Articles - Page 137

The Top 10 AI Tools for Small Business: From Automation to a Coordinated Team of AI Agents

matt-garrepy

<a href="http://designmodo.com/?u=1182" target="_blank">DesignModo</a>, the company behind <a href="/startup-framework-review/" target="_blank">Startup Framework</a>, has released a new version of their increasingly popular WordPress plugin, Qards.
Qards brings drag-and-drop website building features to WordPress, enabling users to visually edit their pages. Each “Qard” makes up an individual page section, which come together to form a one-pager style end result.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/unnamed1079x0.jpg" />
Qards 1.2 focuses on speeding up the drag-and-drop page building process, eliminating the lag found in previous versions. Also, users can now activate Qards on any page, instead of having to set up separate “Qards Pages”. 
Furthermore, Typekit integration brings a wider range of fonts to the Qards experience.
To get the full breakdown of Qards 1.1, checkout the official features page.

Qards 1.2 For WordPress Released

mike-johnston

In business, it can take years to make up for mistakes that could have been easily avoided.
While some mistakes are easier to recover from than others, it is always far more advantageous to prevent easily-avoidable mistakes by learning from those made by others that were once in your position.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/mistake_1594x0-is.jpg" />
Since you’re here reading this article, one thing is clear: you’re considering a CMS for your business to get the most out of your content. That being said, you don’t want to make a choice that could cost you and your business money, and more importantly, time.
After all, choosing the right CMS should help you to improve your efficiency when creating and delivering content, as well as improve your customer experience, and ultimately boost revenue.
In order to help alleviate the stress that comes with choosing the right CMS for your business, we’ve put together 7 common mistakes made by businesses during the selection process, as well as some tried and true suggestions to help you avoid them.
<h2>1. Going Steady with All-Rounders</h2>
If you’re picking out such an important piece of software, it’s natural to want to get as much bang for your buck as possible. That’s why many business owners try to find a CMS that’s much more than just a content management system – they also want it to be a customer relationship management system, an email marketing platform, an analytics powerhouse, and so much more.
While it’s great to find a CMS that’s versatile, the problem with this approach is that many owners end up paying top-dollar for a system that’s a jack of all trades – and a master of none. You’re far better off choosing a software that can brilliantly do the one or two things your business needs most than trying to find a unicorn that can fulfill every need you could possibly think of.
When searching for your CMS, pick one that’s outstanding at managing content – and then, if you still want it to do more, make sure it’s able to integrate with other platforms and apps. It’s much easier to “build” a do-it-all system than it is to find one ready right out of the box.
<h2>2. Failing to Recognize How a CMS Can and Should Benefit Your Business</h2>
Even the most successful business owners can get caught up in the “what.” That is, what features the CMS has to offer. They hear about all the amazing features that a CMS has to offer, and they never stop to think about how those features can benefit their business.
In fact, it’s so easy to get caught up in all those features that it’s no surprise that most business owners forget to even consider how their business could benefit from using a CMS. The truth is that purchasing a CMS without considering how it could help your business is a lot like buying a car before you have an idea as to how you’ll use it. For example, if you’re going to need to go off-roading, for example, it’s good to know that before you buy yourself a brand new Tesla Model S.
Of course, it’s always a good idea to know what a CMS Is and does before you start shopping (and the fact that you’re here means that you at least have some background knowledge of what a CMS is and what it can do for your business.
Once you’ve established that, it’s time to think about how you and your business can ultimately benefit from utilizing a CMS. Decide what you want your CMS to do for you, and how you want it to do just that. Looking back at our car example, the fact that a Tesla Model S is a poor choice for off-roading doesn’t mean that it’s a bad car overall. It’s all about finding a CMS that’s the proper fit for your needs.
Before you narrow your shopping list for a CMS, sit down and consider what business needs you’d like your CMS to address. Try to figure out ways you can increase your efficiency or broaden your reach with a CMS – and decide if the benefits will be worth the cost. Otherwise, you’re shooting in the dark when you go shopping.
<h2>3. Letting Your Budget Dictate Which CMS You Choose for Your Business</h2>
Once you’ve got a good idea of the impact a CMS can have on your business, you’ll have a better idea of what you should spend. Too often, businesses choose a CMS strictly based on their budget.
