Agile Approaches to Content Management

When building a site around a CMS or Content Management System, there are many options available, but we must understand that when using a plug and play system, we need to take the good with the bad.

A CMS built from the ground up has the advantage of being totally customized for the particular use case and the client’s/user’s level of involvement. You can create a linear and relevant work-flow of steps in order to create a new asset. CakePHP is a PHP framework that eases the creation of systems that are completely custom, and is a good place to start if you want to create your own CMS.

Using a blogging platform like WordPress as a CMS is becoming more popular and although it’s one of the most turn-key systems, it provides no sense of work-flow for content management. The built-in metaphors are usually related to writing a blog post, but that’s changing very soon and there are plugins that try to mitigate that issue.

Expression Engine is a CMS that is also tailored towards blogging, but has many features that allow you to create a more custom environment for users to create posts, pages, or other assets. It does feel like a bit of a walled garden due to its lackluster PHP support however.

One clear advantage of using a system like WordPress or Expression Engine as a CMS is that the features related to user participation are built in and quite refined. If image galleries are a big part of the site, WordPress shines in its handling of photos and other media; just another example of one of the features you get for free.

The bottom line that we have found is: WordPress can confuse content creators if the content type isn’t necessarily a blog post, but it’s great for galleries and is very easy to set up. Expression Engine can be cumbersome and may limit your programmers ability to do fancy things, but it is very easy to create complex entries with many fields. CakePHP and other fully custom solutions do not come with nice extras like user accounts, comments and image manipulation built in; but they give you almost limitless power when working with and processing your data.

What kinds of use cases have you seen/implemented using these frameworks/platforms? Leave a comment and let us know what you dislike or love about the CMS you use.

Related Links:
Expression Engine Vs. WordPress
What’s Coming in WordPress 3.0
Croogo – A CakePHP powered Content Management System