What content management system is right for you?

When building a new web site many people like the ability to manage their website on their own once it has been setup. This is especially useful for websites with a lot of content that gets updated frequently. Having your website content updated frequently not only keeps your users coming back for more but it may also help your search engine rankings. This is where a content management system (CMS) comes into play. When you have your web site built you will usually have the option of including a content management system to go with it. This will allow anyone without any web design knowledge to update the web site content. If your website will not be updated frequently then you may want to consider having your web designer update your site as needed. This may be more cost effective if you don’t update often.

So now you have decided to have a content management system installed on your site but your not sure which route to go with. In this post I will try to explain some of the fundamental differences between two of the most popular open source content management systems Joomla and Wordpress. I will discuss what they can and cannot do and when you should consider a custom build content management system.

So lets get started!

An open source content manager is basically a content manager that has been developed and released to the public under an open source license agreement. This usually means anyone can download it use it and modify the source code as needed to meet their own needs. The biggest advantage of using an open source content manager is the time savings. Since the application is already made the web designer only has to spend time modifying the code to fit your needs and site design. This means significant cost savings vs building a content manager from scratch. It’s like putting snow tires on a car for winter vs buying a brand new car made specifically for the snow.

Let take a look at two of the most popular content management systems:

	WordPress (www.wordpress.org) WordPress is a great simple content manager for simple web sites! Built mainly for blog websites like this one (which uses WordPress) but can be used by almost any site as a quick and nimble content management system. If you are building a blog web site then this is definitely the content manager for you! If not WordPress still has many features that can help you manage your web site. It allows you to create content using a basic text editor and publish it to your site instantly. It allows you to create categories to sort your content and upload images, audio and other media with an easy to use interface. WordPress also features integrated link management, a search engine friendly link structure and the ability to assign nestedcategories to content. Another great thing about both WordPress and Joomla is that they offer a vast array of plugins that can expand the capabilities of both content management systems. These plugins can allow you to add functionality that is not available out of the box such as integrating adsense on your site, adding a Twitter stream etc. Depending on how knowledgeable you are about web design and development you may want to leave the installation and setup of plugins to your web designer. Now on to what WordPress should not be used for. WordPress is a great content management system, but it is not designed for eccommerce websites. If you are setting up an online store WordPress is probably not for you (niether is Joomlas for that matter). There are many other content managers designed specifically foreccommerce sites and you should use consider of those (we may discuss these at a later date). WordPress is also not recommended for community sites or sites that require memberships. If you want to have a membership site with special member only content then you may want to go with a more robust content management system like Joomla. Overview: Pro’s - Simple to install and customize (for a web designer) - Many themes available right out of the box - Very stable and reliable - Image and media capability (upload your own media easily) - Many plugins available - Supported by many third party systems Cons - Little support for community and membership based sites - Limitations on how much it can be expanded and customized - No real ecommerce support

	Joomla (www.joomla.org) Joomla is a more robust content manager. Still provides the same basic functionality as WordPress allowing you to create content using a simple interface. However Joomla has many features that set it apart from WordPress and make it the ideal content management system for those looking to build a more complex web site. Unlike like WordPress Joomla has very good membership controls to allow for member only content and different membership levels. It also support a more complex menuing system. So if you need advanced menus and sub menus then this is the content manager for you. Right out of the box Joomla supports most features any web site will need such as banner advertsing, memberships, user access control, news streams, polls and much more. As I mentioned before Joomla also supports third party plugins which can expand it’s functionality even further. Now what Joomla should not be used for. Although I do not recommend Joomla as an ecommerce system there are third party plugins that will support this. I still recommend a content manager specifically developed for eccomerce web sites. Given all the extra functionality Joomlas interface is a bit more complex than WordPress and may require a bit steeper learning curve. So if you do not need the extra functionality that Joomla provides and have no plans of ever needing it I would go with WordPress. One more thing to keep in mind for both Joomla and WordPress. Both of these content management systems are designed for a LAMP environment. This means they need PHP (a programming language widely used for web sites) and MySQL (a database program also widely used for web sites) in order to work. Before you decide on either of these make sure your web host supports PHP and MySQL and that you have a plan that includes both of those. Overview: Pro’s - If you can imagine it chances are you can create it - Great membership functionality - Many plugins available - Allows for complex menus - User access control Cons - More complicated and time consuming to setup - Interface requires a steeper learning curve - Not recommended for ecommerce
Conclusion Ultimately it comes down to your specific needs. Both of these content managers are great but choosing the wrong one may cause headaches down the road. If you have simple needs for a simple site WordPress is a great easy to use, quick to install solution. If you have a complex site or plan to expand your web site functionality down the road then Joomla is probably your best bet! One final option is a custom made content management system. If you have a highly complex site or very specific needs (ex real estate, manufacturing etc) you may want to consider a custom system. Although the cost may be significantly higher it can be made to do exactly what you need and can be expanded indefinitely. If you would like to setup a content mangement system for your web site or just need help choosing what content manager is right for you V2-Media can help!