In effect, they’re basing their budget on what they’re willing to spend now, while failing to consider how much they could increase their profitability down the road by choosing the proper CMS. This can lead them to buying a bargain-basement CMS that doesn’t really meet their needs, and that can be an extremely expensive mistake.
When shopping for the right CMS, keep your needs in mind rather than your budget. Now, this doesn’t mean that the most expensive option is the best – again, it’s all dependent on your business and your needs. You might set a huge budget for your CMS, only to find that a free, open-source option works best for you. Likewise, you may realize that an enterprise-level CMS can take your company to the next level, even if your budget is limited today.
Instead, try to figure out where the right CMS could take you – and then budget for that.
<h2>4. Choosing a CMS before Fully Assessing the Needs of Your Business</h2>
It’s easy to hear about all the good features a CMS has to offer, and then opt to purchase it without actually considering if those features actually fit your business’s needs. The cold hard truth is that you can’t know what you want your CMS to do if you haven’t fully considered what you want your business to do. Are you looking for a CMS because it meets existing needs, or because it can help you attain projected growth, or both? You need an answer to that question before you buy.
By failing to examine the current and potential future needs of your business, you may put yourself in a position where you purchase a CMS that fails to live up to expectations because it doesn’t fit the particular needs of your business.
Likewise, don’t just look at what your business does now when choosing your CMS. Maybe you don’t do a lot of blogging at the moment, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t consider what kind of impact increasing your content marketing could have on your business, and budgeting accordingly.
Figure out what needs are most important to your business now, and then what you would need to take your business to the next level. Then choose your CMS accordingly – otherwise, you’ll be missing out on a lot of potential value.
<h2>5. Picking a CMS Solely Based on the Recommendation of Someone Else</h2>
No matter what you’re shopping for, a recommendation is always nice – just don’t let it be your only consideration when shopping for a CMS.
After all, every business is unique, with different needs and challenges. Just because your buddies (or main competitor) got great results from their CMS doesn’t mean it would work for you – their needs could be completely different from yours, which could mean that their CMS is a terrible fit for your business.
Of course, it’s always a good idea to solicit and consider recommendations from trusted sources, but look past the recommendation itself and consider why they’ve recommended it. After all, just because someone else claims to use the <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/wordpress-joomla-and-drupal-are-not-the-best-cms/">best CMS</a>, that doesn’t mean it’s the best option for the needs of your business.
<h2>6. Getting the Wrong People Involved in the CMS Selection Process</h2>
This one’s a little tricky, so it’s no wonder it trips up so many business owners. If you’re buying a software solution, who should you trust to guide you in the process?
If you said your IT department, you’d be like thousands of other business owners out there – and you’d be dead wrong.
The fact is, a good CMS will have an enormous impact on all facets of your business, and as a result, you should get multiple departments involved in the decision. The IT department will be working with it, yes – but if you consider only their input, you’re liable to find yourself with a CMS that’s easy to manage… and fairly useless otherwise.
If you have departments such as sales, marketing, management, and yes, IT involved and working together, you can discuss how the CMS will affect each department specifically. Then, you can balance your decision on which option impacts each department, while also considering which trade-offs you’re willing to make.
<h2>7. Not Being Realistic about What a CMS Can and Should Do for Your Business</h2>
While a good CMS can be one of your most powerful assets, that doesn’t mean that it’s a miracle worker. Try to have a good idea of what a CMS can realistically accomplish before you buy and implement it, or else you could be setting yourself up for disappointment.
Many owners expect their CMS to completely revolutionize their business, especially if it’s on the pricey side. Then, when they don’t see immediate and dramatic change, they tend to lose faith in the software and abandon it – leaving a ton of value on the table.
While a CMS can have a powerful impact on your bottom line, it often takes time to get going – and effort to monitor. Be sure you know what you’re looking for before you make any rash decisions.
<h2>Find the Right CMS for Your Business</h2>
When you find a CMS that fits your business’s needs, chances are you’ll be impressed at the effect it will have on your company. Just make sure you consider all of your needs before you go shopping, and take care to avoid these 7 common mistakes. Your business will thank you.
CMS Critic also offers <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/contact/" target="_blank">CMS Consulting</a>, to help you find the best content management system for your next project.

