So you want to build a website?! A Content Management System or CMS (like Joomla or WordPress) makes it much easier for you to create, edit and publish your content online. A good CMS allows non-technical authors and editors to easily and quickly publish their web pages. Not all users have the same comfort level with technology, but the basic CMS functions of writing and publishing contents, and the more advanced ones of adding media are usually easy for everyone to grasp. In fact, anyone who can use word-processing software can use a CMS for the basic functions.
When using a CMS, the website can be easily changed because CMS uses templates. Once the template is changed to update the colors, design, or navigational structure, all of the site's pages will be updated. A separation is maintained between a website’s content (your stuff), its structure and its visual design. Need to change something on your site? Without a CMS that could mean having to search through hundreds of pages, making changes on each one. With a CMS, the underlying architecture is the same for all pages so you can make maintenance changes, update the CMS software and add functionality without breaking the site. In fact, with the right CMS, it may keep itself up to date automatically.
Security is an important issue – for all companies. A CMS can facilitate better content security. It allows you to control who is authorized to publish to the website, and who is allowed to see what contents; the security functionality is built in. There is a complete access manager in most CMS so you can choose which pages you want to be public and which ones should be restricted to certain visitors or users.
Content Management System reduces time-to-publish, allowing you to get your content online faster. The quicker you get key content published, the more value it creates. You can make efficient updates and modifications at any time and from anywhere when using a web-based CMS. Content management is not just about publishing content but about being able to remove it when it’s out of date. With a CMS this is as simple as unpublishing the old pages – all menus and links update automatically, so that your customers continue to have a clean experience of a refreshed site. Joomla and Wordpress even allow you to schedule your content so that you can write an article or an offer today and schedule it to appear when it becomes relevant.
Content Management software helps to develop SEO (search engine optimization) friendly websites. And a good CMS includes the SEO functionality as part of its structure. A CMS allows you to make changes to your site in real time, and these changes will be reflected in your search engine rankings.
Most modern CMS automatically create a version of your website that is also optimized for the display on mobile devices, helping to access this rapidly growing market without the need to recreate your pages.
Finally, whether you're a retailer with an on-line catalog, a small business owner looking to grow, a writer looking for exposure, or any business or organization seeking to maximize chances for success, a CMS opens up new ways to communicate with your audience. Especially as e-mail systems become more and more clogged with useless junk mail, your customer can rely on your up-to-date contents and get their useful information directly from you, and communicate with you through your website.
Want to learn more? Need help deciding on the right CMS for your firm?