Content Management

Everyone likes to be in control. Whether it’s the how your pension is invested or just who has the TV remote control. We don’t think your website should be any different.

We use the latest technology in Content Management Systems to place your website in your hands, so you have control. We know you want to add that news article, new product or special offer when it suits you – not when we get round to it after a round of emails discussing it. You can add content, change layouts and much more without any expert knowledge of Web Design through our idiot proof interfaces.

What are Content Management Systems (CMSs)?

At a basic level a CMS gives users the ability to create, edit and delete content and pages within their website through a user friendly interface. They usually consist of a WYSIWYG editor to edit and format content, with other tools allowing images, pages and links to be added. This allows people without the technical knowledge needed, to make major, and minor, changes.

In more complex websites they allow users to manage more advanced workflows and entities, for example managing products in an E-Commerce shop and the entire process that is involved (searching, payment, invoicing, dispatching etc). This can be seen in the Online-MD.co.uk administration panel which is a bespoke system to manage their business process from start to finish.

Why would I need one?

Imagine these two scenarios…

Scenario 1 – No CMS

You: I wish we had a new page on the website showing off our new range of products. I’ll need to ask <insert developer/geek-friend’s name here> and see if they can do it.
Geek-Friend: <grudgingly> Sure, send over the text and images.

…time passes…

You: Have you had a chance to make that page up yet?
Geek-Friend: Not yet, I’ll try and do it tonight… …3 days later… here you go, how’s that?
You: They’re OK, but can we make the text a bit smaller, align the images on the left etc etc
Geek-Friend: Is that better?
You: Yea, I suppose that’ll do.

You exit stage left looking disappointed, with an alright new page, 5 days after you wanted it.

Scenario 2 – With a shiny new SwarmOnline CMS with all the trimmings

You: I wish we had a new page on the website showing off our new range of products. Hold on while I boot up my laptop.
…you log onto www.yourdomain.com/admin…

…you upload your images and write some content…

…you arrange the page exactly how you imagined it…

…you sit back and admire your stunning new page, 30 minutes after having the idea…

We know which situation we would rather be in and think most people would agree with us. You can remove a huge amount of hassle, time and potential cost from the equation by opting to integrate a CMS into your website.

Key Advantages

  • Full control over each page’s content
  • Ability to easily add new pages and content quickly
  • No expert knowledge needed – if you can use Microsoft Word you’re an expert already!
  • Allows multiple users anywhere in the world to collaborate
  • No software needed – update your site wherever you have internet access, even on your phone!
  • Make instant updates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year!
  • Make unlimited updates without the hassle and cost.

Case Study – Online-MD.co.uk Admin Panel

We have created a fully bespoke administration panel for the music website Online-MD.co.uk where they manage all aspects of their business online. This CMS allows the administrators, among many other things, to:

  • Add new tracks that can be purchased and downloaded immediately
  • Manage all of their users’ orders and details
  • Create email mail shots targeting specific groups of users.

It was created using the ExtJS Framework with a PHP backend hooking directly into their website’s live database.

Without this CMS the business would be extremely disjointed with management taking place on a variety of formats, in the owners’ heads, on paper and in other online systems (e.g. PayPal). By consolidating the whole process the business runs with far more efficiency and allows tasks to be shared between team members without physical notes etc being passed on.

Although a complex example of what a CMS can offer, the same principle applies to simple ‘brochure’ style websites that only need the pages’ content to be managed.