the gap a website fills.
When someone is hungry, they search. If you don't come up, the truck that does gets the sale. A website built with real structure is something Google can actually read, and that's how you start showing up when people search for food trucks near them.
Why your Google reviews belong on your website
Here's my own habit: if I'm looking for something and the business has no website showing what they offer, I usually pass. Then I go look at their Google reviews.
That's why every site we build has your Google reviews embedded right on the page. Visitors see what real customers say without leaving your site.
What should a food truck website include?
One page, everything up front:
- Where you'll be today and this week
- Your menu
- A catering and event request form
- Your Google reviews
- How to reach you
That's our Starter plan. Simple, clean and to the point. Keeping it focused is what keeps the price low.
Catering: the customers who plan ahead
Weddings, graduation parties and company picnics book food trucks ahead of time, and the people planning them search Google for food truck catering in their town. They want to see your menu, how far you travel and how to ask about a date.
A Facebook page makes them send a message and wait. A website with a catering request form lets them send the date, the town and the head count all at once, so you can answer it between rushes.
Can I build a food truck website myself on Wix or GoDaddy?
You can. But most do-it-yourself sites I see have the same problems. Information is scattered all over the place, it's hard to find anything, and there's no real structure. They don't look clean or modern, and they don't work well on phones, which is exactly where your customers are when they're looking for lunch.
That messy structure hurts you on Google too. If search engines can't read your site, it won't help people find you.
How hard is it to keep a food truck website updated?
Not hard. Every site comes with our editor. Log in, change your text, swap a photo, add a button, hit save. The layout is locked, so you can't break anything.
Don't want to touch it at all? Add our Care Plan and we make the updates for you.
How much does a food truck website cost?
Most food truck owners put every dollar back into the truck. I get it. I don't think a business should have to pay a big price for a website, so I don't charge one.
Food truck websites start at $125. You can also pay monthly with nothing down, and you own your site once it's paid off. Current plans and pricing are on our web design page.
How to get your food truck website
- Fill out the free mockup request with a little information about your truck.
- I build you a concept, using your Facebook page and whatever else is out there about your business.
- You review it and we make your revisions.
- We go live.
The build itself can be done in a day or two. From there, you set the pace: take the time you need to look it over, and we go live once you're happy with it.
Not a food truck? Read Do I Need a Website If I Have a Facebook Page?
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a website if my food truck is on Facebook and Instagram?
Yes. People who know your name still have to scroll your posts to find today's stop, and people who don't know it search Google, where Facebook posts don't show up. A website keeps your schedule, menu and catering info in one place anyone can find.
How much does a food truck website cost?
Websites start at $125. See our web design page for current plans, monthly options and hosting.
How long does it take to build?
The build can be done in a day or two once we have your information and your approval.
Can I update my schedule and menu myself?
Yes. Every site includes an editor for your text, photos and buttons. Or we do it for you on our Care Plan.
Do I own my website?
Yes. You own your site files once it's paid off.