Does your website content management system meet your needs?

A Content Management System (CMS) is now an essential part of an effective website. Here are a few issues you should consider if you are thinking of implementing a new CMS, or changing your current one.

Questions to ask before choosing your supplier:

It is crucial to ask certain questions before choosing the right CMS supplier for your organisation, such as:

Supplier related:

• Are there any hidden costs? (license fees, support hours etc.)
• Do they have a responsive support team?
• How much training is provided?
• Do they have clients in similar industries to mine?
• Do they understand my business?
• How can I terminate my contract if something goes wrong?

System related:

• How easy is it to migrate my current website content?
• How easy is it to implement or change current designs?
• Will non-technical staff be able to make changes?
• How practical is the changing process? (Do I need to make alterations more than once if content is featured in multiple locations on website?)
• Is the system expandable to cope with my growing business?
• How does the cost compare with similar systems?

There are many more depending on your current stage of development, and exact requirements.

Which CMS does Intendance use and why?

Intendance builds websites using the highly effective MySource Matrix for organisations that require an advanced enterprise-level CMS that enables them to modify the design, content and structure according to their changing requirements.

MySource Matrix is a powerful, open source enterprise-level CMS used in both the public and private sectors, such as Australian Federal Government, Oxford University, NHS, Amnesty International etc. In 2006 it was internationally recognised as best in class for support and interoperability by a forum of content management system experts. According to Gartner: “MySource is differentiated by its ease of use (including graphical user interface tools) and the availability of commercial support.”

The key features that distinguish MySource Matrix from other CMS systems are:

• Open source: no yearly license renewals!
• Reliability: the system was developed to be extremely reliable in order to cope with Australian federal government requirements as well as other organisations such as Oxford University, Boots etc.
• Ease of use: the system is designed to empower non-technical staff to manage their own websites.
• Compatibility: the system is compatible with other applications (CRM etc.)

If you would like any further information on this, or any other matters concerning website systems, please do not hesitate to contact us with your questions and we will do our best to help you.