7 Mistakes to Avoid When Selecting a CMS for Your Business

<a href="https://plushforums.com/" target="_blank">PlushForums</a> is one of the newest, yet most exciting forum solutions on the market.
Founded in 2014, PlushForums is a commercial fork of Vanilla Forums. The platform was named as the <a href="/2014-critics-choice-award-winner-best-commercial-forum-solution/" target="_blank">2014 Critic's Choice Winner for Best Commercial Forum Solution</a> in the most recent CMS Awards.
<img style="max-width:200px" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/vopggzde_200x0.png" />
I also had the pleasure of carrying out a <a href="/plushforums-review/" target="_blank">review of PlushForums</a> not too long ago.
In recent months, PlushForums has received a number of updates. Here are the highlights, provided by founder Adrian Flitcroft himself.
<h3>Platform</h3>
PlushForums has expanded the capacity of all plans, more than doubling the $49 tier from 75 to 200 concurrent active members. That's sufficient to run a really sizeable forum at a very reasonable price.
The platform has also benefited from reduced the latency of real-time discussions and conversations by 66%. This means that they now update as quickly as a Facebook chat.
<h3>Billing</h3>
A 14-day free trial for all new PayPal subscribers has been introduced.
Furthermore, credit/debit card subscriptions for people who can't use PayPal have arrived, while registration forms have been done away with, speeding up the sign up process.
<h3>Features</h3>
Further to the above enhancements to the overall PlushForums experience, a number of smaller, but notable features have also been released:
<ul>
<li><a href="https://plushforums.com/blog/pre-moderation" target="_blank">Pre-moderation</a>.</li>
<li><a href="https://plushforums.com/blog/rich-links" target="_blank">Automated rich links</a>, ideal for product-focused communities:</li>
<li>Linked replies: tags that connect one post with another, allowing a discussion to stay flat but with context.</li>
<li>New Member Welcome Message: a means to communicate with members before they make their first post, to lay out rules, advice or other information.</li>
<li>Colourful Letter Avatars for new members, Android-style.</li>
<li>Support for YouTube embeds with specific start times, Vine support, and support for direct MP4 and MP3 embeds.</li>
<li>Support for CloudFlare out of the box, including their free Flexible SSL mode.</li>
<li>An Onboarding API, which allows you to automatically send forum invitation codes to new members, as well as revoke/enable their access to the forum.</li>
<li>Seamless SSO with WordPress.</li>
<li>Streamlined account creation process with customisable password strength checker.</li>
<li>A refined and reskinned Dashboard control panel.</li>
</ul>
To find out more about PlushForums, <a href="https://plushforums.com/" target="_blank">visit their website</a>.
Also, you can explore more of PlushForums via our CMS Directory.

PlushForums Undergoes Heavy Improvement

My choice for Best Budget CMS for 2012 (and the one that will be my #1 recommendation in this category until next years awards) is <a href="http://cmsmadesimple.org">CMS Made Simple</a>!
<img style="max-width:300px" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/cmsms_newlogo300.png" alt="cmsmadesimple" />
<blockquote>CMS Made Simple™ is an open source ( GPL) package first released in July 2004. Its built using PHP that provides website developers with a simple, easy to use utility to allow building small-ish (dozens to hundreds of pages), semi-static websites. Typically it is used for corporate websites, or the website promoting a team or organization, etc. This is where it shines.</blockquote>
As my choice for this year, when asked to offer suggestions for the best budget CMS, I will point to CMS Made Simple. They will receive my recommendation from now until next year’s winner is announced. Congratulations!

Critic's Choice Winner for Best Budget CMS is...

