32. Smart, dynamic, G.S.O.H. and washes regularly
Are you happy standing still and letting users poke around you or would you rather get up and interact with them? With dynamic web pages, you can.
Don’t be frightened of databases – they’re not big and scary (anymore), they won’t hurt you and they’re not too expensive. However, database administrators are a completely different story…
Are You Dynamic?
You might think you are, but unless there is a database or two feeding information to your web server, the chances are your web site is static HTML. In principle there is nothing inherently wrong with static web pages, in the same way that there is nothing wrong with exposing yourself in public, but both will leave an unflattering image in the mind of the unsuspecting viewer.
Although alterations and improvements should never be made just to keep up with the Joneses, technology has and does move on, at a staggering rate, and your users will judge the quality of your site quite simply by how it looks and performs. In this high-tech world in which we all live, everyone is looking for the site that will put its head above the parapet, but they’ll happily shoot it down if it continues to code in HTML 2.0. Users expect, if not demand, change and progress. Using a database to drive your site will help.
What’s It All About?
Dynamic web sites are primarily those sites that offer categories of products or information and allow users to browse, search or interact online. No matter what choice the user makes, the database will throw up the nearest match/es and hopefully the user will be happy with the results. A dynamic web site is far more versatile than a static one, and ordinarily, new products or new information can be added very easily, often through an interface, which means that non-technical staff can help ‘build’ the site without fear of getting it horribly wrong and causing widespread damage – again!
Cheap? No, Not Really
A dynamic web site will come at a premium. Although the cost of web site design and building has come down significantly over the years, a dynamic web site is more difficult to create and maintain and therefore will cost more. But don’t let the additional cost prevent you from offering your users the best that you can. Go on, raise the stakes – be exciting and dynamic if you dare!
Where’s Your Tool?
Creating a dynamic web site or more accurately, adding dynamic features to your existing web site all adds to the stickiness of your site – the ability to keep users there, thinking about you or your services and making them much more likely to consume and tell their friends. For some quick wins, and depending on what will suit your site and your offering, look to add interactivity. This can be in the form of a guest book, community message board, weblog or alternating products on the homepage, which can be activated either on a rotation basis or, for the super-slick, dependent on what your user has bought or viewed in the past. Making your users feel at home is more likely to make them want to put the kettle on and their feet up on the table…
How did it go?
Q. I managed to get the quotes and put the argument forward, but as our site is not product-based, my boss wasn’t at all convinced. What else could I say to tip the balance?
A. Look to use the database as a way to manage all of your customer or subscriber details. The web site might work fine without the services of a database server fetching information, but imagine what you could do with the customer details that you have captured over the years.
Q. Sorry, I’m being thick here. What exactly would that allow us to do that we can’t do already?
A. By capturing user details in a database you can pull off stats and information almost at will. Depending on how deep you want to mine the data, you’ll be able to pull up details on past purchases, average order value, location of buyers and time of purchases, to name but a few. Absolutely invaluable for future advertising campaigns and for truly understanding your business.
Here is an idea for you…
If you run a static web site, start looking at quotes for a dynamic database-driven web site. Put the argument forward, to those responsible for setting the budget, that a dynamic site is the best way to progress. If you are already database-driven, look at adding additional features that will add to the community aspect of the site, such as a message board or a guestbook.
Defining idea…
‘Strong lives are motivated by dynamic purposes.’
Kenneth Hildebrand
Defining idea…
‘That which is static and repetitive is boring. That which is dynamic and random is confusing. In between lies art.’
John A. Locke
Defining idea…
‘Change is the constant, the signal for rebirth, the egg of the phoenix.’
Christina Baldwin