What is Content Management

Content Management software is a strong focus for this company only because it is such a popular request. The last website we created as plain static pages was over a year and a half ago.

The technology has come a long way in recent years and choosing it makes sense. If you can treat your webpages much like a word processor document, why wouldn't you want to?

A content management system will allow you to create a new page from one of a number of pre-created templates. If this sounds limiting, it is actually a good thing because a well structured website will have a consistant look and feel. The templates do come with a certain amount of built in flexibility.

It will also automate some tasks. For instance, the navigation will reflect the new page after you create it without a separate action on your part.

Most packages will let you set the date & time for a page to appear or disappear from the live site. As one example, this is used to keep your "news" section from becoming cluttered with old items.

A typical system will also include the ability to set permissions. This allows you to break up a site between multiple authors and know that each author will only have the ability to change their own section.

A higher end content management system will also include workflow. Workflow is the ability for an editor to approve the changes made by an author before they go live. The software helps with this task by notifying the editor when changes are waiting for approval, using either an icon within the workplace or email or both. If an editor rejects the changes made by an author, the software also informs the author. The best systems include "redlining". When looking at an altered page, text that has been removed is red with a strike through, and new text is in green. This allows the editor to understand what has changed very quickly.