How to choose a CMS that’s right for you

With the global recession forcing companies to revert their marketing budgets from above-the-line to below-the-line, web design and SEO institutions have become hot property. It seems that everyone wants a slice of the software design pie and with good reason. New Media is the marketing avenue of the future and ignoring your business’ online presence is tantamount to professional suicide.

By making sure that your online marketing is up to scratch you can substantially increase your company’s exposure and the more people realise this the more important the appearance and useability of their websites becomes. But how do you go about managing your site? Which content management system is right for you and your business? This is a deceptively simple question with a very intricate answer that relies on a wide array of variables.

Choosing a suitable CMS will depend on your available budget, the nature of your site, as well as your technical proficiency. The easiest way to go about it is to identify the exact nature of your requirements before you even start comparing the features of different content management systems. Here are a few questions you need to ponder before you set out into the digital wilderness to find the right product:

1.      How much control do you desire?  Depending on the nature of your project, you may want to be intimately involved in every aspect of the content management, but on the other hand you might want to delegate this responsibility to a third party. In that case, you can opt for a product that is hosted by its developers and can then be accessed by means of a browser. There are providers that will allow you to rent the service per month, which also provides a bit more flexibility. If you prefer to have the reins in hand however, it would be a better idea to invest a software system that can be installed directly onto your server.

2.      How is your business structured?  Will the site be delegated to a single person or is it going to be run by a complex system of contributors and editors? The more involved your teamwork system, the larger your system needs to be. Smaller systems can buckle under pressure and end up being more trouble than they are worth.

3.      What is your current system like? It’s all good and well to spend the time and money to get a spunky new CMS, but if it doesn’t play well with your existing computer systems you may be in for a bit of a bumpy ride. If you already have a functional Intranet or database you will want to make sure that it can be linked to your CMS, in order to ease data extraction, etc.

4.      Will you be kept in the loop? Content management systems, like all other web-based platforms, are constantly evolving and updated. Therefore it makes sense to ensure that you will be privy to new features and service as part of your buying agreement.

5.      How user-friendly are the tools? It is imperative that you invest in a product that combines user-friendly tools and flexibility. If you will be having a lot of editors and contributors on the project you will also need to consider how much time you are willing to devote to training. The tools you require for an intricate problem will of necessity be more sophisticated, but should ideally be easy to master in a short space of time.

And there you have it – these five questions should give you plenty of constructive things to consider. Take the time to weigh your options carefully, a good CMS system has the potential to make or break a project.