How to Choose the Right Website Management Platform
Most small business owners cannot afford a static website. If you have a small business, you need to update your website regularly if you want to stay competitive. And the right website management platform can help you build your website and update it regularly.
The number of open source and commercial content management systems has increased over the years because more small business owners are using these systems. You must know the advantages and disadvantages of the different platforms if you want to pick the right platform.
Open Source CMS
What are the advantages of open source website management platforms?
1. Price
It is free.
2. Distributed Development Community
Anyone can get involved in an open source project, so there are so many cutting edge features that are included in popular CMS.
3. Non-proprietary Technology
The software is open source, so it is easy to adopt the technology. And you are not locked into a single vendor because it is transportable.
What are the disadvantages of open source website management platforms?
1 The Price
The technology is free. However, it is hard to hire the right person with the expertise to integrate the platform. And it takes time to learn this technology. Also, it cost a lot of money to hire the right person to integrate the platform.
In fact, there are some cases where the cost of hiring a professional is more expensive than buying a commercial CMS bundled. If you buy a commercial CMS bundled, you get support from the vendor free of charge.
It is difficult and takes a lot of time to learn open source CMS. And you may not learn everything if you do not hire an expert to guide you. Hiring an expert can add the cost of using open source CMS.
2. Distributed Development Community
If there is a specific bug preventing you from accomplishing something on your website, it takes time to fix that bug in a distributed development community because the priorities of people using the CMS differ greatly.
3. Non-proprietary Technology
It is easy to migrate non-proprietary technology to other providers. However, it lacks expected levels of competence from vendor partners and lacks vendor certification. It is hard to know someone is an expert in particular CMS if you cannot find vendor certifications.
Commercial CMS
What are the advantages of Commercial CMS?
1 Centralized Support
When it comes to commercial CMS, the vendor responds to feature requests and bug fixes. You will never waste your time looking for the right expert who can help you with this platform. Commercial CMS provider responds immediately because it wants to maintain a good reputation.
2. Stability and Performance
Some open source developers are professional developers. Lack of testing, bugs, and security holes can lead to serious issues. Commercial CMS providers have customers who use the product, so the product must work.
3. Learning Curve
Commercial CMS providers provide training that makes it easier to get used to their technology. When you using an open source CMS, you will have to learn the product on your own or look for someone who has expertise in this product.
What are the disadvantages of commercial CMS?
1 Price
It is expensive, so some small businesses cannot afford it.
2. Vendor Lock-In
A single vendor builds commercial CMS, so it is hard to move to another platform. And the provider provides all the features. It is not possible to customize these features.
In conclusion, choose the right platform that suits your budget. You can either choose between an open source CMS and commercial CMS.