Choosing the correct CMS is important to creating a website that is both easy and fun to work with and that will last over time.
What is a CMS?
A CMS (Content Management System) is a system where you create, manage and publish digital content, usually via a web browser. With a CMS, users without technical skills can easily create and publish content on the website.
It is important to spend time choosing the right CMS because it can affect the user experience for both editors and end users. A good CMS should be user-friendly, fun to work with, flexible and secure, and have continuous support and updates.
Choosing a CMS that lasts over time is also important, as changing CMSs in the future can be costly and time-consuming. Therefore, one should evaluate and compare different CMSs and choose one that suits one's needs and that has a stable and long-term development.
Choice of CMS
When choosing a CMS, it is important to consider several factors to find a platform that fits one's specific needs and goals. Here are some important factors to consider when choosing a CMS:
Ease of use
A CMS should have a simple and intuitive user experience. It should be easy to learn and use, so editors can focus on creating and publishing content.
Flexibility
Functionality must be adaptable to specific needs. Everything from changing to a custom look or integrate with other tools and services.
Security
A CMS should have high security standards and protection against security risks, as it is essential to protect both the user's data and the website's reputation.
Performance
High performance and fast loading times ensure a positive user experience, higher rankings in search engines and retain visitors on the website.
Documentation
A well-documented CMS ensures that users and developers have a standardized way of working with the CMS. A vibrant community ensures that it is kept up-to-date and up-to-date.
Cost
The cost should correspond to the functionality and size that you need. Some CMSs offer a free version or a limited functionality, while others require a license fee.
What do we recommend?
We have worked with a variety of CMS platforms over the years, and have found that Statamic fits best in the vast majority of situations.
Statamic is a powerful, secure, well-tested (it's been around since 2012) and affordable CMS. Its absolute greatest strength is the simplicity in which to work. Since all functionality is built-in, and does not require additions, you get a unified and intuitive interface to work in.
Live editor
Statamic comes with a live preview function that allows the user to see how the content will look before publishing and collaborate in real time with their multi-user editing tool.
Integrations / expansion
Statamic is an add-on to Laravel, one of the most popular frameworks for building web applications. This makes it incredibly easy to expand and integrate with other systems. You don't have to look for plugins developed by others, which may not be maintained or lack security updates. Instead, you can easily adapt and expand Statamic according to your own needs.
Statamic compared to other CMS
There are many other CMSs on the market, which may make you wonder "why Statamic?". Here are some comparisons:
Statamic vs Wordpress
Statamic has a one-time cost of $259, then $59 per year for updates. But unlike WordPress, most of the functionality you need comes built-in. This means you don't have to pay for or install add-ons that may be insecure, negatively affect performance, or create a cluttered user experience.
Statamic vs Sanity/Contentful
Headless CMS in the cloud can be incredibly useful, and comes with the simplicity of not having to host your CMS. But if you want to use a CMS specifically for a website, it can be difficult to get a simple preview of the page and a safe way of working to develop content. In addition, it can be costly if you want many users, single sign-on (login with your Google or Microsoft account) or many content types.
Statamic vs Optimizely/Sitecore
These "enterprise" CMSs naturally come with a lot of functionality, including some specifics that Statamic may not be able to match. But we believe that the functionality you get from Statamic is fully sufficient. And if you compare the price, there is a very big difference as you have to pay tens of thousands per year for these systems.
Statamic vs everything else
There are of course many other CMSs to compare with. But Statamic is a mature, well-functioning CMS based on Laravel, which is a well-used framework. This means that the choice of Statamic means that you do not build yourself into something that will soon "die". All functionality is well documented so that developers can easily familiarize themselves with how it works.
Education and support
At Itiden, we always make sure to educate our customers so that they can administer their content themselves. In addition, we are available for support and guidance throughout the lifetime of the website.