Three Mysterious Myths of Content Management Systems

Among the many Content Management Systems (CMS) out there right now, doing a simple search on google for "Content Management Systems" or plainly "CMS" will yield anywhere from 143,000,000 to 248,000,000 potential results. Out of this many results, you can rest assured that about 1% of these results will actually help you achieve your goal.  The challenge is not to just select the most expensive Content Management System available or even the most populer Free software. Companies and individuals looking to get their website off the ground should first do some homework.

For Example, some guide lines could include:

1. What are you really looking to do with your website?
2. Is that feature something you need or want?
3. Can I actually be able to understand how to use the system I choose?


With more and more Content Management Systems being created daily, everyone must understand that there are always things in the CMS that will always need to be tweeked. Regardless if the system is the expensive one or the most popular free one.


[A] So I can use this CMS "Out the Box" - Well, the general perception on this matter is yes. But that might not always be the case. Launching a website is not a simple task. It is never as easy as you may think it is.  That's why careful consideration should be placed when looking into purchasing a Content Management System.  Look at its Features and how a company is behind it with a strong reputation in delivering quality work.


[B] I need a CMS that manages EVERYTHING. This is probably the biggest missconception when talking about a Content Management System. There is NO CMS out there that can do this. And those that claim it, are lying. No two websites are alike. They are like snowflakes. They might look the same, navigate the same, but the reality of it is that they are not the same.  Thinking about a Content Management System in this way is dangerous. You can soon learn that a CMS cannot possibly handle this. A perfect example is wordpress. Albeit a great open source CMS, but if you notice the plethora of plugins, that should give you a clear indication that a CMS does not do "EVERTHING". Consider a CMS as a helpful software to manage content. But as an "out of the box" solution is not feasable.


[C] I need ANYONE in my company to be able to use the CMS.  Really? Every company has different people with different strenghths.  When it comes to things like features in any CMS, you will find such a variety in the way they are built that some instructions should be carefully considered when selecting individuals to add content to your website.  "All you need to do is copy and paste." NO. That might be a simple approach, but most WYSIWYG's (What You See Is What You Get) can handle such requests, but when copying information from let's say the ever popular word program, it will also copy the styles, which might in turn not mimick the style of your website itself. So since this area could be a toss up, people that will actually be using the CMS system should receive a walk-through of sorts to understand how to use the system correctly.