People frequent more into the virtual world than the real world and businesses throughout the world need to show their presence there.
To achieve this companies need not only to have websites but also SEO content that is worthwhile for the audiences’ time.
So they make use of a Content Management System (CMS) to create and share their content as well as track its performance in real-time.
What Is CMS?
CMS is a software application that manages, stores, and tracks content projects from creation to publication. It is used for creating, managing, storing as well as tracking digital content on a website.
It can be considered as the infrastructure for a website or a storage system. Simply put, it’s a software system that manages all the content of a website. This helps the businesses or users to focus more on creating better content.
Content management systems can be used by any business irrespective of their size. CMS can be used for various purposes including business content management, digital asset management, web content management, enterprise content management, or as Headless CMS.
This article however is dedicated to web content management systems and gives information on the best content management systems that businesses can use to improve their online presence.
CMS makes it easy to create, manage and publish content on the web. Besides, the best benefit of using CMS is that one could create a website from scratch without the need of using or knowing any coding language.
There are many CMS with their own specific USPs that simplify the creation and maintenance of a website. Thus there are millions of websites and almost all of them use some CMS or the other. However, creating a website on the wrong CMS platform can easily make the process quite tedious.
There are thousands of CMS available globally and their number is still growing. The growth is due to the specific features they provide which are unique to the intent and scope of the website.
For example, one CMS may work for all forms of business but there will be another CMS that is the best content management system for small businesses.
However, despite the vast numbers of CMS available, they can be generally divided into three types, open-source CMS, cloud CMS, and proprietary CMS.
Difference Between CMS and Website Builder
If a CMS can build a website then what is a website builder? It is easy to confuse one for the other but their two different software gives a similar product.
In that, a CMS seldom needs any coding to design a website and can be as easy as drag and drop boxes to design a fully-fledged website.
However, a website building software will need the user to have competent knowledge of coding and various programming languages.
That is, one is the prior is as simple as using an app while the latter will look like rocket science for the uninitiated.
The main difference between CMS and website builder is that the latter provides hosting service along with website building software while CMS is typically self-hosted.
CMS is scalable coming with a variety of plugins while website builders are limited by lack of additional support or innovation.
This can also limit the overall growth of a website. Interestingly, despite the CMS is easy on the surface, its learning curve is steep for non-technical users.
Meanwhile, website builders come with user-friendly editors that make easy work of customizing a website.
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How to Choose the Best CMS?
An ideal CMS is one that provides the necessary tools and functions for its target audience. Different customers have different needs but three common points decide which is the best content management system for websites.
It all comes down to the cost of the platform, its scalability of the variety of extensions and plugins it has or provides, and last but not the least, its ease of use.
Based on such criteria, here are the top ten best web content management systems that you can choose according to your requirement.
Best Content Management Systems for Websites
1. WordPress
WordPress CMS may be considered to be the best overall content management system. This is supported by the fact that more than one-third of all the websites on the internet are powered by WordPress.
It is the most popular content management system in the world and is trusted by millions of people globally.
WordPress is an open-source software better known for its flexibility and scalability. One can practically create any type of website from its arsenal of over 58,000 WordPress plugins. All levels of users can make use of this website, be it to create a simple blog or a complex site.
2. Joomla
Joomla is another open-source CMS and is used extensively by many websites online. It is worth noting that Joomla’s core software offers more functionality on the startup itself, unlike other CMS platforms. It has multilingual features but the initial setup can be challenging for non-technical users.
Joomla can efficiently manage a site with hundreds of sub-pages and uses 2-factor authentication to avoid break-ins.
However, the web development terminology in its control panel is not beginner-friendly. Besides, the CMS has compatibility issues with different modules, extensions, and plugins. Having said that, Joomla is best suited for professional websites managed by multiple people.
3. Drupal
Drupal is particularly suited for professional website designers. It has a flexible API architecture and supports different digital platforms.
Drupal’s built-in features are better-optimized performance and security when compared with WordPress or Joomla. A notable fact about Drupal is that compared to other CMS software, Drupal’s websites get higher web traffic.
Drupal conducts security tests regularly and therefore is less vulnerable to security threats. A site using Drupal CMS can expand its functionality through the CMS’s built-in modules.
However, it must be noted that Drupal requires coding knowledge of PHP, CSS, and HTML. Also, upgrading to a new version is a time-consuming affair.