Sometimes, the best place to begin is at the end.
Case in point: at the terminus of my conversation with <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/tifenndano/" target="_blank">Tifenn Dano Kwan</a>, she offered an impassioned promulgation.
“We can’t put people in boxes.”
The same could be said of Tifenn. To simply label her as a high-performing CMO in the technology industry would be boxing out the unique qualities that make her a remarkable leader and a compassionate, empathetic human.
Regarding people and how she cultivates both business and personal relationships, she further declared that “we need to be careful and open, always.”
Sage advice to be sure, but not the kind I was expecting from an interview that was primarily focused on analytics. And yet, these words seemed to crystallize our entire discussion, framing Tifenn’s disposition as a person who, at her core, is designed to give. At the same time, she creates a sort of sacred container for receiving, one that guided our conversation from beginning to end.
If there’s one truth that shone through our recent meeting, it’s that Tifenn Dano Kwan is undeniable. A brilliant maverick that exudes confidence, wisdom, and piercing energy. It’s easy to see why <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/winning-the-analytics-game-an-interview-with-adam-greco-product-evangelist-at-amplitude/">Amplitude</a>, a leading digital and product analytics platform, has chosen her to shape the company’s vision and lead it forward.
It won’t be easy. As she settles into her role as Chief Marketing Officer, Amplitude faces an uncertain market. With the specter of economic recession peering through the veil for 2023, technology companies are relying on marketing and sales to become strategic engines for growth despite shrinking budgets.
Even amid these torrid times, Tifenn seems immeasurably cool, calm, and collected. This is how she rolls – and that became evident over the course of our discussion. At the same time, Tifenn is pumped about her plans at Amplitude. We talked about what she sees as the biggest opportunities, and what makes this role different from her previous CMO gigs at <a href="https://www.collibra.com/us/en" target="_blank">Collibra</a> and <a href="https://www.dropbox.com/" target="_blank">DropBox</a>. We also discussed Amplitude’s 2022 Product Report and the nuggets of wisdom she gleaned from the research.
Finally, we got personal, talking about her advocacy for the LGBTQ+ community and her focus on diversity. It’s another example of how she leads with both mind and heart – and refuses to put people in boxes.
<h2>From digital marketer to team builder</h2>
The CMO mantle was an almost predictable zenith for Tifenn, who caught the marketing bug early in her career and never looked back. Her journey began in the early 2000s, bouncing around traditional communications and media before settling into the tech field and cutting her teeth within partner and channel organizations.
“The objectives were always revenue and AR, yet I saw everything through the lens of marketing, from campaign services to vendors,” she said. “But I really found my sweet spot in organizing teams, processes, and programs.”
Maybe that’s why people call her a fixer. As she describes it, her prowess lies with mid-sized companies in a hyper-growth stage that are struggling to scale. She effectively threads the needle and brings it all together, typically managing teams of 50 to 60 people to get there.
She’s done this successfully time and again, most recently as CMO at Collibra – a leading data intelligence platform. During her tenure, she facilitated a data-driven transformation of the company’s marketing functions, helping build a category-leading brand. Prior to this, she held the CMO role at DropBox, the eponymous storage platform, where she drove revenue growth through customer centricity.
When it comes to her unrivaled “people powers,” it’s worth noting that she has a proven track record of minting CMOs. In fact, three of her previous direct reports have become Chief Marketing Officers, two at leading global organizations. This speaks volumes about her capacity to mentor and elevate her peers to the highest levels of performance.
<h2>An inflection point for marketing</h2>
Over the decades, Tifenn has nurtured a deep passion for harnessing the power of technology and DX to help teams reach their potential. In many ways, this has become her guiding mantra. Experience has clearly been a great teacher, informing her perspective on the value of marketing teams and how they directly accelerate growth.
Peering through the Zoom screen wearing a slick blazer, she prognosticated a bit about the future – and what makes this a pivotal moment of change.
“Marketing is going through a fundamental transformation,” she said. “And it’s also a consequential one where product teams and CFOs are working better together.”
This isn’t the first time we’ve heard this. In a recent <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/mach-alliance-roundtable-focuses-on-composability-and-innovation-as-economic-activators-in-2023/">MACH Alliance board meeting</a> I was invited to, several vendors and ISVs within the community spoke about the growing alignment between technology leaders and CFOs as they look to invest in composable strategies.   
She went on to suggest that this enhanced connectivity is an essential part of the growth roadmap, and that leadership – from CFOs to CIOs – must be coordinated actors in achieving digital transformation to bring products to market faster.
“If there’s not GTM [go to market] synchronicity, then we’re missing something,” she added. “The next level of impact is to create more collaboration.”
<h2>Aiming for growth at Amplitude</h2>
While still fresh to the helm, Tifenn’s course is clear: lead Amplitude's marketing strategy to expand its best-in-class digital analytics platform and oversee its corporate, product, and revenue marketing teams.
This comes on the heels of positive customer reviews that appear to reinforce Amplitude’s focus on customer experience. The company was ranked #1 across nine categories in the <a href="https://info.amplitude.com/Digital-Asset-G2-Report_Fall-2022-G2" target="_blank">G2 Fall 2022 Grid Report</a> – including dual achievements as the #1 Product Analytics solution for the ninth quarter in a row and the #1 Mobile App Analytics solution for the fourth quarter in a row. 
Analysts are also tracking the company’s position with favor. In a recent Wave report, <a href="https://amplitude.com/press/customer-analytics-report-q2-22" target="_blank">Forrester</a> said that Amplitude was “born a digital product analytics vendor, but in a world where digital interactions make up the lion's share of customer interactions, the vendor has embraced the pivot into customer analytics." 
Aside from the positive traction from customers and market watchers, I asked Tifenn what made her choose Amplitude as her next act.
“They're at a big stage,” she said. “They want to be a multi-billion-dollar company, and I’m helping to create the integrated marketing strategy to get us there.”
But there’s more to the story, and it came in the form of a personal epiphany: throughout her career, she had been cultivating expertise in digital marketing and executing successfully. That said, she had never been what she described as an “expert” in the products she was promoting. Given her breadth of knowledge and keen focus on data and analytics, Amplitude presented an opportunity for her to breed a deeper authority over a product she believed in – and even demo its value and impact.
