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What is content management, and how does it affect you as a "wanna be" website owner?
It's now documented that more than 70% of people in North America turn to the internet first to find information and items and services to buy.
That being said, it seems axiomatic that anyone that's in the business of providing something to business or home consumers really needs to have their own website on the internet.
If their business isn't on line, then having a basic, well built website launched will improve the chances by 100% that an on line visitor can now find their site and could do business with them. If they have no web presence, then they cannot be found. It's a fairly simple concept, yes?
So, the first step in improving the visibility of the business is to have their own website.
And if that business doesn't have a need to update their website information frequently with pictures, descriptions, prices etc., then a basic, static website of a few pages will provide all of the web presence that business needs.
But what about the website for a business that has dynamic product; items that change regularly and for which there is a need for someone to update the website fairly often?
If a website is designed without CM (content management) then every time that site needs to be updated, it will necessitate a call to the web builder to make the changes.
Depending on your arrangements with that website builder, there may or may not be a charge for the update and certainly, there will often be a lag time between the request and when the change actually takes place.
Few website builders are sitting and waiting with nothing to do, just waiting for you to call and give them a task. :-)
For websites that require frequent change, a better option is to have the site originally designed and built with CM as part of any of the website pages that have to be updated regularly. If the CM package is properly installed, then the website owner (or their designate), not the website builder, can make the changes as and when needed.
Content management can be build into the page coding, and using a CM "backend" the website builder can provide the website owner with access to a WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) page editor that is straightforward to use, offers text and image capabilities typical of word processing software, and when the changes are complete, the website owner simply saves the edited file, and the "back end" on the server converts the changes into appropriate code for those changes to be reflected on the actual website page.
The downside of a CM enabled website is that it will likely cost a bit more up front.
The upside is, and depending on the number and frequency of changes to be made on your site, significant savings can be enjoyed by the website owner in not having (perhaps) to pay additionally each time a change on their site is made, and certainly, there should be savings in time, as when a change is required, the site owner or designate can implement that change right away.
Content Management sites cost more as there's almost always additional cost to the website builder.
On a recent CM site we built, there were over 1,000 additional files to be uploaded to the server to run the "back end" of the CM for that one site. So there's additional cost to the builder for securing the software to manage the CM, and hours more time to actually implement the coding to make the CM work for that website.
Still, though a CM website costs a bit more up front, if there's a need to change information on pages on that site frequently, requesting that pages be CM enabled up front will almost always lead to lower costs for the website owner over the long haul.
Bill Wade has parlayed a passion for computers, the internet, and digital photography into diverse activities including his own web site that discusses web site building, creating digital slideshows, crafting Ebooks and building lower cost websites for discerning clients. He can be contacted via that site: http://www.solid-gold-websites.com
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