In all, Drupal CMS is best for advanced users with great technical knowledge. The platform is useful for creating large-scale and complex websites.
4. Magento
Magento CMS is one of the best eCommerce platforms globally and is good at optimizing all types of eCommerce sites.
It chiefly focuses on security, SEO, and customization to achieve it. This is a powerful platform capable of featuring a high number of products and orders. Thus it caters to bigger online stores.
Magento is comfortable with using different languages and currencies and therefore can manage multiple stores in various locations.
Besides the CMS is gadget-friendly as well. However, one must not that the initial setup of Magento CMS is complicated and it takes extra time to customize the design and list products. Ultimately, Magento CMS is an excellent medium to a large-scale eCommerce store.
5. Wix
Traditionally, Wix is not a CMS but branded as a website builder. However, it does have components and applications that function for content management.
Wix may be considered the best website builder for beginners as it is an all-in-one solution for creating a website.
Wix does not require any coding and can create a website, edit content, and publish it on the web without requiring any coding from the user. Its ease of use can let a beginner build a Wix website in minutes.
It must be noted that although building a Wix website is free, it does have a Wix subdomain similar to WordPress.
Thus you’ll have to get a paid plan to remove the Wix branding and complete use of your website. Finally, though not a pure CMS system, it is a well-advised choice for beginners.
6. Squarespace
This is another website builder best suited for beginners. It does not need any coding and can create websites from scratch. Squarespace may be considered a beautiful CMS for beautiful designs. Thus it is a top choice for creative professionals.
Squarespace is a very good platform to show creative portfolios of creative people like photographers, musicians, designers, artists, and others.
But it is also a flexible system and can be used to create other forms of websites for different purposes or businesses like restaurants, online stores or professional services, and more. It can be used for blogging as well but it isn’t primarily designed for that purpose.
7. Shopify
This is the best CMS platform for eCommerce sites and is an all-in-one website builder. Its content management system comes with built-in payment processing to facilitate online selling.
The CMS also has additional tools like building a brand, selling on social media, selling through online marketplaces, and processing in-person sales with Shopify POS.
Shopify CMS can be used by anyone as it does not need any coding or development skills. In other words, you can build and manage eCommerce content with Shopify if you know how to navigate the web.
It is easy to manage every aspect of your products through Shopify including inventory tracking, adjusting pricing, changing the order of your products, and more.
It has a clean and uncluttered interface and can also edit and manage a blog, landing pages, and other navigation elements.
8. Magnolia CMS
This is an open-source CMS designed specifically designed to support demanding digital experiences. The platform has excellent reliability and stability since it uses Java language thus making it an enterprise-grade software.
Magnolia CMS offers great scalability for a site to grow and it is easy to edit pages and personalize content. However, it lacks support and community.
Besides, some of its features can only be used if you have experience with the Java language. In all, Magnolia CMS is great for tech products and large-scale businesses that create various platforms.
9. HubSpot CMS
This is one of the best CMS options to create a website without needing constant updates and edits.
Its user-friendly tools make the CMS beginner-friendly and make it easy to publish a website without any technical know-how. Its integrated sales and marketing tools help in boosting engagement and reach.
HubSpot CMS makes use of email and social media tools to increase engagement. It also has a dedicated team running virus scans to monitor the platform 24/7 and check for any attacks.
On the con side, it does not have direct technical support and has a very limited range of themes and plugins. In all, HubSpot CMS is a very good choice for marketers and basic websites.
10. Contentful
Contentful is a fine example of a headless CMS where the content is not attached to a web page. It instead uses an Application Programming Interface (API) to present content as data.
Hence, non-technical users may find Contentful CMS challenging since the platform has a steep learning curve.
Yet, Contentful CMs is adaptable to all digital platforms. it can be used from web browsers to mobile apps. It is also flexible with different kinds of content.
However, a user will need to have the technical knowledge to create content on different platforms. With all its ups and downs, Contentful is best suited for companies or individuals creating a custom website that incorporates other digital platforms.
Conclusion
In conclusion, there are certain factors that you need to consider while making a decision on which CMS to use. You will have to take the decision depending on the type of website, the technical skill required to use it, how customizable is it, how good is its support and does it all justifies the price.
Having read this article on the most common content management systems, you are now ready to decide which CMS suits your purpose the best.
But if your decision is still inconclusive, then get in touch with the experienced website development team of OneCity and get your dream website created exactly the way you wanted.
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