Articles - Page 107

Not All Heroes Wear Capes. Here's Why CMS Is Your 'Unsung Hero' in 2025

janus-boye

As we move forward with our featured coverage of <a href="http://www.agilitycms.com/" target="_blank">Agility CMS</a>, it’s time to take a look at look at something the company’s CEO, Jonathan Voigt, calls, “Feature Bloat”.
Agility CMS provides cloud-based digital content management solutions for top brands across the globe.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/agilitypaw.jpeg" />
According to Jonathan Voigt, the feature set of any given CMS should be seen as but one dimension of the total solution — no matter how long the feature list happens to be. I’ll allow him to explain in his own words, directly from his recent interview with Mike Johnston:
<blockquote>“[One CMS will say], “we have all of these features, and another will say we [also] have all of these features.
[The problem is that] CMSs are rated on their feature sets, without looking at the bigger benefits.
People just do a feature comparison, saying, “this CMS has 200 features, I’ll go with that.”
But then you can’t even use those features because they’re either too complex or too expensive to implement.
[Instead, the customer should ask themselves], “What’s my budget, do I need support, and what’s the top few features that I need 100%?”</blockquote>
<h2>Making Great Use of a Diverse Partner List</h2>
In line with the above quote, Agility focuses more on doing what they feel they do best — building and managing great websites.
By welcoming partnerships with a range of other companies and third-party tools, Agility aims to form the best solution possible for different customers and projects each and every time.
Jillean Kearney, Agility’s Marketing Manager, explains:
<blockquote>“We partner with other companies and third party tools to get the very best in e-commerce platforms, ticketing systems and more.
This way, each solution built on Agility CMS is specifically tailored to exactly what each customer needs. Our partner network is really important to us for this very reason.”</blockquote>
These numerous partners mentioned by Jillean Kearney <a href="http://agilitycms.com/partners">can be found right here</a>.
One example can be found in the partnership between Agility and Bushfire North. Together, the two Toronto-based companies have built websites for Chapman’s Kids Club and the Toronto Symphony Orchestra.
Bushfire North praised Agility for its multi-lingual capabilities, cloud-based nature, scalability and its excellent level of support to the customer.
Agility have also teamed up with Point Alliance in the past, <a href="http://agilitycms.com/resources/case-study-hockey-canada">taking them as a development partner for the Hockey Canada website</a>.
Craig Cameron the Senior Manager of the Hockey Canada website also praised Agility for their support system, speed and ease of use.
<h2>A CMS First &amp; Foremost</h2>
Essentially, Agility are setting themselves apart from the rest of the herd by going without “one-size-fits-all” solutions.
Their approach has an objective of being more refined, more tailored and more about actual content management in the truest sense of the term.
To find out more about Agility CMS, <a href="http://www.agilitycms.com/" target="_blank">visit their website</a>, or check them out through our <a href="/products/agility-cms/" target="_blank">CMS Directory</a>.

Why Agility CMS Doesn’t Partake In “Feature Bloating”

mike-johnston

Many companies across the world, both big and small, endeavour to make work as enjoyable as possible for their employees. <a href="http://www.agilitycms.com/" target="_blank">Agility</a> though, seem to be amongst the select few that are genuinely succeeding.
Agility CMS provides cloud-based digital content management solutions for top brands across the globe.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/agilitypaw.jpeg" style="max-width:500px" />
Following an <a href="/cms-critic-interviews-jonathan-voigt-of-agility-cms/" target="_blank">interesting interview</a> and a <a href="/agility-cms-walkthrough-video-with-cms-critic/" target="_blank">sneak peek at an upcoming release</a> with CEO Jonathan Voigt, Agility’s CEO, I’m taking a look at the culture that drives the Agility CMS team.
Speaking of Jonathan Voigt, here’s what he has to say about the role and quality of his employees:
<blockquote>“Agility's greatest attribute is its people. We have an amazing team that is made up of smart, passionate and committed individuals, and we're all aligned under the same goal of providing the best experiences for our customers and anyone that comes into contact with the company.”</blockquote>
Jillean Kearney, Agility’s Marketing Manager, also chimed in on what it’s like to work at Agility:
<blockquote>“Our culture is something we’re really proud of and we’re always fostering. Agility is a fun place to work. It’s a great team to be a part of.”</blockquote>
Let’s now take a look at this company culture in action.
<h2>Healthy Bodies, Healthy Software &amp; Lots of Fun</h2>
The stereotypically unhealthy tech geek staring at a screen for twenty hours straight isn’t an attractive image — nor is it a professional one. Thankfully, the software buffs at Agility CMS are helping to break the mould.
A recent Go-Karting trip for instance, is one way by which the Agility team bonds in a healthy and competitive way.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/dsc_0123_11079x0.jpg" />
The team’s <a href="http://agilitycms.com/News/What-its-Like-to-Work-at-Agility" target="_blank">participation in the Toronto Warrior Dash</a> is another example.
Made up of over three miles of tough terrain, it’s the largest obstacle race in the world. So naturally, the Agility team saw fit to conquer it together.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/before-after-warrior-dash.jpg" />
Aside from matching t-shirts, there’s nothing quite like crawling through mud to bring a team together!
<h2>A Community Conscious Company</h2>
On top of making life (and work) more pleasant for its own employees, Agility’s company culture also encompasses the wider community. Here’s how.
Four times a year, one Agility employee chooses a cause that's important to them, and the entire team rallies together to think of ways to actively help.
For example, the company recently <a href="http://agilitycms.com/News/The-Agility-Team-Donated-200-Books-to-the-Childrens-Book-Bank" target="_blank">donated 200 books to the Children’s Book Bank</a>, a charity that provides free books and literacy support to children in the city's low-income neighborhoods.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/childrens-book-bank-collection.jpg" />
On another occasion, the local Toronto Zoo received some attention as Agility fittingly adopted a Jaguar.
She’s called Zambuca, and she is apparently the coolest member of the Agility team — which isn’t something I’m going to dispute (at least not to her face).
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/zoo-zambuca.png" />
Agility also took time out to support the Leukemia &amp; Lymphoma Society of Canada (LLSC), participating in a “Light the Night” walk.
Amy Wong, Agility’s Technical Project Manager, sums things up nicely:
<blockquote>“It's pretty awesome to work for a company that cares as much about the community as Agility does. Not only is it good for the community, but it brings us closer together and is great for team-building.”</blockquote>
And that’s why it looks truly awesome to work for Agility. So, kudos to the entire Agility team, for both their fun-loving nature and their charitable work.
To find out more about Agility CMS, <a href="http://www.agilitycms.com/" target="_blank">visit their website</a>, or check them out through our <a href="/products/agility-cms/" target="_blank">CMS Directory</a>.

