These days content management systems are more than just workflow tools—they can perform essential Web site functions.

With the increasing complexity of Web sites--multiple data sources, the need to publish to multiple channels, or in several languages--the point rapidly approaches when managing all these reams of information becomes far too complicated to be done manually.

Content management systems (CMSes) can help solve these problems, but which one is right for you?

CMSes fulfil seven basic functions to varying degrees:

Content creation--allowing non-technical users to enter new content into the site, categorise it and provide relevant metadata to improve searchability.

This is a vital step because it allows the people in the business who know the most about the subject matter to contribute their knowledge directly, rather than through intermediaries such as Web designers or IT staff.

Workflow management--mapping out the various stages that content must go through before it's finally published to the Web site.

This can include human processes such as content entry, fact checking and approval, as well as system processes such as automatic linking or spell checking.

Back-end integration--extracting information from a wide variety of sources such as current or legacy databases, ERP or CRM systems, e-mail, office documents, and more. This content must then be transformed through templates into a readable form.

Versioning and auditing--keeping track of all the changes made to the site, and who made them. This can be necessary for regulatory reasons, and can also be immensely useful if the site needs to be rolled back to a previous version for any reason.

Delivery to multiple channels--one of the key reasons many companies use CMSes is because they need to deliver similar content to different channels; anything from the Web to intranets and extranets to mobile devices. Also if they want a site that uses the same visual elements and navigation systems, but is published in multiple languages.

Customisation--another strong driver is the ability for end-users to customise the way a Web site appears based on their own preferences, or for the site to be customised based on information gathered about the customer, or on the customer's level of access--for instance whether or not they have paid membership fees to see a particular section of the site.

Reporting--tied in with customisation, is the ability to report on which pages users are looking at, how they traverse through the site, and many other aspects of how the site works.

DIY or off the shelf?

There are pros and cons to both approaches.

CMSes are not an expense to be taken lightly--and can run into hundreds of thousands of US dollars (prices are almost always in US dollars, even from Australian-based vendors). Having one custom-written could save a considerable amount of money, and you can be confident it will suit your needs exactly--or close enough, depending on the competence of the developer.

However, while a custom CMS will suit your current needs, can you guarantee they will stay the same in the foreseeable future?

If your requirements change, this may involve another round of costly development time; and if your site grows too fast, it may outgrow your custom system entirely.

By contrast, many off-the-shelf CMSes can be scaled up to meet increased volume demands, and can also be expanded to deal with specific problems and new areas of business.

Where did they come from?

Content management systems--once perceived as expensive, complicated pieces of heavy machinery--have reached a certain maturity, and are becoming accepted as powerful engines for Internet business.

The major forces in the market--big content management system vendors such as BroadVision, Documentum, Interwoven, and Vignette--believe it's a golden time to be in the business.

"Over the last three years, we've seen a whole industry pop up around content management," says Naomi Miller, director of product marketing of Documentum, an 11-year-old company with roots in document management. "There are nearly 100 different vendors offering content management services today."

Content management systems, which help automate and provide a framework for producing and delivering content, have advanced considerably in the last few years. They now cost less, allow more people in the content chain to use them and are opening up to integrate with other enterprise applications such as customer relationship management software.

"We're just responding to market demands," says Leif Pedersen, Vignette's vice president of product marketing. "We've been hammered left and right from industry analysts about these products needing to come together and be integrated and sold as one."

A few years ago, when businesses first discovered that they had more Web content than was feasible to maintain manually, they looked to companies such as Documentum and Vignette to provide systems that automated the process of producing online content. But with initial price tags of AU$500,000 to AU$1 million for software alone, some businesses decided to build the systems themselves.

Mark Gilbert, a Gartner research director who focuses on content management, says that's often the trend today. "A lot of people were building it years ago, but now the trend is to buy it," he says. It also helps that prices have come down: Even the top-tier players have cut their software fees to about US$250,000 to US$300,000, Gilbert says.

Playing well with others

XML allows a company to store information that isn't database--or application--specific so that data can be shared among multiple applications, whether they are a businesses' own internal applications or those of a partner or customer, says Simon King, BroadVision's vice president of business strategy.

Once the system has those XML capabilities, the possibilities for presentation open up. "The XML document is structured in a way that lets you apply the true structure afterward, so you can access the data from a PDA [personal digital assistant], phone or the Web, and you end up with a sole system for deploying content to multiple channels," King says.

Working with the lay user

On the other side of the content chain, more businesspeople are becoming members of the content team. Whereas once only the Web designers and a few specially designated employees contributed content to the Web site, today almost everyone in an enterprise can be considered a contributor.

"We have over 800 enterprise-class customers that use our system and they sometimes have hundreds or even thousands of content contributors," Interwoven's Van Siclen says.

By engaging end users and suppliers to do their own content management, companies can gain more value from their content management software. "There's now a lot of focus on the user experience," King says.

But those systems weren't originally designed with the lay user in mind--and that's why providing a portal interface is now all the rage with content management system vendors. "Portals are definitely the trend in the market," Gartner's Gilbert says.

Several content management system companies have inked partnerships with enterprise portal companies--including Epicentric and Plumtree Software--to provide an all-in-one interface. Unlike typical portals, though, the content management portals provide a way to publish content as well as access it. "It's not just read-only," Van Siclen says.

The December issue of ZDNet Australia's Technology & Business Magazine contains reviews of content management products, including Editor's Choice Awards for the best products. For subscription information, visit Technology & Business.

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