Choose the Right CMS for Your Website

Having fresh, new, relevant content on your website is a must for businesses in today’s online environment. New relevant content improves your search engine rankings, and gives your visitors a reason to keep coming back.

The ability to update content on your own is easily achieved by having a user friendly Content Management Systems (CMS). Think of the CMS as the framework that holds together your web page’s text, images, and links in an easy to change format. It allows you to add to and alter your website content without a web designer, or programmer.

There are many choices when it comes to CMS’s. Generally speaking, there are two types of content management systems Proprietary and Open Source. Even though each system performs similar tasks they are fundamentally different. Both have their place and depending on your company’s needs one might be a better fit than the other. Let’s look at the pros and cons of each so that you and your web design team can make the right selection for your website.

Open Source CMS “Pros”

• No licensing fees, this is a big difference between the two. You do not have to spend money to own the code that powers your website.

• Freedom to switch web developers – Any company or experienced individual that works on open source CMS can help develop and update your website. Many business owners like the freedom of choice that open source provides. You can have one company build the site and if you needed to change the design or add features at a later date, you have the freedom to choose another company to make the changes. Granted, some web developers will have more experience with particular systems than others, so be sure to ask your potential website developer for their experience with your CMS before you choose another vendor.

• Freedom to switch web hosting services – With an open source CMS you have the freedom to find the optimal hosting company that fits your needs. For example a hosting company that offers low cost, no down time, high security or whatever your needs require.

• Benefit from a large group of developers using and sharing code – With the wider use and distribution of open source code, this creates a large community of developers that work on the software, patching bugs, creating modules, developing plug-ins and constantly creating better versions. Best of all you get all that benefit for free.

• Search Engine Friendly – WordPress and Drupal (both open source CMS) are search engine friendly without modifications. There are SEO plug-ins that any credited developer should have no problem installing that can increase your site’s search engine effectiveness.

Open Source CMS “Cons”

• Limited Support from the developer –With this code being created by a community of developers, there is no corporate 800 number to call when your website developer does not have the answer. With this model, developers rely on each other through online forums and educational conferences. This is rarely a problem as long as you hire an experienced web development company to create your site.

• Less Security – Since many developers are using the open source code, it may be more at risk than a proprietary CMS. Proprietary systems use unique code that is unfamiliar to other developers, so it may be harder to hack the system. More risk does not mean risky. There are many high profile websites that run open source CMS including Whitehouse.gov, Yellowpages.com and Grammys.com.

• Limited Scalability – When you get into enterprise level websites that incorporate enormous size databases, very large complex ecommerce solutions, or complex automation of business functions, open source CMS may not be the answer. You really have to look at it on a case by case basis. Yellowpages.com was able to use the open source CMS Ruby on Rails and customize it to fit a very expansive database. On the other hand, a site such as Google may be too custom and far reaching and would require a custom proprietary solution.

Proprietary CMS “Pros”

• Support from the developer – This is what the majority of the license fees pay for. Your website developer will have access to a team of people that know the code inside and out. This can be very helpful in large complex sites that need specific, or one of a kind functionality.

• Unlimited Scalability – Proprietary CMS can be scaled to fit the needs of the largest website or tailored to automate the most complex business functions. There are almost no limits to what can be created.

• Security – The code behind the CMS is proprietary and is unfamiliar to most developers making it harder to hack your site. This is not a guarantee. There are plenty of cases where proprietary CMS sites have been hacked, it can just make the process a little more difficult.

Proprietary CMS “Cons”

• Licensing Fees – Most proprietary CMS do require you to pay licensing fees for use of their code. These fees can range from a few hundred to tens of thousands depending on the source and requirements.

• Inability to change developers – With a proprietary CMS it is customary for the developer that licensed, or created the CMS to maintain the right to further develop your website. This means you cannot take the website and software to another web development company for changes or updates. This can leave you at the mercy of that company.

• Relying on the proprietary CMS developer for updates - You will be forced to rely on the company that made the CMS for ongoing support and updates. If that company goes out of business, is bought out by another company, or just reduces the importance of your particular CMS product line you could be left with an outdated website that cannot be updated.

• Inability to choose hosting provider - Most proprietary CMS developers require you to host your site on their server. Most of the time it is because proprietary CMS need special applications on the server to operate. The lack of competition usually means you will pay a higher rate for hosting.

Both open source & proprietary systems have strengths and weakness. Find a web development company that will help you analyze your current needs and future goals so you can make the right decision for your company’s website.

Do you need more assistance selecting the correct solution? We can help.