Fun, Fitness & Community Outreach: Why Working at Agility CMS Looks Truly Awesome

After an <a href="/cms-critic-interviews-jonathan-voigt-of-agility-cms/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">interview with Jonathan Voigt</a>, our featured week with <a href="http://www.agilitycms.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Agility CMS</a> is in motion.
The interview took place when Mike Johnston stopped by the Agility headquarters in Toronto, where Mr Voigt also made time to take Mike through a sneak peek of Agility CMS' latest project — including a brand new UI never publicly seen before.
If you're unfamiliar with Agility CMS, or if you're simply interested in what's in store with their latest upcoming release, then this video is for you.
<iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/UCn3zKfh0Zg?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
To find out more about Agility CMS, <a href="http://www.agilitycms.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">visit their website</a>, or check them out through our <a href="/products/agility-cms/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">CMS Directory</a>.

Agility CMS: A Sneak Peek Walkthrough Video with CMS Critic

The recent CMS Critic North American Tour saw Mike Johnston stop off at the headquarters of <a href="http://www.agilitycms.com/" target="_blank">Agility CMS</a>.
Agility provides cloud-based digital content management solutions for top brands across the globe. The Agility Team has years of experience providing top-notch solutions and professional services, and they’ve leveraged that expertise to build a flexible, powerful and intuitive CMS platform that powers websites welcoming millions of visitors per day.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/agilityteam700x0.jpg" />
After meeting with the team, Mike had a chance to sit down and chat with the CEO and Founder of Agility CMS, Jonathan Voigt.
<iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/NOjCDuukUFk?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
This interview kicks off yet another <a href="/featured-weeks/" target="_blank">featured week here at CMS Critic</a>, with our focus shifting totally towards Agility CMS.
To find out more about Agility CMS, <a href="http://www.agilitycms.com/" target="_blank">visit their website</a>, or check them out through our <a href="/products/agility-cms/" target="_blank">CMS Directory</a>.

CMS Critic Interviews Jonathan Voigt of Agility CMS

CS-Cart, the popular eCommerce solution, has released a newer, faster version of itself.
The platform comes in two editions; CS-Cart and CS-Cart Multi-Vendor. The latter is an extended version of the software, enabling larger outlets to manage and operate from different branches and departments via one website.
Previously, the platform was <a href="/cs-cart-offering-five-free-1-year-licenses-to-beta-testers/" target="_blank">offering Beta testers of CS-Cart 4.3.1 five free 1-year licenses</a>.
<h2>Speed, Blogging &amp; A Variety of Enhancements </h2>
Both CS-Cart and CS-Cart Multi-vendor have benefitted from this update.
Most notably, this latest version is faster than any other release before it thanks to:
<ul>
<li>SQL query optimization speeds up product search and filtering.</li>
<li>Optimized caching makes the search faster, if you call the same search twice. Storefront pages also load faster on the second visit because CS-Cart 4.3.1 caches the content during the first visit.</li>
<li>CS-Cart 4.3.1 supports <a href="http://php.net/manual/en/intro.apc.php" target="_blank">Alternative PHP Cache</a>. This technology speeds up PHP scripts on your server. Even well-optimized websites load with a delay because it takes time to execute PHP scripts. APC cache shortens this delay.</li>
<li>JavaScript code was moved to the bottom of pages so that the code doesn’t slow down page loading. Store pages now load faster on the first visit.</li>
</ul>
Additionally, a new CS-Cart <a href="http://blog.cs-cart.com/2015/03/16/blog-add-on-make-a-blog-inside-your-store/" target="_blank">Blog add-on</a> lets you create a fully functional blog inside your store. Naturally, this will help merchants to keep their customers informed by posting news and special offers.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/blogaddon.png" />
Further enhancements include importing and exporting, a user-friendly upgrade center, and more.
For more information on CS-Cart 4.3.1, <a href="http://blog.cs-cart.com/2015/04/29/cs-cart-and-multi-vendor-4-3-1-released/" target="_blank">check out the official blog announcement</a>.

