By Rory Lorbach,Web Development Supervisor
Deciding On The Best Tools To Manage Content On Your Website
When you’re working with an agency on a new website, one of the foundational decisions you will discuss is choosing a content management system (CMS). We always get lots of questions about it, the first one being:
What is a content management system and how did they come to be?
A content management system (CMS) is a software application that helps users create, edit, manage, and publish website content without needing to have technical knowledge. CMSs also offer user-friendly interfaces for interacting with websites.
Content Management Systems were developed based on the need to allow non-web developers to add content to websites easily. Typical ongoing web needs include adding/editing blog posts, updating staff listings, adding new products or services, etc. Providing this capability to a larger pool of users, with some training, reduces the cost of ongoing updates and content changes.
Providing web update capabilities to a larger pool of users—with some training—reduces the cost of ongoing updates and content changes.
Depending on who you entrust to make updates—and the nature of those updates—you can customize user roles for specific editing capabilities. For example, if you want to allow an intern to write blog posts but nothing else, you can set specific permissions within the CMS to allow only editing privileges to those pages.
You’ll still need web development knowledge—or an agency with web developers—to initially build a website, but a CMS allows you to update content afterward with no need to learn a coding language.
Do I need a content management system?
If you have a website that needs regular or even infrequent updates and you don’t want to learn a coding language, you will definitely want to have a CMS. CMSs make managing website content easier for users without technical knowledge. It is also more cost-efficient.
A CMS also provides a user-friendly interface for managing a website, with custom out-of-the-box functionality and design options via extensions and add-ons, data preservation, organization, and help and support options.
No matter what CMS you choose, there will be some level of maintenance for the website. First, there is a core or CMS that will require periodic version updates to keep the site current and ahead of known security threats. Second, there are plugins that can save you time and energy when building the site, but those also need to be updated for security reasons and to stay current/synced with the CMS itself.
What are some of the best choices as it pertains to content management?
WordPress, HubSpot, Joomla, Drupal, Wix, and SquareSpace are only a few of many different kinds of CMSs that are available. While the purpose of each of these platforms is to create a website, each CMS comes with its own pros and cons. It’s important to take into consideration price, ease of use, design and functionality options, extensions and add-on options, and help and support options before picking out a CMS.
See an in-depth comparison here.
What does EPIC use and why?
We primarily use WordPress at EPIC. WordPress is a free and open-source CMS, meaning WordPress’s source code is made available for use and modification for free. For developers, open source is advantageous because it enables us to create our own solutions, solve problems in multiple ways, and projects typically have a lower upfront cost.
Open source code also fosters active and supportive community spaces, of which WordPress is a part of. From StackOverflow to r/WordPress to WordPress’s very own forums, it’s easy to find users who can help you solve a problem–and chances are you’re not the first person who has experienced the issue.
We primarily use WordPress at EPIC because it’s open-source, which enables us to create our own solutions, solve problems in multiple ways, and lower costs.
WordPress is highly customizable, scalable, and great for both website beginners and developers alike. WordPress offers tons of options for both design and functionality customization, from themes to plugins and add-ons.
The WordPress core is also frequently updated, which is great for security and stability, and WordPress developers are constantly adding new features. WordPress’s number one security risk comes from using outdated plugins and themes. If you don’t keep your plugins up to date, or plugin authors don’t release a patch fast enough, it will be much easier for hackers to attack your site.
How does EPIC mitigate security risks?
We recommend using as few plugins as you possibly can, and we keep the ones you are using up to date. We also ensure the plugins we use are highly rated, supported, and currently receiving patches. Sometimes we’re required to use premium-level plugins to receive all the benefits needed, but we generally try to maximize free plugins as much as possible to achieve our goals. We also recommend making regular site backups, and leveraging other tools and plugins that mitigate potential security risks and site attacks.
