website building workshop

Web Building Workshop (secrets and solutions)

November 15th, 2012Canvas Dreams, LLC

Overview

How a CMS can help you?

Which CMS is right for me?

CMS = a clear, usable website

What is a CMS?A content management system (CMS) is a computer program that allows publishing, editing and modifying content as well as maintenance from a central interface. Such systems of content management provide procedures to manage workflow in a collaborative environment. - Wikipedia

How is using Social Media like a CMS?

In Twitter, you write something...

How is using Social Media like a CMS?

and in seconds, it's published!

Why a CMS makes life easier

1. Easy to edit content

2. Preview before making it live

3. Extended functionality

4. Templates

5. Version management

6. User levels

7. Auto system updates

8. Searching

Common Open Source CMSes

Wordpress

Pros

● Lots of great templates● Great for blogging● Easy to set up

Cons

● Gets hacked into frequently● Doesn't scale well over time● E-commerce plugins don't scale

well

Concrete5

Pros

● Easy to use● Great for a medium size e-

commerce site (up to 2 products)● Very secure

Cons

● Not as many templates to choose from

How to choose a CMS for you

● Make sure you feel comfortable updating/maintaining the software, if not, hire someone who can

● Popular is not better, do not use it just because everyone else does

● Read the fine print, know what you are signing up with

● Simple template manipulation

● Helpful user community

● Research, look at examples, know the functionality you can use

● Quick and easy installation

● Simple administration interface

● Quick and easy extension of CMS for extra functionality

CMS = a clean, usable site

9 steps to a better, shinier site...

consistency ● logo always links to home, top left● navigation - horizontal (sub-nav, left side)● breadcrumb under the navigation● search box (always top right)

typography

● people are writing more to each other than using the phone● don’t use long lines, max character lengths of 55● scalable fonts

speed

Needs to load FAST

content

Publish on a regular basis

accessibility

Usable across all browsers/devices, google-friendly

technology

Don’t have it be THE reason for the website

interaction

Have customers use forms, surveys, comments, forums, tests, ratings, CONTRIBUTE!

web 2.0

Conversation!

Final Thoughts

CMS enables you to have a website you can update

Not all CMS platforms are the same

A CMS = a clean, usable site

Questions?

Nedra Rezinasnedra@canvasdreams.com@canvasdreams