Newsletter #86 Manage Your Own Site?

Created on 25/03/04

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The last newsletter (24th February, 2004) was "Google Tips & Tricks"

Companies big and small rely on Content Management Systems (CMS) to keep their Websites updated. CMS allow users to modify the content of their site and create pages without having to know HTML and the other scripting languages used on the Web.

It certainly seems to make sense. In pre-CMS days, Website changes often went through a complex and time-consuming process before the Webmaster finally made the changes live on the site. CMS provide many benefits, including the ability to:

• Decentralise by delegating content management duties
• Make changes more quickly and less expensively
• Maintain the brand and style throughout the site via the use of templates

However in a report last year Jupiter Research noted that many CMS fail to live up to their promise. "Today, more than 60 percent of companies that have deployed Web content management solutions still find themselves manually updating their sites," wrote analyst Matthew Berk. Overcomplicated CMS seem to be the main cause of this let down.

This newfound ease can also be to the detriment of your Website, and by extension to your company, if the updating procedure becomes sloppy or people without the necessary skills have editing rights. Even in this Internet Age many companies underestimate how important their Website is. Reid Carr of Red Door Interactive points out that "..it is easy for marketers, and corporations overall, to forget that more people view their site than often see a printed brochure."

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The things that can go wrong with CMS fall into two main areas:

1. Typos and poor content
   
   - Several studies have shown that typographical errors and mistakes affect a site's credibility in the eyes of the visitor. See this study as an example: www.consumerwebwatch.org/news/1_abstract.htm
   
   - Poor page structure, too many large images or links that don't work are often the result if the editor has had insufficient training. This can make the site look unprofessional even if the templates the pages are developed from are well designed.
   
2. Lack of regular strategic view of the site
   
   - Because pages are easy to add, the site can become bloated as pages and sections are added without proper oversight.
   
   - Duplication of content. Unnecessary duplication can make information more difficult to manage when it changes, whether you have a CMS or not.
   
   - There is no coherence in the way content is put together. Particularly if your site has more than one editor or no one is overseeing it, your site can become difficult to use.

CMSs are a great way for your organisation to take control of its Website and loosen the grip of the backroom IT boys! However you do need to think about the following:

• Don't buy into a system that is too complicated. Sure you want the system to be upgradeable and expandable, but keep it simple initially.
• Delegate the mundane stuff to juniors - CMSs are supposed to save you time and money and this is one way of getting payback
• Your company needs to develop procedures and delegate responsibility to employees to ensure that there is someone to initiate the changes, someone to proofread them and someone who is thinking strategically.
• Conduct regular reviews of the Website. Is the Website meeting the goals that you have set for it? If not, why not?
• Don't forget that content is the critical part of any Website. A CMS won't create, organise or analyse content - someone within your organisation or an outside contractor will have to do that.

Make sure you manage your Content Management System.

Newbies

Power Users

Windows XP has a built-in service intended to allow systems administrators to send pop-up messages concerning maintenance and the like to the users on a local area network. Spammers have discovered that they can use this service to send pop-up messages to computers that are connected to the Internet. A very good tutorial to get rid of this potential weakness is http://pages.zdnet.com/hampsi/Articles/messenger.htm .

For previous tips visit the Power Hot Tips page.

Play 20 Questions against an artificial intelligence engine. According to the site everything that it knows and all questions that it asks were entered by people playing the game. 20Q.net is a learning system; the more it is played, the smarter it gets. Good fun! http://www.20q.net

Itching to go sailing in Antigua, or mountaineering in Switzerland? iExplore, affiliated with National Geographic, offers destination guides covering all corners of the globe, plus activity guides ranging from rainforest exploration to sea kayaking to horseback riding. Plug in what you want to do and where and when you want to do it and then select the physical, mental and technical levels of difficulty you think you can handle to pull up a list of options. http://www.iexplore.com/index.jhtml

No new articles this month.

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Best wishes

Alex Garden

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