How to choose the software to manage and run your website

Unless you are planning a very simple website and have no plans to update it regularly, software will be required to create and manage the site. This software may come as a neatly integrated bundle or several different solutions may need to work together. Website software tends to fall into one of the following categories, and the choice can be baffling:

  • Licensed enterprise level software [e.g. Adobe CQ5, SDL Tridion, Sitecore, OpenText, Autonomy]
  • Open source [e.g. Drupal, Joomla, Wordpress, Modx]
  • Custom built
  • Desktop software [e.g. Adobe Dreamweaver, Microsoft Expression]

Each category above has pros and cons, which are summarised below.

Licensed enterprise level software

Pros

  • Powerful
  • Editor / manager friendly
  • Secure, robust and reliable
  • Regularly updated
  • Can usually handle very large sites, and a large number of users
  • Unlikely to go bust and fizzle out
  • Support is usually included as part of the licence costs
  • Excellent salesmen (they’ll bend over backwards for you)

Cons

  • Usually expensive, both in terms of licence and maintenance
  • Can be complex
  • Finding developers who are familiar with the software can be more difficult than open source, and they can be more expensive
  • Excellent salesmen (they’ll sell you stuff you don’t need)

Open source

Pros

  • No up-front costs
  • Large developer base
  • No salesmen
  • Some open source software can compete with the big-guns
  • Can tinker with the code and tailor to your requirements
  • More reliant on IT services than licensed competitors
  • Endless add-ons and plug-ins

Cons

  • Little or no dedicated support from the software company
  • For more complex sites, unlikely to be as complete an offering as licensed software
  • Security and reliability may be a concern
  • Less company stability

Custom built

Pros

  • An exact match to your specifications

Cons

  • Will rely heavily on IT for support and maintenance
  • High risk of producing something less capable than off-the-shelf solutions
  • Can be difficult to expand / update for new functionality later on

Desktop software

Pros

  • The likes of Dreamweaver are now highly evolved
  • With the right skills, changes are quick and easy
  • Tends to be cheaper than licensed software suites

Cons

  • No web interface – restricted to one or more computers
  • Start from a blank sheet of paper
  • Not ideally suited to a large number of users
  • Do not deal with content re-use well
  • Not suitable for very large sites
  • Do require some coding knowledge

Things to consider when selecting the right software for your project

  • Localisation / translation capability or integration with relevant tools
  • Internal workflow and approvals processes
  • User management
  • Mobile / tablet capability
  • Social media integration or development [e.g. wikis, blogs, forums]
  • Support
  • Desired future reliance on IT
  • Ease and speed of editing, user interface quality
  • Capability with emerging technologies [e.g. HTML5]
  • Search engine optimisation capability
  • Asset management
  • Personalisation
  • E-commerce functionality
  • Level of technical expertise available
  • Future proofing, required shelf life