CS-Cart 4.3.1 Released

Selecting a Joomla template is always a worthwhile job, especially when there are so many free and premium templates available for download. Due to the abundance of ready-made designs, sometimes it’s difficult to decide which option will meet your requirements perfectly – a free or a premium theme.
To help you understand the difference and pick the best solution for your next online project, we have decided to write this post where premium and free Joomla themes will be compared.
We will define the key benefits and drawbacks of each solution and provide several cool examples of free &amp; premium Joomla themes.
<h2>Premium Joomla Templates</h2>
There is an ongoing debate as to which type of template one should choose for one’s future website. While some prefer free Joomla templates because of their zero cost, many others are ready to pay for premium designs that offer a wider selection of features and tasty bonuses.
We will talk about free Joomla themes a little bit later in this post. First, let’s highlight the key pros and cons of premium designs.
<h3>Pros of Premium Joomla Templates</h3>
<h4>Advanced features</h4>
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/wegy.jpg" />
Compared to freemium solutions, premium Joomla themes come loaded with advanced functionality that makes it easier to manage the chosen theme on your own without investing too much time and effort.
The competition is very tough in today’s market, so, in order to be in demand among web users, developers try hard to load their templates with advanced functionality that will make them stand out from competing themes.
Here, to attract your attention and create a desire to test how the following theme works, <a href="http://www.templatemonster.com/responsive-joomla-templates/" target="_blank">TemplateMonster</a> released <a href="http://www.templatemonster.com/joomla-templates/53576.html" target="_blank">Wegy</a>, a revolutionary Joomla template that features every element you might need in order to build a business, education, electronics, software, science, industrial or a personal web site. We enumerated such a comprehensive list of industries that vary from one another for a reason.
This multipurpose Joomla template comes with an easy-to-use admin panel, advanced theme options and multiple Joomla Modules that make it easier to manage the theme in so many ways.
<a href="http://www.templatemonster.com/joomla-templates/53576.html"> View this theme </a> <a href="http://www.templatemonster.com/demo/53576.html"> Live demo </a>
<h4>Updates</h4>
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/katana.jpg" />
Joomla is a constantly updating technology, so the theme and plugins incorporated into your website should meet the latest web standards. When you decide to build your website with a premium theme, make sure that your theme provider will send you updates when they are available. It’s the responsibility of developers to deliver updated and compatible versions of their products to you on time.
Buying <a href="http://yootheme.com/demo/joomla/katana" target="_blank">Katana</a> for your web project, you will be able to select among three membership plans. Depending on your needs and purposes, you can opt for a Basic, Standard or Developer license, all of which provide technical support and regular updates as well as monthly theme releases.
<a href="http://yootheme.com/themes/buy-now"> View this theme </a> <a href="http://yootheme.com/demo/joomla/katana"> Live demo </a>
<h4>Support</h4>
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/pintex.jpg" />
Together with releasing updates, developers of premium Joomla templates provide free support to make it easier for a client to install and manage the product he or she acquired.
If you consider buying a premium Joomla template from TemplateMonster like <a href="http://www.templatemonster.com/joomla-templates/53199.html" target="_blank">Pintex</a>, for instance, you may feel confident that together with its advanced functionality and 9 functional pages (a feature that is new to premium themes from this provider) you will get free 24/7 support provided by a team of skilled professionals.
Designed to be fully responsive and cross browser compatible, the template provides a wide selection of features to make it functional from the inside and visually pleasing.
<a href="http://www.templatemonster.com/joomla-templates/53199.html"> View this theme </a> <a href="http://www.templatemonster.com/demo/53199.html"> Live demo </a>
<h4>Save your time</h4>
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/iridescent.jpg" />
By purchasing a template, you don’t need to spend time creating a design that will make your business stand out; nor would you have to sweat over coding. A team of designers and programmers will get the job done for you.
By downloading a website template you get a ready-made solution for building or updating your online resource. Just install, customize, add your content, and apply any other adjustment you might need to create a unique website that is yours.
Featuring a tile-based layout that is so trendy today, <a href="http://www.rockettheme.com/joomla/templates/iridescent" target="_blank">Iridescent</a> looks balanced and appealing. Its full-width header slider, Mega Menu and images with hover effect will add a truly elegant and stylish look to your site. Valid code and advanced functionality will make it much easier to create a desired design.
<a href="http://www.rockettheme.com/joomla/templates/iridescent"> View this theme </a> <a href="http://demo.rockettheme.com/joomla-templates/iridescent/"> Live demo </a>
<h4>Responsive design</h4>
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/globy.jpg" />
Considering the most recent Google mobile-friendly update, there is a growing trend to make your website adaptive to any screen size and resolution. In order to relieve you from the necessity of creating a separate mobile version of your website or struggle with programming a responsive framework for your website on your own, responsive Joomla themes are released. Many of them are available for public download.
<a href="http://www.templatemonster.com/joomla-templates/53528.html" target="_blank">Globy</a> is a 100% responsive premium Joomla template that will help your website run smoothly on any device. It features a one-page design with Parallax scrolling and lazy loading effects, which will not only add more interactivity to your site, but also enhance page loading.
<a href="http://www.templatemonster.com/joomla-templates/53528.html"> View this theme </a> <a href="http://www.templatemonster.com/demo/53528.html"> Live demo </a>
<h3>Cons of Premium Joomla Templates</h3>
With so many advantages it seems premium Joomla themes should have no drawbacks. However, that is not exactly accurate. Read further to see the key cons of premium Joomla templates.
<h4>Cost</h4>
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/spaghetti.jpg" />
While premium Joomla templates boast rich functionality, not every startup or beginning web developer can afford them. High price is one of the key reasons why web users have to shift to freebies.
<a href="http://www.themexpert.com/joomla-templates/spaghetti" target="_blank">Spaghetti</a>, for instance, is a premium-quality theme that runs on the latest Joomla version and has a fully responsive, dynamic and flexible layout. However, its cost is the factor that stops users from downloading the theme to their toolbox.
