The Definition

A Content Management System is a website editor built directly into your website. It allows you to “log in” to your website as you would with an Email service like Hotmail or Gmail and edit the pages of your website without the need for special software or programming knowledge.  A Content Management System will also handle media like images and videos, allowing you to easily embed them into your webpages.  

So if you can write an Email you can probably use a CMS.  Obviously there is a slight learning curve but if you’re reasonably competent with computers you should have no trouble learning. 

If you’re new to Content Management Systems, Your Web Design Expert can build you a CMS driven website AND update it until you’re confident to go it alone.   Or we can update your website indefinitely – whatever suits you the best!

So what’s the downside?

Content Management Systems have limitations.  For example, if you want a specific webpage layout for a particular page it’s important to remember a CMS only allows you to edit and update content. This means you can’t change the layout of just one page because you’re locked into the layout of the template that webpage is using.

This isn’t a major problem because Content Management Systems often support multiple templates. So if you require a different layout or feature for one particular webpage, it’s just a matter of enlisting the services of a competent Web Designer and we’re only too obliging to help! 

Another important consideration is CMS driven websites are more complex than traditional websites.  They have specific server requirements and databases which must be backed-up regularly, because if you database becomes corrupt then you’ll lose all your content. But don’t worry!  We can manage your backups and determine whether your current Hosting Provider will support a CMS.

Your Web Design Expert can also host your website, so this way you be assured a Content Management System will work! 

What kinds of websites is a CMS suited for?

A Content Management System is suited for most websites you wish to update yourself.  

They are perhaps not suited to websites driven by Flash, Java Applets or third-party media.  But don’t worry as we can advise you if you’re unsure. 

Can a CMS be incorporated into my existing website?

In most cases, yes!

 Although it depends how your existing website is setup.  If you want a fully CMS driven website then your webpages may require redesigning to suit the Content Management System. 

We can also install a blog as an extension of your existing website.  This way your existing website will not be changed but you’ll have a fully functional blog.

Which Content Management System should I use?

There are dozens of Content Management Systems available and the one best suited can be a matter of personal preference.  Some are free while others require purchasing, though the non-profit software isn’t any less featured than the commercial.  Wordpress, Joomla and Drupal are amongst the most popular free CMSs, though we prefer WordPress for a number of reasons.

What is WordPress?

WordPress has emerged as one of the most popular Content Management Systems.  It began life as a simple blog editor but has now grown into a fully featured CMS, so it allows you to edit the pages of your website and create regular blog entries. 

WordPress is highly extensible which means it can be easily extended or customised to suit a particular need.   There is also a plethora of resources available to further increase its functionality.  You can quickly and easily install a plugin that gives your websites features that would otherwise take days (or even weeks) of additional programming.  

WordPress also generates a News Feed (RSS) every time a blog post is published.  So this way you can syndicate your blog’s content to other websites.  Essentially you connect your blog to your Facebook, Twitter or preferred Social Networking Website and every time you publish a new entry a link will appears for all your follwers to see! 

Your Web Design Expert can install and configure WordPress on your server and setup the most useful plugins. We can also connect your blog to your Facebook, Twitter and other Social Media accounts.

Can you design me a WordPress theme customised to suit my organisation?

Yes, we most certainly can – after all, we love WordPress! 

How much does WordPress cost?

The WordPress software is FREE and about 95% of WordPress plugins are also FREE!

However, some WordPress experts charge US$200 for WordPress installation.  We install WordPress for FREE of charge to our VIP Clients.

Otherwise, for a small fee we can install WordPress then hand it over to you when we’re done. 

What Your Web Design Expert can do for YOU!

• Build you a CMS driven website
• Incorporate a CMS into your website
• Incorporate a blog into your website
• Install and configure WordPress
• Install and configure WordPress plugins
• Design you a custom WordPress theme
• Integrate your blog with your Social Profiles

Just contact us through the form below and we’ll be only too happy to help!