“When I heard about Amplitude, I was magically connected to its processes,” she said. “The business world is becoming product-lead, and I wanted to be able to talk about this product as an expert.”
<h2>Letting products guide the customer experience</h2>
I asked Tifenn to expand on Amplitude’s evolving position as a data analytics platform, and how its focus on product and customer data is different from the ubiquitous Google Analytics. Despite being the internet’s de facto standard, Google has <a href="https://searchengineland.com/ga4-isnt-all-its-cracked-up-to-be-what-would-it-look-like-to-switch-385105" target="_blank">faced criticism</a> over its chaotic move from Universal Analytics to GA4, prompting users to search for alternative solutions.
“As marketers, we need to shift to the metrics that matter most,” she explained. “The GA problem is that marketers don’t just care about the return on AR spend – they also care about the product. We retain them as customers in the product.”
I continued probing around this notion of learning about and ultimately retaining customers in the product. Why weren’t more companies going deeper into their product experiences to activate growth?
Tifenn expanded on this, tapping her own evidence-based experience. “The sooner customers interact with a product, the sooner we can convert them,” she said. “This became very clear for me at Collibra when we launched test drives and trials. This became our #1 tactic and asset because everything happens in the product.”
There it was again: in the product. It was like an affirmation echoing across our call. As a marketer, she said people don’t want to read eBooks and reports – they want to experience something meaningful that helps inform their decision in a more tangible way.
“This is where you start understanding the self-service motion and connecting the dots.”
On the topic of product-led growth, she went on to say that it’s not just a sales motion, it’s a mindset. “We need to meet customers where they are in the product and think about the funnel and the journey [from that perspective].”
To get there, it’s clear that the marketers of the future will need to be more connected through the product experience than ever before.  
<h2>Highlights from the Amplitude 2022 Product Report</h2>
I also asked Tifenn about a recent report published by Amplitude Labs, the company’s research and thought leadership arm. Dubbed “<a href="https://amplitude.com/product-report-2022" target="_blank">The Product Report 2022,”</a> it features exclusive data about the trends, industries, strategies, and products dominating the digital landscape – including the 30 “Next Hottest Products" to watch. 
According to Tifenn, the report has garnered significant interest from the market. “Within 48 hours [of publishing the report], we had already hit our quarterly goals for leads,” she said. “There is genuine interest and thirst for this data and insights.”
There were quite a few compelling points that Amplitude uncovered in its research. For example, digital product usage increased by 16% in 2022 – a double-digit gain, but a far cry from the 54% increase the previous year. This marked deceleration is likely a post-Covid phenomenon, following two years of unprecedented digital transformation.
Among the 12 industries that Amplitude analyzed in the report, the most significant growth was in HR/staffing and educational/upskilling categories. This could be the proverbial “canary in the coalmine” – an indicator that the economic downturn may be prompting workers to enhance their skillsets or seek new opportunities.
There’s also some data codifying that the “SaaS crash” many prognosticators feared was overblown. While SaaS growth did slow in the early part of 2022, things picked up later in the year, demonstrating the resilience of many platforms. Meanwhile, the company’s survey placed a spotlight on the complicated landscape of crypto-related products, which saw a meteoric acceleration in 2021. This year reflected modest gains, but the recent <a href="https://www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2022-219" target="_blank">FTX fallout</a> may have a chilling effect on 2023’s outlook.
The report also featured a survey from product leaders across industries about their plans for driving growth during a recession. There are several nuggets of wisdom here that are well worth the read. 
Tifenn also shared that Amplitude’s ranking of the next hottest companies was of great interest, prompting the report to go viral. The list includes up-and-coming apps in categories like healthtech and fitness, with brands like <a href="https://www.usemotion.com/" target="_blank">Motion</a>, <a href="https://mercdev.com/portfolio/tonal" target="_blank">Tonal</a>, and <a href="https://www.gong.io/blog/mobile-app/" target="_blank">Gong</a> populating the company’s top 10 in North America.
“What the product report validates are the elements in the economy,” Tifenn said. “It shows how technology companies have a voice in what’s going on. When those companies deliver a great product, customers respond. And the ones that really bet on their product make it to the list because it meets the needs of customers.”
<h2>A champion for diversity and advocacy </h2>
As our conversation drew to a close, I asked Tifenn about her open advocacy of the LGBTQ+ community, and her work to expand diversity within the technology sector.
“I’m an advocate by design,” she said, reflecting a bit about her wife and their bi-racial marriage, and how she built her confidence on that rock. Drawing on her personal and leadership strengths, she models advocacy and diversity in the workplace without forcing it, and it's evident that Amplitude's culture is conducive to supporting those bridges. 
Originally from France, Tifenn gave me a passionate account of the social and cultural conservatism that colored her upbringing. She came out while living in Singapore, where LGBTQ+ people have <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_rights_in_Singapore" target="_blank">struggled for equality</a> under a tacitly austere judicial system. In fact, prior to 2022, same-sex activities of any kind were illegal under a British colonial-era law called <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Section_377A_of_the_Penal_Code_(Singapore)" target="_blank">Section 377A</a>, which has now been repealed.
In a moving personal account, Tifenn shared a story about a cousin that was fiercely opposed to gay marriage. This family member ultimately chose not to attend her wedding. Rather than hold a grudge, Tifenn held steadfast to love and compassion over the years, which later lead to a reconciliation.
“When you show people kindness, they come around,” she said.
Indeed. We can all agree the world could use more kindness right now. And more leaders like Tifenn.
While the outlook for 2023 appears increasingly unsettled, Amplitude is focusing on the right people to face the challenges ahead. Maybe that's the right play. As an organization, they seem to understand that it's not just about the technology, but the people behind it – and the people it serves. 
I’ll end where I began by repeating Tifenn’s observation: we can’t put people in boxes. Perhaps by being careful and open, just as she suggests, we can unlock the real power of people to build better products and digital experiences.
And, if we're lucky, a better world.  
 