<a href="http://www.themexpert.com/joomla-templates/spaghetti"> View this theme </a> <a href="http://demo.themexpert.com/#spaghetti"> Live demo </a>
<h4>Unnecessary features</h4>
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/jm_fitness.jpg" />
It depends on every user and their end purpose why they decide to download this or that theme. As a rule, premium-quality designs look awesome and come loaded with a vast array of features. However, you may not need them all. You might be using one set or several sub-sets of the total number of features. All the rest will be left untouched.
<a href="https://www.joomla-monster.com/all-templates/i/13-health/128-jm-fitness" target="_blank">JM Fitness</a> is a fully-featured, multipurpose solution for creating a sport, healthy lifestyle or food related website. It is powered by a fully responsive framework and includes a number of modules and extensions to make your website look truly awesome. Slider &amp; galleries, CSS3 animation system, various font type options, collapsible module positions, commercial components, and plenty of other features are included in the package.
<a href="https://www.joomla-monster.com/all-templates/i/13-health/128-jm-fitness"> View this theme </a> <a href="http://demo.joomla-monster.com/238-jm-fitness"> Live demo </a>
<h2>Free Joomla Templates</h2>
Here comes the part where we’ll talk about the key pros &amp; cons of free Joomla themes. Once again, it’s up to you to decide which option to choose. We will highlight only the main points that make free Joomla themes worthy of your attention, or vice versa.
<h3>Pros of Free Joomla Templates</h3>
<h4>Cost</h4>
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/yougrids.jpg" />
The feature that we mentioned as a drawback of premium designs is actually a benefit of freebies. Free themes won’t cost you a penny. Just download and use.
<a href="http://www.youjoomla.com/joomla-templates/yougrids-free-joomla-template-yjsg-powered.html" target="_blank">YouGrids</a> is one of many Joomla themes that are available for free download. It is the first Joomla theme ever based on YjSimpleGrid Joomla! Template framework. Compatible with 1.5, 1.6, 1.7 and 2.5 versions of this platform, the template comes loaded with a full set of YJSG features, awesome styles and layout options.
<a href="http://www.youjoomla.com/joomla-templates/yougrids-free-joomla-template-yjsg-powered.html"> View this theme </a> <a href="http://joomlatemplates.youjoomla.info/yougrids/"> Live demo </a>
<h4>Settings and configurations</h4>
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/td_optes.jpg" />
Different theme providers release freemium Joomla themes that vary in the amount of settings and configurations. It’s possible to find a design that you can download at no cost and get functionality similar to the one of premium themes. As the proverb says, “all good things come to those who wait”, so keep searching and you will find a freebie that meets your needs.
<a href="http://www.joomlatd.com/joomla-templates/free-templates/view_document/59-td-optes-free.html" target="_blank">TD Optes</a> is one of those free Joomla templates that boasts a vast array of options and modules that should make it easier to build a competitive web resource at no cost.
<a href="http://www.joomlatd.com/joomla-templates/free-templates/view_document/59-td-optes-free.html"> View this theme </a> <a href="http://demo3.joomlatd.com/?template=td_optes"> Live demo </a>
<h4>Stylish appearance</h4>
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/ulmus.jpg" />
Though most free templates have a rather common design, some of them have quite an outstanding appearance, for instance <a href="http://www.templatemonster.com/interior-furniture-free-joomla-template.html" target="_blank">Ulmus</a>.
This is a free Joomla theme for an interior and furniture website that was designed with the latest web design trends in mind. For instance, it features a full-width layout with a grid-based structure, ghost elements, parallax scrolling and lazy load effects, large and vivid social sharing options, etc. It is built in a clean and minimalist style, which makes it easier to navigate through its pages.
<a href="http://www.templatemonster.com/interior-furniture-free-joomla-template.html"> View this theme </a> <a href="http://www.templatemonster.com/demo/52986.html"> Live demo </a>
<h4>Access to forums</h4>
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/recycle.jpg" />
It’s more the exception than the rule, but some template developers provide access to community forums to help you with the setup and modification of the chosen theme.
This is the case with <a href="https://www.joomlashack.com/free-joomla-templates/recycle-free-ecological" target="_blank">Recycle</a>, a free Joomla theme that comes with access to a Community Forum where every client can find answers to questions about installation and customization of Joomla themes.
<a href="https://www.joomlashack.com/free-joomla-templates/recycle-free-ecological"> View this theme </a> <a href="http://recycle.joomlatemplate.joomlashack.com/"> Live demo </a>
<h3>Cons of Free Joomla Templates</h3>
<h4>No support</h4>
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/vina_fashion_ii.jpg" />
Unlike premium templates, freemium templates don’t come with any warranty or support. All you get is a pack with detailed documentation on installation and modification of your Joomla theme.
So, when downloading <a href="http://vinagecko.com/joomla-templates/item/111-vina-fashion-ii" target="_blank">Vina Fashion II</a> don’t expect it to come with top-notch personalized support.
<a href="http://vinagecko.com/joomla-templates/item/111-vina-fashion-ii"> View this theme </a> <a href="http://templates.vinagecko.com/?template=vina_fashion"> Live demo </a>
<h4>Common design</h4>
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/sj_joomla3.jpg" />
Most free themes have a rather common design. So, if you are looking for a solution that will help you create a unique website or a blog, then a free theme isn’t what you need if you wish to leave your competitors behind.
<a href="http://www.smartaddons.com/blog/item/345-sj-joomla3-free-template-for-joomla-3x" target="_blank">SJ Joomla3</a> is one of those common free Joomla designs that we often come across on the web. However, if your goal is building an online resource with the main emphasis on content rather than web design elements, then this could be the right option for you.
<a href="http://www.smartaddons.com/blog/item/345-sj-joomla3-free-template-for-joomla-3x"> View this theme </a> <a href="http://demo.smartaddons.com/templates/joomla3/sj-joomla3/"> Live demo </a>
<h4>Limited functionality</h4>
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/td_combeta.jpg" />
Lastly, there are a few theme providers who release freebies with extended functionality. If you want more features, you will need to pay extra cash in order to add more functional elements to your work.
<a href="http://www.joomlatd.com/joomla-templates/free-templates/view_document/16-td-combeta.html" target="_blank">Td Combeta</a> features a Flash header, Google fonts, Dropdown menu, manageable layouts, and basically that’s all.
<a href="http://www.joomlatd.com/joomla-templates/free-templates/view_document/16-td-combeta.html"> View this theme </a> <a href="http://joomla5.joomlatd.com/?mod_change_template_99=td_combeta&amp;&amp;template=td_combeta"> Live demo </a>
Which option will you choose for your website or a blog? Do freebies attract you more than premium templates? Feel free to let us know your opinion by leaving a comment below this post.

