Content Management Systems (CMS)

Content Management Systems (CMS) are web-based applications that allow those without coding knowledge, to manage their website. Technically speaking, most commonly they present a user interface to allow people to add, remove and edit data in a database. That data is then inserted in pre-defined regions of a website, in real-time upon saving.

CMS: Flexible Functionality, Powerful Features

CMSs offer much more than just easy website management, they also open up a vast array of possibilities. Anyone who's ever custom queried a database will know how powerful a tool this can be. This ability to select all kinds of related data, allows websites to offer all kinds of additional features and functions such as:

• Blogs/News Systems
• E-commerce
• Event Management and Booking Facilities
• Forums and Social Networks
• E-learning
• Membership Systems
• Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
• Advanced Search and Content Filtering

Choosing a CMS

There are hundreds of CMSs to choose from and many are 'open source' and free to use. Which you choose will in large part, be based on your specific requirements. Again, this is why planning is so important, as this is when you establish what your requirements will likely be.

However, beyond it being the best fit for your needs, there are some more general things to consider when choosing a CMS. These might be:

• Is it being widely used?
• Is it recommended by others?
• Is it stable and secure?
• Is it being actively developed and updated?
• Is it relatively easy to use?
• Is there an active help and support system available?
• Is there good documentation on how to set-up and use?
• Does it use widely understood and commonly used technologies?
• Is it well suited should you require additional, more complex features in the future?