What is content management?
Content management is a method of controlling content on a website from within a database. This allows content to be separated from the HTML code that makes up web pages altogether, this in turn allows you to change the design without editing content and allows you to reuse content in multiple forms without the need for duplication.
Why is that any good?
One of the most obvious benefits of content management is that it allows people who have no knowledge of building websites to update content on their website themselves. This is usually done by typing your content directly onto your website, or via a ‘back end’ administration section using a familar interface, as would be seen in Microsoft Word. Text, images and even video can be easily uploaded to a content management system and displayed on your website by a site editor without any need to learn any of the complicated languages that make up the structure of web pages.
Other Benefits to content management
A core feature of content management is the ability to manage multiple versions of content as it evolves and continues to be edited. Administrators, authors and editors often need to restore older versions of edited content due to mistakes in content edits by fellow editors, this allows content to be recovered on a website without the need to rewrite. Another important feature of content management is the ability of different levels of permissions and ‘roles’ for people who can edit the content. Typically this might consist of an author who can create content but not publish it, and editor who can edit and review an author’s content and a publisher, or administrator who can approve and publish live on the website the final content.
Examples of Content Management Systems
Content management systems vary widely in their levels of complication and price. There are numerous content management systems available that are completely free to download and user, these are called open source. Examples of these are:
– https://www.drupal.org
– https://wordpress.org/
Other content management systems are built and owned by web companies and they will charge a license fee for setting up and using their content management system. Both types offer the ability to develop custom features within the CMS that re specific to the needs of your company.
Need a website CMS?
Here at stickee we develop both our own Content Management Systems and use Open Source systems depending on your requirements. We have written a whole host of addition modules and module packs, that are add on’s that perform specific functions such as ecommerce, for open source Content management systems such a Drupal. Please get in touch if we can be of help.
