CMS stands for Content Management System. It is computer software that is used for managing the creation as well as modification of the digital content. They are typically used for web content management or WCM and enterprise content management or ECM. ECM is known for supporting multiple users in a collaborative environment by merging digital asset management, document management, and record retention.
What is CMS?
On the other hand, WCM is a collaborative authorization for websites and also includes text, photos, audio, video, maps, embed graphics, and program code that displays content and interacts with the user. ECM predominantly includes WCM function. CMS is a web template for creating your own website.
Structure of CMS
A CMS generally has two major components namely- a Content Management Application or CMA which acts as a front-end user interface that allows the user to add or modify or remove contents from a website without any webmaster's intervention, even with limited expertise. And the other component is a Content Delivery Application or CDA which is known for compiling the content and updating the website.
What are the Installation Types of CMS?
There are majorly two types of CMS installation which includes on-premises and cloud-based.
-
On-premises CMS installation implies that the software can be installed on the server. This proposal was generally taken by the businesses who wanted flexibility in their setup. The well-known CMS system that can be installed on the premises, are- Drupal, Wordpress.org, ModX, Joomla and many more.
-
The cloud-based CMS is put on the vendor environment. With this proposal, the CMS software can not be altered for the customer. Best examples of this include- Wordpress.com, SquareSpace, Wix, etc.
Why do You Need CMS?
Common Features of CMS
The main features of CMS are- search and retrieval, indexing, revision control and management, format management, etc. But its features may vary on the basis of system application but typically includes-
-
Format management smoothens the turning of scanned paper documents as well as legacy electronic documents into PDF or HTML documents.
-
Intuitive indexing- Search and retrieval features index all the data for easy access via search functions, allowing the users to search by attributes like keywords, publication or author.
-
Revision- This feature allows the content to get updated and edited after an initial publication. Revision control is also known for tracking any changes which are made to the files by individuals.
-
Publishing- This functionality allows the individuals to use a template or a series of templates that are approved by the organization, wizards or other tools for creating or modifying content.
There are certain well-known additional features of CMS
-
Integrated and online help which includes discussion boards.
-
SEO friendly Uniform Resource Locators
-
Permission systems that are group-based
-
Fully customizable templates and template support
-
Easy versioning procedures and wizard-based installation
-
Admin panel which has more than one language support
-
Content hierarchy having unlimited size and depth
-
Minimum server requirements
Other Types of CMS
Digital asset management systems are another type of Content Management System, which manages content with the clearly identified author or ownership like documents, pictures, movies, scientific data and phone numbers. Companies also use CMS for storing, revising, controlling, and publishing the documentation.
Another type of CMS is Component Content Management Systems or CCMS that manages the content at a moderate level instead of articles or pages. CCMS are usually used in technical communication where several publications reuse the same content.
What are the Advantages of a Content Management System?
-
The main benefit of a CMS is its collaborative nature through which multiple users may log on and also contribute, edit or schedule content that is to be published. Since the interface is generally browser-based, CMS may be accessed from anywhere by more than one users.
-
The second major benefit of a CMS is that it allows non-technical people to easily create or manage their own web content who do not even know the programming languages. The WYSIWYG editors of a content management platform offer users the feature of entering text and uploading images without any need to know HTML or CSS.
-
When a company is using a CMS for publishing its pages, it reduces its dependence on the front-end engineers for making changes to the websites and making it easier and quicker to publish new content.
How to Choose a CMS?
-
Before selecting a content management system, it is recommended to evaluate the information management practices of your company and the overall business goals related to the publishing of content.
-
You will be required to first make a list of the business problems which you are trying to solve or any particular requirements that you may have. This will be helping you in choosing the right content management system which supports your business needs instead of the most famous or the well-liked ones.
-
CMS comes in all sizes and shapes each having its own set of benefits and features. Some of them are ideally suited specifically for blogging while others may be tailored to the e-commerce sites having features for accounting and pricing functionality.
Conclusion
Some of the content management system platforms, specifically Drupal and WordPress, comes with a very large developer community. The benefit of a sizable community is the amount of documentation and online help which you will find on most ways of customization. In case SEO is important for your company, you will surely need a CMS that would automatically handle the basic on-page optimization tasks like URLs, title tags, alt tags on the images and sound internal linking structure.