Free & Premium Joomla Templates: A Comparison

Weglot - The easiest way to translate a website

The easiest way to translate a website

#18164c

<a href="https://ghost.org/" target="_blank">Ghost</a> isn't exactly brand new anymore, but it's definitely still an exciting project.
The free and cloud-hosted blogging platform is attracting bloggers from far and wide with its snazzy interface and welcoming attitude. The platform was even crowned as the <a href="/2014-most-promising-cms/" target="_blank">2014 Critics' Choice Award Winner for Most Promising CMS</a>.
However, as feature-rich as Ghost is, there's always been something quite fundamental missing from its otherwise awesome content editor. A spull chack. I mean spell check.
<h2>General Tweaks &amp; Built-in Spell Check</h2>
Ghost have introduced mobile image uploads, more responsive scrolling and a fix to stop the cursor getting lost when navigating with keyboard arrows.
Oh, and Ghost's built-in spell check function now finally works.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/editor-upgrade.png" />
This update seems subtle, but Ghost insist that it took a massive under-the-hood overhaul to achieve. In the end though, the general Ghost use-base won't notice much of a difference.
Ghost's founder John O'Nolan summed it up by  saying, “[It's] basically the same editor that you’re used to writing with, it just sucks a lot less.”
Find out more about <a href="http://blog.ghost.org/ghost-spellcheck/" target="_blank">Ghost's slyly improved eidtor</a>.
<h2>Lifting The Lid on Two Years of Spending</h2>
April 29th 2013 was when Ghost went live on Kickstarter, eventually raking in $300,000 worth of funding.
In line with Ghost's extremely open and friendly attitude towards all that use and consider it, the team behind the platform have decided to expose their entire two year's worth of spending — in detail.
You can see <a href="http://blog.ghost.org/year-2/" target="_blank">where all the pennies went right here</a>.
Otherwise, be sure to explore more of <a href="/products/ghost/" target="_blank">Ghost via our CMS Directory</a>.

Ghost Upgrades Content Editor & Reveals Spending Details

Considered to be one of the biggest names in eCommerce industry, <a href="/products/bigcommerce">Bigcommerce</a> has just released an interesting new feature, named Bigcommerce Insights.<a href="/products/bigcommerce">Bigcommerce</a> already has an analytics system in place for its merchants, but the platform seeks to add a whole new layer of effectivity through the introduction of Insights.According to Bigcommerce, “Bigcommerce Insights is a brand new premium report in Bigcommerce Analytics that automatically interprets your product and customer data, and then delivers actionable recommendations you can use to improve your business. Like your very own data analyst, Insights works for your store, helping you to identify opportunities to drive more revenue. “<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/main-insights.png" /><h2>Marketers Rejoice</h2>Clearly, this new feature is one for the marketers among Bigcommerce's user base.The added performance metrics will help marketers make better decisions about their campaigns, while recommended actions will only make life easier.Here's a break down of all the new features that come with Bigcommerce Insights.<h3>Product Insights</h3><ul><li>Products to Improve: Among your most visited products, these are your worst converters.</li><li>Rockstar Products: These are your most visited, best-converting products.</li><li>Non-Sellers: These products are not selling at all.</li><li>Most Discounted Products: See the performance of your discounted products.</li><li>Hot Products: These products had the most revenue growth from the week prior.</li><li>Cold Products: These products had the largest revenue drop from the week prior.</li><li>Products Purchased Together: For each of your top-selling products, this shows the related product with which it is most frequently sold.</li></ul><h3>Customer Insights</h3><ul><li>Best Customers: These recent customers purchase often and spend the most.</li><li>Customers at Risk: These are high-value customers who last ordered between 30-365 days ago.</li><li>Repeat Purchase Rate: The percentage of customers who made a repeat purchase, and how long in between orders repeat purchases take place.</li><li>Best Products for Repeat Purchase: Customers who purchased these products were most likely to purchase again.</li><li>Viewed But Did Not Purchase: These customers viewed the same product more than once but didn’t purchase.</li><li>Customer LTV (Lifetime Value): This is the average amount the customer has spent by a certain point after registering.</li><li>Best Full Price Customers: These are your customers that buy even without discounts.</li><li>Low AOV Customers: These are customers who are in the top 20% for orders but lowest 20% for spending.</li></ul><h3>Abandoned Cart &amp; Marketing Insights</h3><ul><li>Most Abandoned Products: These products have the most associated abandoned carts.</li><li>Customer LTV By Channel: This report shows which marketing channel brings customers with the highest lifetime value.</li></ul>You can read more about <a target="_blank" href="http://blog.bigcommerce.com/bigcommerce-insights/">Bigcommerce Insights via the official blog announcement</a>.Also, be sure to explore more of <a href="/products/bigcommerce">Bigcommerce via our CMS Directory</a>. Plus, you can check out our <a href="/bigcommerce-review/">Bigcommerce review right here</a>.