<a href="https://www.boye-co.com/conferences/cmskickoff23/program" target="_blank"><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2022/12/cms-kickoff-2023-banner-1024x151.jpg" alt="CMS Kickoff 2023 banner" /></a>
<h2>Join CMS Industry Leaders, Digital Agencies, and Users at CMS Kickoff 2023</h2>
January 17-18 in St. Petersburg, FL
Don't miss the only conference tailored for everyone working with content management systems, from beginners to experts! Featuring two packed days with a carefully curated mixture of talks, workshops, activities, world-class facilitators, thought provokers, speakers, and session leads. Mingle with CMS experts, system integrators, and users from around the globe at this exclusive event in beautiful St. Petersburg. 
Register today at the <a href="https://www.boye-co.com/conferences/cmskickoff23/program" target="_blank">CMS Kickoff 2023 website</a>.

Unlocking the Power of Products and People: A Conversation with Amplitude’s New CMO Tifenn Dano Kwan

Composite headshot of Tifenn Dano Kwon with Amplitude logo

GoDaddy is one of the biggest hosting and domain providers in the world and with millions of customers worldwide, they offer a huge array of services to keep their customers happy. One such service is the <a href="/products/godaddy">GoDaddy Online Store</a> which is a quick and easy way to get an online store up and running with minimal effort. Today, we're going to take a look at how it holds up.Here's a quick video overview of the GoDaddy Online Store Builder: Getting started is quick and easy, just sign up on the GoDaddy website. GoDaddy offers a free trial followed by a price tag of around $30 / month for their online store solution.Once you've signed up for a free trial, you'll select a name for your online store and come to this screen:<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/godaddy_online_store_review_-_1-11119x0-is.png" alt="godaddy online store review" />Here you will fill in some information about your business, add some products, set up your paypal information, shipping info and more. Once you've completed filling in the basic information section, it will be time to add your first product.<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/godaddy_online_store_review_-_21031x0-is.png" alt="godaddy online store review" />Filling this in is incredibly straight forward, you can add individual product or import a list of products from a CSV file. For those with a large list of products, this is incredibly handy and to their credit, GoDaddy provides you with a starter template so you know how the CSV file should look before importing.<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/godaddy_online_store_review_-_3.png" alt="godaddy online store review" />Once you've added your products, you can move on to the next stage which is setting up how you'd like to be paid. GoDaddy's online store builder has integrations with Stripe (for credit card payments), PayPal and other (bank transfer, etc) which should be adequate for the majority of people.<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/godaddy_online_store_review_-_4.png" />You will then configure your shipping options (if needed):<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/godaddy_online_store_review_-_5.png" />Last but not least, you'll set up your tax options and then you get to move on to the fun part, selecting a design to begin with. By default, there is already a theme applied which incorporate a header, drop down navigation and a slider on the home page. To configure, just go through the options on the store design page.<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/godaddy_online_store_review_-_6792x0-is.png" />You aren't stuck with this particular theme though. GoDaddy offers approximately 20 or so themes all of which are easy on the eyes and visually appealing.Now it's time to go live. Just click the green “Go Live” button and your store will be launched and accessible to everyone.<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/godaddy_online_store_review_-_7778x0-is.png" />You will then be able to access your dashboard which, once you start receiving orders and getting traffic, will give you a basic overview of how well your store is performing.<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/godaddy_online_store_review_-_81085x0-is.png" />There are numerous ways you can promote your store now that you have launched. A handy “Promote your Store” link on your dashboard will allow you to set up the following:<ul><li>Sell on Facebook Automatically sync your store with Facebook and sell your products to the masses. Powered by Shopial.</li><li>Like and Share Buttons Add social media buttons to let happy customers like, share, or email about your store in just one click! Powered by AddThis.</li><li>Social Follow Buttons Let customers follow you on social networks to keep them informed about store news and promotions. Powered by AddThis.</li><li>Product Reviews Trust customers to post shining reviews telling the world just how great your store is. Powered by Yotpo.</li><li>Email Signups Collect email addresses so you can market to your customers. Powered by GoDaddy Email Marketing.</li></ul>Of course, in typical GoDaddy fashion, there are tons of upsells buried in here including the email signups piece (once you get over 50 customers anyway) so expect to pay extra for a large number of these options but to their credit, they do provide you with the basics, at least, for free.