Website Content Management Systems (CMS) are becoming even more and more popular ways for building websites of all shapes and sizes. Today, many web managers and business owners want the ability to manage and control their websites directly and without the help of a web design firm and web Content Management Systems allow users to update, add or change content to their websites themselves without having to know or learn html or code.
Two of the most popular open source CMS systems for web sites today are WordPress and Drupal.
The best CMS to use for most websites often depends on a few key factors – mainly depending on the type of website and the level of technical expertise or ability in the person or people who will be managing the website. Generally speaking, WordPress is better for smaller websites or blogs and Drupal is better for larger, more complex websites.
WordPress
Developed in 2003, WordPress is hands down the most popular open source web content management system used today. WordPress is very easy to use and probably the most “user friendly” of all web CMS. WordPress has a large community of users and there are thousands of plug-ins available for it. It is customizable and flexible, but does have some limitations. It is a great CMS for users who need an easy to use system to enable them to change and manage a small to medium sized website.
Drupal
Drupal, on the other hand, is a more complex & powerful CMS. It is extremely flexible, can be tailored to suit most websites, and is often faster and more robust for websites with high traffic. Drupal also has quite a few modules (or plug-ins) available and it has a growing community. It does, however, have a pretty steep learning curve and is not exactly “user-friendly” or easy for most non-technically minded people to use and manage. Drupal is good for large websites with a lot of pages and users.
While there are many large, popular websites today that use either WordPress or Drupal Content Management Systems to manage and maintain the sites, the choice of which CMS you decide to use on your business website will ultimately depend on your preferences, your level of technical ability, and the size and scope of your website.
