Struggling with content updates? A Web Content Management System may be the answer.

By Jenny Barthen, November 2, 2009

The Internet is changing at the speed of, well…the Internet. The latest statistics say that more data will be generated in the next two years than in all time before it. Because of that, many businesses are hoping to make their web presence easier to maintain. One possible solution is a Content Management System (CMS), sometimes more specifically a Web Content Management System (WCMS).

WCMS options range from open source solutions such as ModX to commercial software such as Sitecore. There is a solution to fit every need.

A WCMS can be beneficial when

Content editing and updating is distributed amongst many.
In large organizations, it often isn’t practical for one person to maintain an entire website. Sometimes it makes sense to break the responsibility into business units or departments. No one knows the content better than the people who work with it everyday.
Content editors are comfortable formatting and maintaining the styles set forth by the site design.
A lot of the responsibility will fall on the content editors. Strictly code-based designs tend to be maintained by programmers because of their complexity. After the initial setup a WCMS removes the programmer from the equation. A WCMS may force the design to be more simplistic to allow it to be maintained in a simplistic WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) editor.
Copy needs to be updated more frequently than your design.
Buying into a WCMS because it allows web site updates without a programmer intervention also means that the design and underlying code will not be updated unless it gets outsourced (or you have a developer on staff). If the design of the site needs to change frequently, a WCMS may not be the best solution. However, adding new pages or new content items (e.g., news articles, bulletins, updated images, etc.) that look like and fit into the already existing design are fast and easy with a WCMS.
End user experience won’t be hindered by limitations of a prebuilt system.
Every WCMS has its drawbacks. Depending on the system chosen, some functionality will be limited or maybe impossible. Do your users have specific needs? Make sure they can be met by the system that you choose to use.

Do not consider a WCMS if

You hope to save money.
Even moving forward with an open source system can be expensive. Initial development is often slower than building a custom site from scratch because the developer has to work within the confines of a prebuilt system. It may even require more specific, expensive hosting requirements. If you aren’t comfortable doing upgrades and maintanence to a system, you may have to outsource that as well. Simple upgrades for user functionality are not always necessary to install, but upgrades often come with security patches to fix vulnerabilities in the software. It is always wise to keep the system patched with the latest security fixes. Upgrades may also require updates to the underlying code.
Rapidly developed, highly customized functionality is required
Working around the limitations of a prebuilt system can hinder the development process. In addition, the content editors must learn the software and be comfortable making updates.