Select a Content Management System in 4 Hours or Less
Oct 19th, 07 | 11 remarksIf you’re not a first-timer here, you already know I love WordPress. It’s come a long way in the two years I’ve been using it. That aside, I remember how difficult it was to select a content management system when I began blogging. There’s no shortage to choose from (both open source and premium), and the task can be overwhelming. Here then, is a light-hearted approach to choosing the best CMS for your needs, without spending a lot of time doing it!
Of the multitude out there, some of the most widely used include:
I’ve tried 6/10 listed (I’m a test junkie), and spent days on research, installation, configuration, and the learning curve of each before making a final decision. If you don’t have days (or that much patience), this tutorial will spare you from a time-sink.
So where should I begin?
You could Google the term ‘CMS’, or look through any number of CMS review sites, but this is untargeted research and will produce results which are too broad. I recommend starting with your favorite web-related forum. Chances are, someone there has already asked the proverbial question of which CMS is best. I know on Sitepoint alone there are over 300 replies (and 10k+ views) to one thread about choosing a blog platform.
I don’t like forums, what else can I do?
Forums aren’t for everyone, so consider this approach - surf around to see what software your favorite blogs are using. One of the first things I noticed when I started was that SimpleBits was running Movable Type. I also used to frequent 5thirtyone, and saw it was running Wordpress. Because the guys behind these two blogs are well-known and respected, I knew they weren’t going to rely on shaky software to manage their sites, so I made note of that.
As you browse, keep track of the sites using the systems you’re interested in. Once you’ve collected a reasonable set of stats (don’t spend more than an hour), check to see which CMS popped up the most.
Sizing up the information
Based on your findings in the forums, OR the stats you’ve gathered, you’ll notice 2 or 3 platforms which stand out. Congratulations, you’ve managed to intelligently separate the wheat from the chaff. Now it’s time to visit each organization’s website and read up. Some things to look for as you move through each site:
- Is there a solid list of features? Are there screen shots? If not, pass. You don’t have time to figure out what they have to offer if they’re not going to put it right up front.
- Is there a support forum or help documentation? Don’t even bother unless they have both. Run, don’t walk, to the next site on your list. ;)
- Is the site easy to navigate? Is the language understandable? If you can’t easily browse the site or understand the info being presented, it’s safe to assume the software won’t be easy to learn either. A CMS is supposed to make your life better, not more complicated.
- Are there any plugins available? The best systems recognize that they can’t possibly serve every need. Plugins allow you to extend the functionality of the software, and mold it to fit your needs exclusively.
- Are there a variety of themes? I strongly recommend avoiding any platform that has no themes except the default, unless you’re a pioneering contributor type. The more themes available to learn from and pick apart, the easier it will be to customize one of your own.
- Are there links to other sites using the platform? This isn’t critical, but it will give you an idea of what others have done with the software in terms of design and possibly integrating plugins.
At this point you should have about 3 hours of research invested - perhaps 1 on the forums (or browsing), and 2 on company sites. Don’t spend more than 4. Choosing software is sometimes a matter of guesswork, and the point here is to move on to actually evaluating it.
By now you should have a good idea what your candidate for the first trial install is. Hopefully, your research was thorough enough that it will be the ONLY install. :) If not, you’ll have at least one fall-back to try without spending any more time on research, and you’ve spent only a fraction of the time I did on selecting a CMS! Rock on.
I also like to search for “x vs. y” and compare searches like “x sucks” against “y sucks”.
By the way x is the best CMS and y is absolutely perfect if you’re just going to blog. Although I think y might end up becoming a CMS one day. ;)
Oct 19, 07 | 5:11 pmI’ve always thought about giving EE a try, because many respected designers use it. However, at this present time, I just don’t have the cash to fork out, and WP is doing a fine job.
A word of warning Charity. It’s ‘WordPress’, not ‘Wordpress’. Not that I care, but if Lorelle finds you writing it that way, you’ll be in big trouble! ;) (joke)
Oct 19, 07 | 6:48 pmI am a CMS junkie. I have tried all of the ones you listed except for Expression Engine and Pligg. I have even tried more you didn’t mention. I always come back to WordPress.
Even though WordPress isn’t know to be a full blown CMS, it really is. With the right template, template pages and plugins you can make it do pretty much anything the other guys can. In addition, I prefer the template system better. I like being able to just upload a folder to the site, activate it, and do a few tweaks. However, as you suggested, one should definitely check out all of the options out there before settling on one.