Bigcommerce Bolsters Built-in Analytics With Insights

By delivering over 10,000 videos across client websites, <a href="http://www.uscreen.tv/" target="_blank">Uscreen</a> has already gained plenty of traction despite only launching in 2013.
Now though, the platform has its eyes firmly set on the video subscription market.
Uscreen is adopting a slightly new direction to provide video vendors the opportunity to monetize their content in a simple, yet successfully proven way.
Here’s a short video demonstrating the capabilities of Uscreen.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kzcX2qFNvKc
<h2>Start a Video Subscription Website With Your Content</h2>
Uscreen enables you to create a digital storefront, similar to that of most other eCommerce websites, along with a fully-functioning subscription service, giving members access to all video content.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/uscreen_library.png" />
Thi allows merchants to sell videos individually, or offer their videos in bulk for members to enjoy with a monthly subscription. Naturally, these models work well for both movie makers and lesson teachers alike.
Here’s a simplified breakdown of Uscreen’s core features:
<ul>
<li>Uscreen enables users to setup your own “NetFlix-style” Subscription/Membership Website.</li>
<li>Users can custom White label native Mobile apps for iOS &amp; Android.</li>
<li>Merchants can fully white label the platform on the web.</li>
<li>Security &amp; DRM Protected.</li>
<li>Includes cloud hosting of videos.</li>
<li>Built in LMS (Learning Management System) features such as Testing &amp; Certifications, Scheduling, Courses, Progress Reports. </li>
<li>Chapter Menu Setup</li>
<li>Chapters can include Videos, Audio (Podcasts), PDF’s, Links to websites</li>
<li>Android apps make the viewing experience more enjoyable, and videos more accessible.</li>
</ul>
The flexibility of Uscreen (which comes thanks to LMS features as well as video subscription and eCommerce functionality), means that its uses are many.
Essentially, the emergence of Uscreen means that amateur film makers can now sell access to their work, while professionals from all industries can begin sharing their knowledge via video in a profitable manner.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/ipad_chapters.png" />
Uscreen even gives YouTube and Vine celebrities a new avenue to explore for their own blossoming careers.
Furthermore, Uscreen’s mobile and app features mean that companies and individuals can stretch their presence to customer’s smartphones and tablets without needing to resort to another tool.
<h2>Pricing</h2>
Uscreen’s pricing structure, which starts from $49.95 per month plus a 15% revenue share, doesn’t freeze out startups or small businesses.
In fact, Uscreen’s pricing places it as a uniquely professional video selling and streaming service for the masses.
To find out more about Uscreen, <a href="http://www.uscreen.tv/" target="_blank">visit their website</a>.
Also, we have a complete review of Uscreen in the works, so stay tuned for a more thorough breakdown of the platform by yours truly.

Set up Your Own Video Subscription Website With Uscreen

We have focused heavily on <a href="http://www.sitefinity.com/" target="_blank">Telerik Sitefinity</a> over this past featured week here at CMS Critic, and it’s now time to see the product off with an overview of its massive user base.
Telerik Sitefinity is an ASP.NET web content management system, eCommerce solution, and marketing platform.
As I will soon discuss, thousands of brands make use of Telerik products, and for good reason.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/sitefinitylogo_wtagline_rgb_400x0.png" style="max-width:400px" />
Recently, Sitefinity CMS received the 2014 Critics' Choice CMS Award for Best Enterprise .NET CMS.
During the recent CMS Critic North American Tour, Mike Johnston had the chance to interview Robert Mattson, Telerik's Director of Product Marketing. Mike also had the pleasure of witnessing a detailed Sitefinity walkthrough delivered by Telerik’s Product Marketing Manager, Svetla Yankova.
Now, let’s take a closer look at the many organizations that benefit from Telerik’s line of enterprise-grade products.
<h2>Serving Brands Everywhere</h2>
Sitefinity CMS serves over 11,000 customers across the globe, from a wide range of different industries.
Big names making use of Sitefinity include Toyota, NASA, Nestle, BBC, KIA, Gatorade and Heinz. An impressive selection of customers indeed.
I previously spoke about some of the benefits that Americaneagle.com were seegin there customers gaining from using Telerik Sitefinity Digital Experience Cloud. However, that success story is simply a few of many.
Take the following testimonials as a few examples.
<blockquote>“Being able to control content 24/7/365 has greatly increased our ability to quickly inform clients about current happenings within the company. Sitefinity has proved to be user-friendly and a valuable tool in running our website and business.”
– Jeff Doepker, President of The Doepker Group</blockquote>
<blockquote>“The Sitefinity CMS was selected for the amount of out-of-the-box robust and extensible modules and functionality, which reduced the need to custom-build the functionality and ultimately, provided for a more rapid implementation.”
– Shelly Murray, Habanero</blockquote>
<blockquote>“Sitefinity has given us the flexibility to distribute content through an easy-to-use administration facility with approval processes, saving on administration costs. It has assisted us in fine tuning our efforts in search engine placement which has led to a number of new business opportunities.”
– Ray Desmond, CEO of Radmix</blockquote>
Learn more about some of the <a href="http://www.sitefinity.com/customers/overview">industries, brands and organizations served by Telerik</a>.
You can also read through a long list of <a href="http://www.sitefinity.com/customers/showcases?country=All">company case studies right here</a>.
For more details on Sitefinity <a href="http://www.sitefinity.com/" target="_blank">visit their website</a>. You can also explore more of <a href="/products/sitefinity">Sitefinity via our CMS Directory</a>.