<h3>Conclusion</h3>For those who are looking for a basic online store solution that is easy to set up and get running with minimal effort, GoDaddy's solution is a decent one to consider, especially if you are tied to them for hosting and a domain. However, when compared with other solutions like <a href="/products/shopify">Shopify</a> or <a target="_blank" href="https://www.ecwid.com/">Ecwid</a> (which is far more extensive feature wise), it doesn't hold up. The biggest reason is the price. At $30 / month it just isn't something that I can recommend when there are far more feature rich options available for less, unless of course you prefer to stick with one company for all of your needs.Interested in trying it for yourself? Check it out here: <a href="/products/godaddy">GoDaddy Online Store Builder</a>

GoDaddy Online Store Review

Power your CMS on AWS

Manage your websites & apps in the most trusted cloud.

#ffffff

Producing personalized experiences is something that's becoming more and more relevant to marketers across the Internet, no matter what their industry.
<a href="https://www.optimizely.com/personalization/" target="_blank">Optimizely</a> has taken a step towards making personalization more accessible for a wider range of businesses.
<a href="https://www.optimizely.com/personalization/" target="_blank"><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/optimizely_logo_blue_700x0-is-hidpi1306x0-is.png" /></a>
Trusted by the likes of Sony, Microsoft and Skype, Optimizely is an experience optimization platform, built to work on top of existing content management systems. It empowers marketers to modify page elements, A/B test variations, segment audiences, set goals, track progress, and a lot more.
Back in June, <a href="/optimizely-personalization-announced-general-release-set-for-fall-2015/" target="_blank">I covered the announcement of Optimizely Personalization</a>, which came with a release date of Fall 2015. It's good to see that date being stuck to.
<h2>“Personalization is the Key to Optimum Customer Experiences”</h2>
Below, Optimizely Co-Founder and CEO Dan Siroker, features in a video outlining the benefits of his product's latest release.
<iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/raf8U5q00h8?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>
In essence, personalization means showing each individual visitor exactly what they want to see, in order to maximize conversions.
That means segmenting audiences, before targeting them with tailored content. A simple example, is website visitor from the United Kingdom wanting to see Winter clothing, while at the same time, an Australian visitor will want to be shown the latest Summer gear.
Here's how Optimizely plans to make such tasks easier for global brands.
<blockquote>
“We built Optimizely Personalization to make it incredibly easy to connect data about your visitors — data such as behavior or information stored in your CRM — and use it to target experiences in real time.”
</blockquote>
Behavioral Targeting
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/editor-cold758x0-is.png" /> Optimizely Personalization makes it easy to manage behavioral targeting in real time.
Marketers can capture important signals, such as shopping for high-value items, or a customer on the verge of abandoning their session, and target relevant content accordingly, without needing to write a single line of code.
Key events and metadata can easily be identified using a visual, point-and-click interface. Behaviours can then be mixed and matched to produce a unique audience to target.
Uploaded Audiences
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/audience-builder-700x368.png" />
With Uploaded Audiences, marketers can create audiences out of a list of specific customers, such as loyalty program customers, repeat purchasers, or any other important group or set of groups.
Audieces can also be made up from the data from third-party integrations, such as DMPs like BlueKai or account-based marketing software like Demandbase.
Data-driven Personalization
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/results-700x368.png" />
Then end game of personalization, is to increase conversions. But just as crunching numbers to identify audiences is best left to Optimizely, so is the maths for calculating the end game results.
All results are backed by <a href="https://www.optimizely.com/statistics/">Optimizely Stats Engine</a>, which does the heavy lifting to measure revenue and<a href="https://blog.optimizely.com/2015/01/20/statistics-for-the-internet-age-the-story-behind-optimizelys-new-stats-engine/#bookmark3"> conversion lift</a>, determine statistical significance, and ensure that results are always valid. <img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/optimizely-personalization-editor.gif" /> Further to these features, Optimizely Personalization comes with a revamped editor, so that marketers can plan and preview content for a range of devices from the same interface.
This looks like another slick addition to Optimizely's sucessful platform. The world's biggest brands will be taking note, but so should every other brand – as Optimizely makes itself extremely accessible to small-to-medium sized businesses with its totally free package.
Find out more about <a href="https://blog.optimizely.com/2015/10/05/online-personalization/" target="_blank">Optimizely Personaliztion</a>.

