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The Content Management Systems Battle

The Content Management Systems Battle

Blogs, forums, members, accounts, shopping carts, checkout processes, video galleries and the list goes on and on. What can we do with all these features and how can we manage them all?! To make life easier, platforms, also known as Content Management Systems (CMS) have been developed to manage these features. When you are hired to develop a website you need to consider which platform will be necessary to create the essential features of the website such as those mentioned previously.

cmsbattleAs developers there are wonderful resources to use, including WordPress, DotNetNuke and Kentico. Some of these resources are completely free to use and allow a great deal of organization and management. Others cost a substantial amount, but offer a number of features that would have to be custom built for the site if it was not already included in the CMS. Notice what some developers say about WordPress:

“WordPress is emerging as a powerful CMS because of its ease of use and massive amount of online support. And best of all — it”s free! Not only are developers using WordPress for blogging, but users can actually create a full on website with ease. Advanced users can even create their own website theme with a completely customized layout and design.Because WordPress is becoming so popular, online support from other users is among the highest of any other freeware CMS.” –Jim Filbert, developer at a local website development and marketing company.

Another developer, Trevor Fitzgerald said:

“WordPress is a great CMS because it”s a win-win for the client and developer. The client is able to easily update the website on his own and the developer is able to program and customize it quickly.”

The number of plugins, the ease of overall use and the ability to create a full-fledged site, not just a blog, make WordPress a highly reputable CMS.

What are some other benefits from common CMS’s? Steve Sanchez,lead developer at a local website development and marketing company in the Metro Detroit areahad this to say about using DotNetNuke:

“If you need to run several sites on the same platform and have a small budget, DotNetNuke might be the way to go. DotNetNuke is also built to handle multiple, distinct portals, which makes it the solution casino online to many websites.”

The ability to use DotNetNuke with no licensing restrictions and the advantage of multiple portals makes DotNetNuke a viable solution for many client needs.

If you had to manage all of the features mentioned at the beginning of this post, what CMS could be used to do so easily? One that comes to mind is Kentico. Kentico has a slew of built in customizable web parts, including a shopping cart, blog, forums, and much more. With the ability to manage how everything appears on every page, Kentico is a great solution for those clients that require a heavy website with many features.

Steve Sanchez also said about Kentico:

“For sites with a lot of editors that need workflow processing and content staging, Kentico really excels.  The workflow can be segmented for different departments and roles to ensure business rules are followed before content is published to the site.”

Kentico offers a wide array of features that have a fully customizable aspect to them, which makes building websites fun and easy.

So many CMS options are available to web developers that they can have their pick of the one they wish to use. However, with so many options comes another issue; how can you decide which one to use? Check back in two weeks for another blog that gives best practices for deciding which CMS is best for your site.

About Cody Jackson
Cody Jackson is currently making his mark in the website development industry. He has a way of developing unique ideas to overcome many programming hurdles, and his fresh out of college eyes has a way of delving into the code easily. Based in Wixom, Mich., Biznet Digital is a full-service Web solutions company, focusing on business and mobile Web sites, advertising agency support and Internet marketing, including search and social media marketing.