What is a Content Management System?
A Content Management System (CMS) is a tool used to design, manage, and publish a website. There are lots of CMS tools available. From free to expensive, small to large, simple or very robust, they all allow individuals who are not coders to build websites.
Now, not that long ago, websites were created by developers and techies who had to build them directly in HTML coding. That was fine, if you had a qualified coder on staff. If not, you had to hire one. And because the site was being built as a one-off just for you, it was usually very expensive.
When Content Management Systems came along, they were a game changer. Now, just about anyone could use these programs to create and manage their own digital content with templates that made inputting data a fairly easy task.
Of course, as these platforms matured, they offered more and more variables (templates, plug-ins, add-ons of all sorts.) And that meant it was time to employ a professional and experienced web designer who could quickly and easily assemble a site for you, using a CMS. You still ended up with a custom site, but a lot of design elements were already in place for you to use. Once the site was completed, you could have someone on your staff add content.
We’ve found, though, that it’s easier for our clients if we build the site for you, and add all the initial content. That way, you have well-written, key-word rich content that you can later edit as needed. Professional web writing helps make your site more visible in search rankings, and professional designers can easily create sites that are attractive and highly functional.
Benefits of Using A CMS
1. Content Editing
Once the site is designed, someone in your business can easily be tutored on how to add, format and edit content without having to worry about design or technical elements.
2. Selective Access Permissions
You choose which of your staff members may add and edit content. By restricting access to the site, you help maintain site security.
3. Updating is Fast
Site updates are fast. Need to launch a new promo as soon as possible? Add written copy and pictures for an upcoming event? No problem. That’s easy to do. And you can have your staff do it, or let Siteguy take care of it for you.
4. SEO-Friendly
CMSs are very SEO-friendly, and at Siteguy, we take care of all your on-site SEO chores. It’s time consuming, and we know you have better things to do during the business day. We write your web copy and optimize for search engines with on-page components, and we handle the back end tasks like URL structure and keywords. We do all this for you as we build your site, and WordPress makes it fairly simple to add this information to the site.
5. We Can Custom Build a Site That Works Well and Looks Good
Sure, we could use templates, but we like to make websites unique. We charge you only for the design and content creation. If we must add extra plug-ins or modules that are specific to your site, we simply pass the cost on to you, but don’t add anything extra to the cost.
What is a plugin? A CMS does have limits: For example, you need plugins for contact forms, good picture galleries, inventory lists. There are thousands of plugins, so ultimately, your CMS has almost unlimited capabilities.
Why We Use WordPress
Now the most popular content management system worldwide, WordPress started as a blogging platform, but has evolved to fullly functional website capabilities. The available plug-ins allow for all types of sites, from simle informational sites to e-Commerce sites. WordPress has a huge community of developers, who are constantly updating existing plug-ns and creating new ones. A WordPress is both functional and visually pleasing to use.
Other CMSs
WordPress, Joomla! and Drupal account for 70% of all CMSs used on the web today. While there are at least half a dozen others, these platforms are the big players in the field.
Data gathered from some of the leading analytics platforms on the web list these popular CMS platforms in this order:
#1WordPress , noted for its ease of use and the sites it produces.
#2. Joomla! is the next most popular platform, but it is not as user friendly, and its themes are not up to the quality of WordPress.
#3. Drupal is another popular CMS, often used by large, high profit companies. There are an incredible number of features, which can make it too complicated for small business sites. And you’ll need to pay for a theme if you want your site to look its best.
#4 Magento
eCommerce Software eCommerce Platform Solutions Magento, often used for eCommerce sites.
Still need more info on how Siteguy WordPress can help you build your online presence? Call or contact us.