1. Content Management
Strategy and Software Selection
Ivo Jansch
IMS 2009 (3 December 2009)
dinsdag 8 december 2009
2. Which of these is the best car?
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3. Why is your answer wrong?
I didn’t tell you my requirements!
Maybe I was looking for:
• A simple and inexpensive car for the occasional grocery shopping?
• A car to take the kids to football, ballet, etc?
• A car to impress the ladies?
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5. What CMS should you use?
There are literally hundreds:
‣ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_content_management_systems
Don’t take CMS selection lightly, it is a significant investment
Needs to support your needs now and in the future
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6. The CMS Selection Process (1)
Business Goals
• What is it you want to achieve with your site?
• What are your short- and longterm plans?
Requirements
• What are the features you need?
Product Selection
• Which CMS products meet your need? To what extent?
• “Make or Buy”?
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7. The CMS Selection Process (2)
The Financials
• Total Cost of Ownership
• Return on Investment
SWOT Analysis
• Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats
Comparison Worksheet
Selection!
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8. Requirements Gathering
Functional Requirements
• Features you need
• Features your visitors need
• Processes and Workflows
Non-functional Requirements
• Performance
• Security
• Vendor dependence
• Usability
• Multi-site
• Technology Platform
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9. Commercial vs Open Source
Commercial CMS’s
• License fees
• No access to source code
• Support
• Vendor Lock?
• Typically one vendor or a selection of resellers
Open Source
• No license fees
• Access to source code
• Support
• No Vendor Lock
• Typically dozens of vendors and hundreds of users
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10. Buy vs Make
Cost Flexibility
BUY MAKE
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11. Buy vs Make
Cost Flexibility
BUY “BAKE” MAKE
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12. “BAKE”
Concept:
• Use off-the-shelf components
• Customise to your needs
• Don’t reinvent the wheel
• ‘Best tool for the job’ approach
Open Source preferably
Cost-effective, but still flexible => balance
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13. Technology Platform
Linux, Apache, MySQL, PHP = Common
What existing technologies are in your organisation?
What technologies do you need to integrate with?
• Microsoft Exchange?
• Financial Systems?
Hosting a CMS yourself or with a provider?
• In-house feels safe, but...
• Providers have much more experience and better infrastructure
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15. Financials
Total Cost of Ownership
• License Costs (CMS, Database)
• Yearly support / upgrade fees
• Hosting
• Graphical Design
• Customisation / Development
• Maintenance
Return on Investment
• Is the site directly money generating?
• Is the site a marketing instrument?
• Is the site a cost saver?
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