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Step-by-step guide to selecting a WCMS

In today’s content-driven online environment, the ability to effectively deliver engaging, accurate, relevant information in the right format at the right time via the right channel is imperative for any successful content strategy. Finding the ‘best-fit’ Web Content Management System (WCMS) to facilitate managing the content on your public, intranet and/or extranet websites is one of the first steps on that path to success.

With more than 2000 WCMS solutions to choose from where do you even start to look? Then add the complexity of each varying in price, purpose, and what it has to offer in features and functionality and that many systems provide much more than just content management capabilities; the lines in the sand between digital asset management (DAM) systems, marketing automation platforms (MAP), and other important online tools are blurring.Then you have to consider who you will engage to implement the new technology; whether you go with an in-house team, your agency of record, or need to seek outside help, selecting a service provider is as important, if not more so, than selecting the technology itself.

With so many technologies and service providers to choose from, how does an organization select the ones that with best meets their business and IT objectives?

There are choices.

There are many ways to go about making these important decisions, but simply put there are two main paths:

1. Engage knowledgeable consultants with deep industry experience and expertise, like Digital Clarity Group. If selections are part of their core business, the consultancy will have tools, frameworks, and methodologies that can help simplify and streamline the selection process. Applying a proven methodology to a selection initiative can expedite finding the right partners, as well as garner stakeholder support and help with the change management efforts that are essential to such an important decision.

2. Do it yourself with the help of our 8-Step Guide to a Successful WCMS Selection. Following our guide, and leveraging some of our selection support tools, provides the guidance you need to carry out a logical, well planned selection process, and can help your and your team avoid the pitfalls that have tripped up so many organizations.

So whether you engage an expert, do it yourself, or approach your selection with a combination of both, keep in mind the importance and impact these decisions will have your business as a whole. Making the wrong decision when it comes to technology or the partners you engage to help can have dire consequences of a mediocre implementation that is over-budget, past the projected timeline, and that under delivers on expected sales, marketing, or customer experience goals. Or worse, your planned implementation never sees a site go live at all.

Want to learn more about our selection expertise or have questions about our process, just let us know. Or why not take advantage of our free 3-in-30 no-sales-pitch-we-promise advisory session? You’ll have 30 minutes to ask our consultants three burning questions about your CMS and service provider selection.


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