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 What is CMS? How do I get CMS? What can I do with CMS? Does it itch? Will it make me break out in hives? Will I need
exotic medication to get rid of CMS?
If you’re new to this web platform
then this article should give you a brief rundown of the what, when,
where, why, and who of what it all means.
It's not that scary. Really! It just sounds that way.
Content Management Systems have been around the web for a few years now but to date the system has mainly been in the realm of larger corporations with fat budgets, bulging check books and a team of full time geeks that keep the wheels of CMS turning. That was then. This is now.
From the open source community (a team of individuals who collaborate for the benefit of us all) Content Management Systems have been released from the vacuum of Corporate cyber space and into the world for you and I.
CMS can come in many shapes and forms. A Blog is in essence a CMS where the author can write and post articles or daily journals to the world and then interact with the readers (via email, comments, etc).
More elaborate CMS’s can be designed to be a web site, a blog, an ecommerce shop, a journal, in fact anything and everything related to the internet.
 So, how does CMS benefit you?
Well, let’s start by looking at how a conventional web site functions.
So you find a great web designer and you both sit down and discuss the project. Web site layout, images, logos, sales copy, colours, you know, the usual stuff.
The designer goes away and a couple of weeks later (after one or two revisions) she presents you with a site that has all the bells and whistles. Great layout, enticing sales copy, it looks hot.
You tell everyone about the new site and have the web address added to your business cards and letter heads and everybody is checking it out and commenting on how great it looks.
3 months later and less people visit the site.
6 months and even less visitors.
12 months and visitors are down to a trickle.
“Well, that was a waste of resources!” you say.
But hang on a second here and let’s take a look at what’s happening. The site probably has not had an update since day one. That being the case, you have to ask yourself why anyone would need to visit a web site that has the same images, the same words, and the same information since day one.
Let me test this analogy on you:
If every day you wore the same outfit, spoke the same conversation, performed the same duties at the same time, would people find you interesting and want to interact with you? (I can hear your mind whirring away here thinking “Hey, I already know people like that!”).
Great web design is supremely important but ultimately content is king. Fresh and informative content that relates to your customers and associates is what it’s all about.
Once the web site has been crafted and deployed, the Content Management is your input that will keep visitors returning. After all, nobody knows your business like you do. Correct?
The bottom line is that CMS allows you to change the content of your site as you and your business grows. Let’s face it, product lines change, staff change, suppliers change, and a host of other variables can occur over the space of 12 months.
Another huge upside of a content driven web site is that search engines love fresh content. There are of course a number of variables that can effect a web sites search engine ranking position (SERP) but fresh content is widely recognised as being a major contributor to good rankings.
It makes sense.
If you had 2 web sites in identical industries and one site stayed static (no updates) for 12 months and the other one had fresh content added regularly, the site with the fresh content would have to have the most recent and relevant news (I can hear you groan, but we’ll discuss quality of content in another article).
Content Management Systems (or CMS Portals) are rapidly changing the landscape of how we communicate and interact on the web by giving control of the information that’s being presented directly to the author.
Used intelligently and responsibly, a CMS can potentially provide a huge benefit to your business.
Still not sure what CMS is about and how it can benefit you?
Contact me:
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Peter V
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