Far & Wide: A Closer Look At Sitefinity's Broad Customer Base

As our featured coverage of Telerik continues, I’m taking a closer look at the platform’s analytical capabilities behind the <a href="http://www.sitefinity.com/digital-experience-cloud" target="_blank">Telerik Digital Experience Cloud</a>.
Telerik Sitefinity is an ASP.NET web content management system, eCommerce solution, and marketing platform, with the Telerik Digital Experience Cloud making up the product’s marketing arm.
<img style="max-width:400px" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/sitefinitylogo_wtagline_rgb_400x0.png" />
The newly launched Digital Experience Cloud is designed to work in sync with Sitefinity CMS, but can be leveraged by non Sitefinity CMS websites, helping marketers to analyze trends, segment audiences and eventually convert more custom.
Thousands of brands across the world trust Telerik products with their online presence, including the likes of Toyota and NASA. Recently, Sitefinity CMS received the 2014 Critics' Choice CMS Award for Best Enterprise .NET CMS.
During the recent CMS Critic North American Tour, Mike Johnston had the chance to interview Robert Mattson, Telerik's Director of Product Marketing. Mike also had the pleasure of witnessing a detailed Sitefinity walkthrough delivered by Telerik’s Product Marketing Manager, Svetla Yankova.
<h2>A Digital Command Center</h2>
The video below shows, Tim Ahlenius, the Director of Experience Marketing at Americaneagle.com, give a useful insight into how the Telerik Digital Experience Cloud works, and how it benefits marketers, and the brands with which he works.
<iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/l_cx-5oPves?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
The impact of Tim Ahlenius’ words are magnified by the fact that he works directly with organizations that are leveraging the Digital Experience Cloud. Here’s some quotes which I found particularly interesting:
“The Digital Experience Cloud provides marketers with a digital command center, that unified all the data from all their systems, and takes the guesswork out of their job.
The segmentation capabilities within the Digital Experience Cloud will provide [marketers] with the ability to specifically engage and provide a personalized experience for each of the different segments.
The predictive analytics engine will allow them to engage with their users in order to provide the correct content at the correct time.”
<h2>Campaign Tracking, Conversion tracking &amp; Predictive Analytics</h2>
I previously touched on <a href="/an-overview-of-sitefinitys-content-management-digital-experience-features/">some of the general features of the Digital Experience Cloud</a>, but it’s now time to take a closer look at three specific dimensions of the marketing solution.
First up, conversion tracking in the Sitefinity Digital Experience Cloud provides a historic view of any conversion, short or long term, along with data about which campaigns and assets contributed most.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/conversion-tracking.jpg" />
More importantly though, this feature uses past conversion data to provide predictions and recommendations, aiding marketers with their decisions and future campaigns.
Speaking of campaigns, the Digital Experience Cloud’s campaign tracking feature validates current performance and conversion rates against conversion rates the system predicts.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/campaign.jpg" />
Tracking how different activities affect results provides visibility into the effectiveness of each campaign.
Finally, the Sitefinity Digital Experience Cloud also calculates a very important number for each audience segment: the potential conversion increase in the next 30 days.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/recommendation.jpg" />
This predictive analytical engine helps marketers optimize their conversion rates so they can focus on the activities and programs that carry most impact. The educated predictions constantly provides new recommendations for a “Best Next Action” to drive customers toward the desired action.
Learn more about <a href="http://www.sitefinity.com/digital-experience-cloud">Sitefinity Digital Experience Cloud</a>.
For more details on Sitefinity <a href="http://www.sitefinity.com/" target="_blank">visit their website</a>. You can also explore more of <a href="/products/sitefinity">Sitefinity via our CMS Directory</a>.

The Analytical Engine Behind The Sitefinity Digital Experience Cloud

As our featured coverage of <a href="http://www.sitefinity.com/" target="_blank">Telerik Sitefinity</a> continues, I’m taking a look at Sitefinity as an eCommerce solution.
Recently acquired by <a href="https://www.progress.com/" target="_blank">Progress</a>, Telerik Sitefinity is an ASP.NET web content management system, a marketing platform and an eCommerce solution. A CMS powerhouse, to say the least.
<img style="max-width:400px" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/sitefinitylogo_wtagline_rgb_400x0.png" />
Over 200 brands worldwide trust Sitefinity to power their online retailing systems. Recently, the platform received the <a href="/2014-critics-choice-award-winner-best-enterprise-net-cms/">2014 Critics' Choice CMS Award for Best Enterprise .NET CMS</a>.
During the recent CMS Critic North American Tour, Mike Johnston had the chance to interview Robert Mattson, Telerik's Director of Product Marketing. Mike also had the pleasure of witnessing a detailed Sitefinity walkthrough delivered by Telerik’s Product Marketing Manager, Svetla Yankova.
Recently, I touched on <a href="/designed-to-engage-convert-retain-a-look-at-sitefinitys-content-management-philosophy/">Sitefinity’s extensive content management features</a>, as well as the platform's <a href="/an-overview-of-sitefinitys-content-management-digital-experience-features/">digital marketing functions</a>.
Let’s now delve into Sitefinity’s enterprise-grade eCommerce features.
<h2>Personalized Product Catalogs &amp; Multi-store Management</h2>
The Sitefinity CMS platform provides everything an online retailer expects and needs, before offering a little more.
With personalization already being such a large part of the Sitefinity CMS story, let’s first take a look at the solution’s personalized product catalogs.
Marketers can easily set up and manage all necessary product catalogs and departments from a central system, promoting the right product for a specific customer more easily than ever before.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/product-catalogs.jpg" />Sitefinity CMS also gives merchants an avenue into improving sales in regional markets through multi-store management.
Differing storefronts, shopping carts and checkout processes are easy to configure, catering for localized markets in any language or currency.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/multiple-storefronts.jpg" />
Furthermore, automatic updates of real-time exchange rates from XE or ECB help to reduce currency risk on localized pricing. A massive time and money saving feature if there ever was one.
<h2>Targeted Offers, Powerful Order Management &amp; More</h2>
The personalization features seep further into the Sitefinity CMS eCommerce offering with targeted offers, designed to help merchants appeal to the right audiences.
For example, retailers can offer special promotions, discounts and custom pricing targeted at specific customer and partner segments, defined by none other than themselves.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/targeted-offers.jpg" />
Marketing teams can also schedule and run promotions easily, set pricing tiers and have more control over campaigns across multiple channels, including web, mobile, email and social media.
As for order management, Sitefinity CMS enables merchants to easily process online and offline orders and manage their pending, paid, shipped or returned status.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/order-management.jpg" />
Sitefinity CMS also helps marketers monitor sales trends with an order reporting dashboard.
Merchants also have the ability to offer customers a wide range of popular payment gateways. These include PayPal, Authorize.Net, SagePay, PayFlow Pro, eWAY and more.
Meanwhile, real-time rates from FedEx, UPS or USPS make up the shipping options.
Learn more about <a href="http://www.sitefinity.com/ecommerce">Sitefinity CMS as an eCommerce solution</a>.
For more details on Sitefinity CMS <a href="http://www.sitefinity.com/" target="_blank">visit their website</a>. You can also explore more of <a href="/products/sitefinity">Sitefinity via our CMS Directory</a>.

