A web Content Management System (CMS) is an online environment that makes it easy for website owners to manage their own content. That content can consist of words, images, documents, sound, and video. 

A Bit of Web History

In order to better understand the definition of a CMS, it helps to consider a bit of web history. If you wanted to have a web page during the old days of the last century, someone with technical expertise had to create an HTML page that consisted of both your content and the instructions about how to present that content. Once your page was “uploaded” to the Internet, you could not change that content or presentation without engaging the services of your technical resource. Savvy users purchased software such as Dreamweaver or Adobe Contribute so that they could update their own pages but configuring those tools still required some technical expertise. Moreover, if you wanted to redesign your site, you had to modify every single page in order reflect that new look.

By 2000, large commercial CMSs were available, but typically cost upwards of $100K. These were used by organizations with enormous needs for content, such as newspapers and magazines. Smaller companies began designing their own content management systems, but most companies didn’t have the resources to develop truly excellent tools.
Finally, between 2001 and 2004, the open source movement embraced the CMS concept and many projects were launched. The result is that today there are 851 CMS applications listed at CMSmatrix.org. Some of the most popular open source CMS applications are WordPress, Drupal, and Joomla!™.

How It Works

Most content management systems consist of two parts:

• the CMA, or content management application, which allows the content owner to create, modify, and delete content without needing technical expertise

• the CDA, or content delivery application, manages the content and presents it in the appropriate location on the web site. Behind the CDA is a database which stores all of the content as well as where to publish each content item.

Thus, most content management systems also have at least two types of users:

• content editors, who can add, modify, delete, and publish content

• administrators, who configure the site’s design and implement additional functionality

From the content owner’s point of view, the beauty of a good CMS is that modifying a web page is as easy as logging in and clicking on the text box that you want to change. An editing environment comes up, typically with an interface that looks similar to your common word processor. Simply edit the text and save your changes. Once you’re ready, you publish your content by clicking a button. There’s no need for complicated logins or ftp commands.

However, installing and configuring a content management system does require technical expertise, especially if you want your site to look different from the generic designs provided or if you want enhanced functionality. In addition, while we do talk about the fact that open source software is “free,” it’s important to understand that this means more that the software is freely available and freely modifiable than it means that there are no costs associated with the implementation. It helps to have an expert in your corner when you implement a CMS.

The Benefits of a Content Management System

• streamlined authoring, editing and publishing process
• faster turnaround time for new pages and changes
• greater consistency and standardization of design
• simplified redesign process
• improved site navigation
• increased site flexibility
• support for decentralized authoring
• increased security
• reduced duplication of information
• greater capacity for growth
• reduced site maintenance costs

In summary, we feel that while there is still a place for static HTML sites, the need for dynamic web content means that the majority of business and non-profit web sites benefit from moving to a content management system.