Benefits of CMS Web Design

CMS web design is the latest step that started with CSS, then moved on with XML. It is an awesomely popular, and powerful tool that enables designers to separate structure from the design.

CMS or Content Management Systems, come in all shapes and sizes, from the massive, like Interwoven, to the more modest, like Zope. Whatever the size, or scope of the CM system, the theory is the same. To create something that allows us to create the design templates, while allowing contributors to provide content in a separate environment.

Most of us are specialists at something, and not so good at others. A CMS allows different specialists to do what they do best, without overburdening them with the irrelevant. A web designer can concentrate on the design, and lets them play to their strengths. The contributors can produce content and upload it to a website with a simple interface. Nobody gets in each other's way, or has to go near the design, or back end if they don't want to.

Not only does a good CMS allow people to do what they are good at, it also streamlines the workflow. New templates can be built and implemented even while contributors are adding new content. Nobody has to wait for the other to finish, or implement their changes so they can do theirs.

The other good news about CMS is that it allows designers to be designers. How many of us have become unofficial trainers, tech support, or troubleshooters for other colleagues or websites? The adoption of CMS takes all that away, and lets us get on with doing what we love.

We can create templates that can be approved and published in minutes, not days. Web design in general can move on and get modern. No longer do we have to ensure the design is backwards compatible, or spend hours changing code to work with older browsers. The CMS can recognise the browser type and provide the appropriate template for it. A high-end version for modern browsers, a mid-weight one for older ones and a low-fi version for mobile, or screen readers.

As the system does all the work for us, we don't have to create three versions of the same site!

This presents us with the age old problem. Change or be left behind. While a good CM system can do the lion's share of the work, companies won't need so many designers. We have to adapt to survive. Keeping up and becoming familiar with this new design philosophy is essential as it isn't going anywhere soon.

Any system that offers the freedom, efficiency and flexibility of CMS is going to be attractive to clients. Until the next new thing comes along and the process starts again.