Content management systems are a fairly recent invention.  A decade ago they just simply did not exist.  So if you have no idea what a content management system is, you are excused.  However, even if you do not at this moment know what a content management system, your business could actually benefit in some real concrete ways by using one.  So keep reading!

Simply put, a content management system (CMS) is software that helps you create and manage the content that is on your website.  Before the use of content management systems, building or changing a website was a task that required technical knowledge in computer code.  It was not just something that the average small business owner could manage, even after the initial creation of the site.  However, with the rise of the CMS, this has all changed.  Now if you have the skills to use a word processing program, you should be able to add, delete, or change the content on your website.  This can have a beneficial effect on the communication and marketing functions of your business.  See how many of these 6 big benefits appeal to you!

1. Simplifies the process of change. I know there are people out there who love to take a simple task and make it difficult, but most of them are bureaucrats and very few are entrepreneurs.  I’m betting you would rather have things simple when you get the choice, and a CMS gives you that option.  You don’t need to rely on a system administrator or an outside vendor to make changes for you.  Make the changes yourself or delegate an employee to do it.  A CMS also allows for multiple users to make changes and for these changes to be made on any computer.
2. Facilitates content that is on-point, up-to-date, and accurate. Because the content on websites with a CMS can be easily changed, these websites are more likely to feature communication that is accurate and reflective of the company’s current priorities.  Websites which require a lot of effort to change will necessarily be changed less frequently.  Content may not be reviewed often or changed even if it is found to be out of alignment with the business’s goals or not completely accurate, just because the energy and time is not worth it.  In contrast, websites that are built on a CMS can be easily changed as often as needed.  So if something happens that makes your current content outdated, you can just simply change it yourself.  No fuss!
3. Encourages fresh content and improves SEO. For much the same reasoning, websites with a CMS encourage users to be consistently adding fresh, relevant content.  This gives customers and prospects a reason to visit the site often and also improves SEO ranking for the site.  All this leads to increased traffic and more chances for your business to promotes its products and services.
4. Offers flexible, easy-to-use plug-in options. Managing content means more than just choosing the words on your site.  A CMS provides a whole world of add-on features which help you arrange, emphasize, and analyze your content.  WordPress is an extremely popular and widely used CMS for which a wide array of plug-ins has been developed.  These plug-ins allow you to add features that make your website more robust, such as forms, surveys, SEO implementation, site optimization, e-commerce, marketing automation, and site analytics.
5. Makes your website work for you. When you consider all the benefits above, you can begin to see how your website can start functioning as a sales tool for you.  You can create marketing synergy by utilizing plug-in forms, providing links to other marketing tools such as a newsletter sign-up, or creating landing pages for special events or promotions.  If you’re going to have a website, shouldn’t you utilize it to its maximum potential?  A CMS multiplies your opportunities to get the most out of your website investment.
6. Puts you in control! No one is ever going to care about your website as much as you do so the more say you have in how it is maintained, the better.  A CMS gives you that control without being dependent on a certain vendor or system administrator.  You can easily create, add, or delete content or delegate that task to an employee.  You should be proud of your website and its message every day, not just the day it launches, and with a CMS you can be!

As you can see from this post, at inspire marketing we do believe that every website should have a content management system.  For this reason, we build all our websites on the WordPress platform.  We do this because it allows us to deliver a quality product with ample capability to meet our clients’ needs.  We also choose to do it because it keeps our clients free to manage their own websites after initial creation.  It is important to us that we earn every project we are privileged to work on.  By this I mean that we don’t want to force our clients to work with us by building them a website which requires us to make ongoing changes for them.  Instead, we strive to deliver a superior product to our clients so that they will want to work with us on future projects.  If you are interested in finding out more about WordPress, you can visit their website.  To learn more about how we can help you build an effective, easy-to-maintain website, visit inspiremarketing.io or call Wade at 317-683-7578 Ext 707.