Getting to Know Sitefinity as an eCommerce Solution

<a href="http://www.sitefinity.com/" target="_blank">Telerik Sitefinity</a> is the latest platform to receive our featured week treatment, and it’s now time to delve into the philosophy behind its powerful content management features.
Telerik Sitefinity is an ASP.NET web content management and marketing platform. Some of the world’s biggest brands trust Sitefinity with their websites, including Toyota, Audi, Kraft Foods and NASA. Recently, the platform received the <a href="/2014-critics-choice-award-winner-best-enterprise-net-cms/">2014 Critics' Choice CMS Award for Best Enterprise .NET CMS</a>.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/sitefinitylogo_wtagline_rgb_400x0.png" />
Mike Johnston recently <a href="/cms-critic-interviews-robert-mattson-of-telerik-sitefinity/">interviewed Robert Mattson, Telerik's Director of Product </a>Marketing while on the CMS Critic North American Tour. He also had the pleasure of witnessing a detailed<a href="/telerik-sitefinity-walkthrough-video-with-cms-critic/"> product walkthrough delivered by Telerik’s Product Marketing Manager, Svetla Yankova</a>.
Now, back to those content management features.
<h2>Great Customer Experience Starts with Great Content</h2>
The act of producing and presenting content is at the heart of every website and digital marketing campaign.
Sitefinity CMS empowers marketers with user-friendly drag-and-drop interfaces for when it comes to general content management such as in-line page editing, as well as form building.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/web-content.jpg" />
The inline editing feature enables marketers to add and edit all forms of content on the fly, right there on the page. Not only does this streamline the entire process, but it also simplifies it so that almost anybody can make changes.
Content administrators can also benefit from features like approval workflows, versions histories and granular permissions help to keep both content and marketers in check.
Sitefinity CMS also employs powerful digital asset management, enabling marketers to manage assets from a central location, giving them organizational features such as hierarchical libraries, categories and tags.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/digital-assets_1.jpg" />Naturally, this unified method of digital asset management saves an abundant amount of time and money, while also serving to help marketers produce better content, faster.
Sitefinity CMS also offers a centralized approach to website management. The platform’s multisite management makes it easy for organizations to manage a collection of websites and microsites through a centralized interface.
Learn more about <a href="http://www.sitefinity.com/content-management">Telerik Sitefinity’s content management features</a>.
<h2>Personalized Customer Experiences at Scale</h2>
Converting customers in today’s market demands a personalized experience.
The first step is always to segment your audience, before delivering the content most relevant and valuable to each segment.
For this, Sitefinity CMS provides marketers with a simple interface for defining segments through various criteria such as where the visitor came from, what they searched for, their location, duration of their visit, etc. You can define custom criteria and have any combination of AND/OR criteria to define your segments.
Sitefinity CMS then enables allows marketers to serve different content and information.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/personalization.jpg" />
For example, visitors of a business background will need to be presented with articles and whitepapers discussing relevant topics. Whereas, visitors with a developer background will want to see some code samples. Sitefinity CMS caters for all of this, and more.
All the final results can of course be tested by marketers, as Sitefinity CMS allows for the marketer to impersonate a visitors from each segment, so that they can test each personalized experience first hand. Of course, analytical data including key performance indicators can also be reviewed.
Social media integration makes up another dimension of Sitefinity CMS ’s’ personalization power.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/social-media_1.jpg" />
For instance, customers can log in with their existing social media handles, while marketers can improve social media presence by adding social sharing buttons to website pages, pushing content to Twitter and RSS feeds automatically, and more.
Sitefinity CMS also serves up targeted email marketing features along with A/B testing to hone campaigns.
Learn more about <a href="http://www.sitefinity.com/customer-experience-management">Telerik Sitefinity’s personalization features</a>.
<h2>Integration For The Sake Of Retention</h2>
Retaining customers is an ongoing, multi-faceted process. However, it’s fair to say that exercising integration capabilities can play a key role.
As well as the social media integration previously mentioned, Sitefinity CMS also integrates with a number of popular CRMS, DAMs and marketing suites.
Among the popular tools and platforms which play nice with Sitefinity are; Google Analytics, Akismet, PayPal PayFlow Pro, Dropbox, Salesforce, Marketo and Microsoft SharePpoint.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/integration-platform.jpg" />
Naturally, this wide range of integratable platforms only extends the power of Sitefinity CMS as a content management solution.
Perhaps more importantly though, such integrations will help marketers retain customers by making use of third-party customer relationship managers, analytical data, and more.
Furthermore, the overall user experience can be enhanced thanks to integrated tools and solutions such as PayPal and Akismet.
Learn more about <a href="http://www.sitefinity.com/website-integrations">Telerik Sitefinity’s integration options</a>.
For more details on Sitefinity CMS <a href="http://www.sitefinity.com/" target="_blank">visit their website</a>. You can also explore more of <a href="/products/sitefinity">Sitefinity via our CMS Directory</a>.

Designed to Engage, Convert & Retain: A Look at Sitefinity's Content Management Philosophy

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