Static vs. Dynamic Websites

Wednesday, 05 November 2008 22:24

When you're looking into getting a website, you may end up on the other side of a coffee table from someone like me. I may say to you, "So you want to do this and this, it sounds to me like we need to build you a dynamic website, probably a Wordpress blog with some custom PHP to process your customer's product codes."

Usually about then, your head nodding stops and you say, "What???"

I can relate: I grew up on a farm in southern Idaho. I never had any interest in being a farmer, but these days it always cracks me up when I'm hanging out with my brother and dad. We'll be standing out in front of the shop with a few other workers and my dad will tell my brother something like, "Eno said he needs the pipe trailer on the the east side of Conrad's. They're going to put the solid set on the mint."

Then I'll say, "What about me? You need me to take the 4420 to the South 80 and dam-or-dike for a few hours?" That always elicits a chuckle, because they all know that I don't understand anything I just said(farmer speak.)

All funny business aside, I'm going to explain the difference between static and dynamic sites so that you have a better idea what web developers are talking about when they tell you they think you need one of these kinds of sites. I'll also explain how this should inform your purchasing decisions.

Static and Dynamic Defined

A static website is a site that does not interact with its viewers. If a designer only uses (x)Html and css programming languages, they are building static sites.

A dynamic website is a site that can change and interact with its users. If a developer uses php, sql, javascript, Ajax, and other programming languages they are building dynamic websites. It's almost guaranteed that any website of a large organization is dynamic. Web applications such as MySpace, Youtube, Google, and etc. can be considered dynamic websites.

So Which is Better?

Neither.

Okay, okay, I won't waffle, dynamic is generally better. There are situations however, where a static website is more appropriate, but if you can afford it, dynamic will provide you with more bang for your buck.

When A Static Website May Be A Better Choice

It comes down to money and the wise employment of it. As a small business owner, you need to estimate what role your website will play for your business. If it's only on the web to provide some basic information about you or your product, a static website may be the way to go.

As an example, let's pretend that that you are a barbershop owner. Most of your client's posess rudimentary internet skills and all you want is an attractive site with your contact information and directions to your business.

This is a static website, also one that is called a brochure style site (it functions the same as a brochure.) There is no reason to buy a cross swath lawn mower with four wheel drive if you plan on mowing the grass by your curb. Similarly, if your desired returns from having a site are low-- go static.

If you're buying a static site, look for talented web designers who primarily code with xHtml and css. Their sites should be attractive and their code should be semantic and error free. The price will vary with the talent and the absolute low end will probably start around $200.

When A Dynamic Website May Be A Better Choice

Action. Men want it, women want their men to be, "of it." If you want your website to do, and just not be, you're looking at building a dynamic website. This runs the gamut of what is called, "client side," and, "server side," scripting. Applications that are dynamic and employ these scripts are: blogs, shopping carts, wikis, content management systems, and more. Dynamic sites generally employ some form of processing and storage system to manage content. (For example: PHP scripts and a MySql database.)

The reasons you may want to invest your money in a dynamic site are varied and many. Generally they can be grouped into one statement: you require more from your website.

Let's take our previous example of a barber shop and modify it. Let's say that it's a hair salon and the first of its kind: a cyber salon. The owner of the salon has a modest goal: they want to have no cash register and no receptionist in the store. They want customers to be able to set appointments with hair stylists online and to have the hair stylists' cost debited to the customer's account the day of the appointment. While, "checking out," online customers will be presented with products that match the service they requested. The website will take the owners cut from the final purchase and credit the rest to the hair stylist (pay is immediate, with an electronic paper trail, no fuss, no muss).

This is a dynamic site written in bold: our cross swath four wheel drive lawnmower.

More realistically for a small business owner, dynamic sites generally provide small but far reaching advantages. For example, a dynamic site might allow you to recieve visitors email addresses so that you can market to them with a newsletter. A dynamic site might utilize a form that narrows down the employee a client needs to contact to handle a problem with a product. It might be a site that allows the fans of a small business's service to form a community via a forum.

Dynamic sites will enhance both a company's image and its service and, because of this, require more work at a higher price. This doesn't mean that it's out of price range for a small business, just that it will come at a higher cost than a static site (although it's probably safe to assume that my cyber salon is out of range of most businesses).

If you're looking to buy a dynamic site, look for web developers who build with open source applications (Joomla!, Drupal, Wordpress, Zencart, Magento, MediaWiki, and etc.) These all will cut down on development costs. If you're seeking a completely custom solution, you can expect to pay more. Generally, it's wiser for a small business to use an application, like the ones listed above, and hire a web developer that can get the application to function how they want it to function (i.e. you're not paying them to re-invent the wheel.) As a rule, purchasing a blog should not be much more than purchasing a static site. Other kinds of dynamic sites will be higher: bare bones bids starting around $300 and e-commerce shopping carts going into the thousands of dollars.