A content management system, or CMS, is a computer system that allows publishing, editing, and general maintenance for the content of a website from a central control page. The main features of CMS are to allow a number of people to share and manage stored data, control access to data, reduce duplicate inputs, facilitate the storage and retrieval of data, and improve communication among users. However, if certain guidelines aren’t followed, a project involving CMS is doomed to failure. Here are some of the most common and most fatal mistakes.
Not clearly identifying your goals or requirements
To choose the right CMS for your project, you need to definitively lay out what you want to accomplish, and what you need to accomplish it. Once you have this information, you can measure that against the limits of a given CMS. If this step is skipped, you may well start a project and realize down the road that the CMS you’re working with just can’t do what you thought it would be able to.
Not putting together the right team or assigning roles
The team is the next crucial part of the operation. The team should be comprised of both IT and marketing members to ensure both user functionality and SEO appeal. With either of these components missing, the site will be unbalanced in one of these areas. A project leader also needs
to be assigned to keep the project on task with timelines, the budget, and available resources. Other members should also be assigned to review and create content to determine how it will later be stored and maintained within the system.
Not properly testing the system
After the system is up, revisit the original goals of the project and create test scenarios based on them to assess whether or not the system actually achieves them. Most importantly, the system should be easily operational to users. If a site isn’t functioning well, it will discourage users from sharing or seeking information on it. Testing should uncover any areas that need to be adjusted.