Years ago, I was at a media industry conference, and a conversation started on what content management system, or CMS, we each used to publish and organize web site content. We talked about the pros and cons of our choices, and how our users and clients liked them. Then someone (I wish I remember who!) said, “No one loves their content management system.”
It’s true. No one loves their content management system.
The tool either gets out of the way and lets people do their job (in which case they’re indifferent), or it causes problems (in which case they hate it).
As with many things, the best CMSs are there to support what users need, maybe help bring some order or encourage a direction, and ultimately fade into the background. A good CMS is taken for granted.
Indifference is a high bar
In the real world, bringing supportive structure and sufficiently powerful tools is hard. The level of control needed (and what needs to be controlled!) varies between organization, departments, and individuals.
The WordPress editor
One of the reasons we like WordPress is that the new generation of editing tools (the block editor and full site editing), is creating a system that lets us curate which capabilities to make available for configuration and which ones should just work properly out of the box.
To be fair, one of the things we have the most hesitations about is the new generation of editing tools. They are trying to fill a tremendous amount of use cases for a huge chunk of the internet, and there are things they’re just not quite ready for. Most notably, stability and customizability.
Stability
WordPress historically took great care to be backwards compatible with each new release and feature. Arguably this was a significant factor in its wide adoption since for many people reliability is high on their list for a CMS. It’s still true that a well-designed WordPress site from years ago can still chug along just fine with solid hosting and routine updates. However, some of the newer features (notably, the block editor) have had enough changes with new versions that there are features we’re hesitant to rely on.
Customizability
There are still some ways of customizing newer WordPress tools that resist straightforward technical solutions. For example (as of our last need for a build) there was no officially supported best practice for a custom content type with required fields in required positions, such as a video post type with a required video block that must always be at the top of the page. While customizing built-in blocks is improving, there are still some missing pieces that mean a less tailored editing experience or replacing default blocks with third party ones (which erodes content longevity and portability).
Different approaches
Regardless of the tools or platforms, the hardest part is always understanding organizational and user needs, and being familiar enough with your tools to tailor them for that understanding.
There will always be a balance between configurability and simplicity. A more configurable CMS will give users more power and more tools, at the cost of additional complexity to use and greater risk of inconsistency. (Users need to be able to make some text larger than other text — but if they also find a new font for every page the site would quickly be a mishmash of different fonts.)
Unsurprisingly, there are a plethora of options on the market aiming at different kinds of balance between flexibility and power on the one side, and ease of use, consistency, and supportive structure on the other.
Just within the WordPress world, there are off-the-shelf theme options that require essentially no changes, and plugins like Elementor that seek to provide content editors with endless control over their pages.
The approach should match the needs
Either approach can be valid in the right situation, disastrous in the wrong one.
We often come in to work on sites that need help striking that balance. Some have a tangled historical archive full of ad hoc customizations with outdated design or branding decisions intermingled with content (too much control). Some a problem with manual workarounds, users frustrated they can’t achieve their objectives, and missed opportunities (too little control).
The key is to develop a clear understanding of current needs, future directions, and organizational objectives and design systems that provide tools that support and multiply user efforts rather than impede them.
The takeaway: If it feels complicated, ask
This is the biggest thing we try to reinforce, both to potential and current clients.
Working with your CMS should not feel like a struggle either because the tools you need just aren’t there or because you find yourself endlessly adjusting settings and cobbling together pieces to get what you want. The tools should be ready for you to use and with the options you need but not a ton that you don’t.
If it takes a lot of steps to do something that feels like it should be simple, that could be a sign that your CMS is making you cobble together a solution from bits and pieces or that it’s forcing you into a workaround for something that should be built in.
Even if you can make it work, there may be a better way that saves time and improves site and content cohesiveness for the future.
Tailored content management tools
Sometimes the solution is easy and sometimes it’s tough, but we can almost always help by taking a step back and looking at the tools we have on hand and the customized ones we can bring in.
You’re not on your own to try and force the content management system into submission. Especially in systems with robust developer tools like WordPress, there’s a good chance having the right tools could make things more efficient and less frustrating now, as well as set your site up for long term stability and success.