Oct 19, 07 | 8:51 pmThanks for the correction Armen! I’m just lazy and it’s one second quicker to type it lowercase. :)
@Will - true Wordpress is not often thought of as a full CMS (and it doesn’t claim to be), but people have found ways to morph into one, and seems like it’s becoming more prevalent all the time. I wonder if the devs will note the demand and add more CMS functionality with the release of 2.5 next year. Would be cool!
Oct 20, 07 | 10:24 amCharity - great guide! I am going through the same general steps regarding shopping cart platforms. What a pain.
Wordpress is by far my favorite platform too. I have used it to develop fairly static websites - as a CMS - so clients can maintain the site themselves. I’m actually finishing up two of them this week.
Oct 20, 07 | 6:36 pmI’ll be looking forward to a post on shopping carts then Char! ;) I have no idea how to select one. I’ve worked with a small handful but none were very easy to customize or work with. I wouldn’t use them again.
I’ve also got two projects right now which are being wrapped around Wordpress. :) I think most clients really like the idea of having the freedom to change content at will.
Oct 21, 07 | 12:10 pmGood points!
Like with any other open-source trend, after a few years the cream rises to the top. The cream these days being Wordpress and Expression Engine. I don’t think those two can be touched in terms of web standards, clean separation of data and presentation, smart templating, a wide choice of plugins and a good community writing them. Difficult to say that about most other CMSs on your list, though MT is close. Joomla has potential, but is too clumsy and bloated for most developers to trick out and too complicated for end-using clients to feel comfortable with. The Joomla community’s progress on making better code and features has become stale, while WP and EE have gained huge momentum this past year.
Re: using WP as a CMS. 90% of client work for me consists of medium-sized businesses who seek a “news” (blog) feature, a calendar, maybe a thumbnails/slideshow page, and the ability to manage flat content pages. This can be whipped up with the almighty Wordpress in a matter of hours if you’re comfortable tweaking plugins and exploiting WP’s template tag system. Unlike most others on your list, WP is built on a programming framework that we designer dummies can take apart and put back together again. Some developers will swear WP is still not a “proper” CMS, but - someday it will be, and bastardizing it in the meantime is part of the fun.
I’ve also been experimenting more with EE’s template tag system. Here again, once you learn the template patterns and syntax, you can soon put together mini-applications with a few custom fields, and without core knowledge of PHP. Very powerful.
I strongly recommend avoiding any platform that has no themes except the default, unless you’re a pioneering contributor type.
I’m not sure I would dismiss a CMS because it didn’t come with pre-fab designs. Despite the sheer number of them available, I haven’t had a single client who didn’t seek an appropriate custom design for their site. If they’re serious about their business identity, none of them want a free theme (just my experience).
Oct 21, 07 | 7:36 pmVery true Darren. That bullet was aimed mostly at bloggers who may lack the skills to create a custom theme without a nudge - but you’re right in that a serious business will want a unique, branded look. ;)
Thanks for the great perspectives on Joomla and EE. I agree Joomla is too much for most clients. I didn’t spend a whole lot of time on it.
I’ve struggled a bit with getting to know EE, but haven’t given up on it as an alternative to WP if necessary. I hear it’s quite extensible and if I had to judge solely on the front-end of some of the sites using it (like veerle) it looks as though there’s not much it can’t do.
Oct 22, 07 | 1:00 pmI am loving wordpres, just upgraded to 2.3. Only thing that is driving me crazy is that most of the plugins that say they are comparable are not. Which makes things a little annoying.
Oct 25, 07 | 11:45 amI have to put in a plug for Drupal, which won this year’s Packt open source CMS awards. (Wordpress and Joomla won for specific categories, Drupal was the overall winner).
For a different perspective, we’ve written up why we’re backing Drupal, and we’ve also set up http://drupal.neemtree.com.au for those who want to take Drupal for a test drive and get a peek into using and administering Drupal.
Nov 8, 07 | 10:20 pm[...] COMPARISON - http://www.opensourcecms.com/ - http://designadaptations.com/notebook/select-a-content-management-system-in-4-hours-or-less/ - http://www.linkedin.com/answers/technology/web-development/TCH_WDD/131393-6429876 - [...]
Feb 7, 08 | 3:28 am