It’s a question that gets asked all the time: ‘which CMS is best to build my new website on’? Here are a few questions to ask yourself as you make that decision. For the sake of simplicity, we’ll take one that was asked recently, ‘WordPress vs SquareSpace for SEO’.
Will You Rely on a Web Developer?
If you don’t plan on working on the site yourself, then you should choose a web development partner you trust and use their recommendation. After all, you want the site to run smoothly and if a professional is going to do the work for you, their opinions matter too.
If you want to do much of the maintenance and upkeep yourself, then evaluate your proficiency with each platform and factor that into your decision. Is SquareSpace easier to use than WordPress? In many cases yes. If you’re new to website maintenance, maybe that’s the right choice. Shopify is another easy to use CMS for those with little website management experience.
How Important is SEO?
If you hope to get most of your sales through the site, SEO needs to be a major component in your decision. Getting back to our example, ‘should I use WordPress vs SquareSpace for SEO’, the less customizable CMS options (like SquareSpace) aren’t as easy to optimize as a WordPress site.
If you’re going to work toward lots of search engine traffic in the future, a more versatile site (like one built in WordPress) may be a good idea.
Are You Going to Hire an SEO?
Many site owners aren’t aware of it, but an experienced SEO is going to be capable of helping you with site maintenance. In fact, much of what we call ‘technical SEO’ is just that–site maintenance. If you’re talking to an SEO (or are planning to), get their opinion on which CMS is a better fit for their needs. They should be able to give you some feedback once they hear about your organization and near-term plans.
Summary
Think about who is going to work on the site. If it’s not you, get their opinion.
Think about how much you’re going to rely on web traffic and web sales. If search engine traffic is essential, a more versatile CMS (like WordPress) is a good idea.
If there is going to be an SEO professional working with you, get their opinion.
If you have questions about choosing a CMS or anything else related to building a site or getting more from the site you have, get in touch, we’re happy to help.