Content Management Systems (CMS)

Firstly, before you embark on the process of choosing, or building a content management system, consider whether you do actually need one?

CMS can sound like an obvious solution, but we have seen many of our clients in the past make the mistake of compromising their website for the sake and belief that they needed a CMS system, damaging search engine performance and in many cases leaving websites with lots of broken links and mal-functioning navigation menus.

Other typical problems are irregular formatting and inconsistent design resulting from multiple people having editorial control over your website.

Often as a result of a complex CMS system you end up with a system that only a skilled html writer can use anyway.

In many cases it would have proven much simpler and costs effective to have us manage your website changes on your behalf, with a fixed price editorial management agreement in place. Many companies start out using a CMS then after time update the website so infrequently as to not warrant a CMS at all.

If you do opt for a CMS system, remember to invest properly in user training to help overcome these issues.

If you do need to opt for a CMS system then you typically have two choices

Off the Shelf CMS (inexpensive)   Custom Built CMS (expensive) Rigid framework in which to build your site around.   A flexible and tailored solution fitting exactly around your needs and requirements.

Off the shelf CMS

Using an Off the shelf CMS system can provide several benefits including quicker setup, access to existing user training material and often substantial cost savings over the development of a bespoke CMS solution.

However, it is not easy to find an 'Off the Shelf' solution which ticks all the boxes for client's requirements, in many circumstances we find ourselves adding to, or editing these systems so they more closely match our customer's needs.

An off the shelf CMS system is typically used for new website projects, where there is little or no legacy investment.

Examples of 'Off the Shelf' CMS system are listed below

• Mambo
• Shopify

If you have an existing website that you would like a management system for then it's often the case that the best solution is to opt for a custom CMS solution.