A Guide to Choosing CMS Platform That Suits Your Business Needs
Content Management Systems have come, and changed the entire Internet landscape. They have not only made designing and maintaining websites easy but also the sites more engaging and interesting. The biggest USP of this technology is the fact that it offers site owners complete control over the website unlike in the past. Once a CMS development company has built the site, you can easily manage the design and content in a code-free ecosystem. Before doing so you need to choose a CMS platform that suits your business needs and here is a short and crisp guide into making the perfect choice.
Know What You Need
As someone said, finding the right CMS is equivalent to finding the right spouse in life. Every individual is good, but you don’t share the same wavelength with everyone! So it’s important for you to know what you need and for that you must start by making a checklist of what all features & functionalities you expect from a CMS and what are your priorities. For instance, if ease-of-use is your top priority, you need to go with WordPress, but if you are looking to manage multiple internet properties Drupal and Joomla would be better choices. Also, there are little-known CMS tools that cater to niche business demands. If the popular ones don’t offer what your business needs, you need to go deep down into the market and opt for such solutions.
Core Functionality
What is the core functionality of the CMS? If you want to haul goods you should buy a truck not a luxury car. While most Content Management Systems are multi-functional you need to always look at their core functionality. Every CMS tool has evolved from its core functionality and to be honest it best where its roots are. For instance if you want to merely create a blog, WordPress would fit your bill perfectly as it emerged as a blogging platform, while for an e-commerce site Magento or PrestaShop would be a better pick. These are dedicated e-commerce platforms and would help you get the best out of the platform. Joomla on the other hand is a go-between which can be used to manage blogs and also offers you awesome e-commerce integration features.
Mobile Responsive
Chances are that you are reading this article on a mobile like more that 50% of the users who have switched to smartphones and tablets for Internet browsing. In less than 5 years, mobile traffic has increased from below 10% to over 50% of total traffic. A mobile responsive website has become the basic necessity these days. While all CMS platforms allow you to build mobile-responsive websites WordPress surely holds the edge over others. If you are planning to use free or premium themes, you would find the largest choice of responsive themes for WordPress. This really makes the task just a shade easy for you.
Scalability
Web development isn’t a project; it’s a process where you build a website brick by brick. To attract users and avoid your web property from appearing stale, you would need to regularly make design changes and add new security features and functionality to the site. This is where Drupal wins over WordPress and Joomla as it is enterprise-ready and can be scaled up more easily. This is the reason some of the most complex business websites in the world are powered by Drupal. Talking on the same lines Magento would be a better platform than PrestaShop for an online store if you are considering scalability.
Security
This is something that you can’t take lightly as the attacks on digital assets have increased with more and more businesses digitizing their work process and relying on websites to interact with the customers. Every new version of CMS tool comes with stronger security features, but if we are to come to a verdict Drupal surely holds the edge over WordPress. This is the reason mega businesses around the world rely on this CMS for their website. This however isn’t to suggest that WordPress and Joomla lack security features.
User Interaction
Gone are the days when businesses would create a website and users would consume what was served to them. Today it’s a two-way traffic where the users exercise enough power to be choosy about the sites and services they use. Chat Tools, Social Media, VoIP etc. have allowed users to communicate and interact with businesses in real-time. While you choose a CMS always keep user-interaction as one of your top priorities. Take look at the tools and plugins available in different ecosystems that improve customer interaction and choose one that offers you and your customers the best interactive platform.
The choice of the Content Management System is just the first step to creating a strong presence on the Internet. You need to choose an agency for CMS customization service that helps you derive the best out of the CMS solutions. At Semaphore Software, we have handled hundreds of projects across industries and specialize in all the leading CMS tools. Write to us at info@semaphore-software.com and we shall invent new opportunities for your business.
