Content management systems (CMS) are website applications that allow non-technical users to update their own website via an online administration panel.  There are thousands of different content management systems available, but they generally fall into two categories. They are either proprietary systems or open source systems.

A proprietary system has been built from the ground up by the web development company that owns it. It is ‘proprietary’ as the firm has the intellectual property rights to the code that runs the system. If your site is built in a proprietary system, what you purchase is a license to use the system.

Most proprietary CMS systems are hosted on servers provided by the company that owns the CMS. Once you have bought into one of these systems, it is very difficult (if not impossible) to move your website and keep the content management system. Basically, to move the website to another firm requires a complete rebuild of the site, as the site must be built in the specific proprietary software with its own set of themes. If the CMS you are using is substantially upgraded or redeveloped by the company at a later date you may find yourself with an “old” website that has to migrate to the new upgraded system (often at a considerable redevelopment cost) to receive any new enhancements or features.

Open source content management systems like Drupal, Joomla and WordPress are widely used by web developers. They have huge benefits for web clients as the site, once built, can be easily moved around between developers and hosts, so you are not locked into any one vendor. Web development costs can be kept to a reasonable level as there are no licensing fees for the system. Sure there is still a cost involved – you still have to pay for hosting, the time it takes to install the site, set it up, design a look and load all the content. But as the web firm does not have to cover the cost of developing the open source system in the first place, they can keep their costs down, and this saving is passed on to you.

Web firms with proprietary systems need to earn a return on their development investment. The firm will have put a considerable amount of time and money into developing their system, but even then they often can’t compete with the hundreds of core developers that will be working collaboratively on an open source system. In fact, there are companies that have developed a proprietary system then decided to make it open source and subsequently experienced exponential growth in their business.

With open source systems it’s a case of ‘many hands make light work’. At TML we are very much fans of open source, and in particular WordPress. So if you’re keen to have your site developed in a widely supported content management system, give us a call on 03 366 3340 or email info@tmlwebdesign.co.nz.