Optimizely Personalization Now Available

My choice for Best Social Networking Software for 2012 (and the one that will be my #1 recommendation in this category until next years awards) is <a target="_blank" href="https://www.phpfox.com/">phpFox</a>!<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/facebook.png" alt="phpfox logo" />phpFox is a social network software that gives you the ability to create a unique community that includes many of the features found on sites like Facebook and MySpace. You can read more about it in our <a href="/phpfox-review/">phpFox Review</a>.Why did I choose them? They offer response technical support, the product is well established and has a good base with which to work from, there are a wide variety of customization options and for every person I've referred to phpFox, I've had not one come back to me complaining that it didn't suit their needs.As my choice for this year, when asked to offer suggestions for the best social networking software, I will point to phpFox. They will receive my recommendation from now until next year’s winner is announced. Congratulations!

Critic's Choice for Best Social Network Software is...

As most of you know by now, I am currently touring North America and visiting vendors as I do so. Having just completed the west coast portion of the tour, I'll be heading to Toronto to meet with two more vendors, then New York, and finally over to Europe to begin the European leg of the tour.
I'm looking forward to meeting with all of the amazing CMS vendors that have signed up for this year's tour. This has been a wonderful way to put faces to the names of those of you whom I deal with on a regular basis (and those who are new as well!).
<img style="max-width:346px" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/1013548_572346312803124_529629804_n.png" />
Our first featured vendor that we visited was <a href="http://www.dnnsoftware.com">DNN Software</a> followed by the folks at Telerik (<a href="http://www.sitefinity.com">Sitefinity</a>) and <a href="http://www.getmura.com/">Mura CMS</a>. I'll soon be meeting with the <a href="http://agilitycms.com/">Agility CMS</a> and <a href="http://dotcms.com/">dotCMS</a> teams before heading to Europe to meet with <a href="http://www.jahia.com">Jahia</a>, <a href="http://www.onehippo.com/en">Hippo</a>, and <a href="http://www.tkqlhce.com/click-7559855-11191667-1427914873000">1&amp;1 Internet</a>.
You'll be seeing <a href="/featured-weeks/">featured weeks</a> throughout the site where I share my video interviews, walkthroughs of the product, and more. Stay tuned and keep up to date with us on <a href="https://twitter.com/cmscritic">Twitter</a> and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/cmscritic">Facebook</a> to see pics from our journey.
As always, thanks for being a reader, and don't forget to sign up for our newsletter to make sure you never miss an article. It's weekly and we'll never spam you.

Preparing for the European Tour

Jahia have released the latest edition of their open source, enterprise content management system, Jahia 7. Jahia 7 brings with it some significant improvements over previous version of the ECM including powerful Distributed Development features &amp; Private App Stores to re-use and distribute components securely with a new OSGi integration.
<blockquote>
“Having had the opportunity to see Jahia 7 during a walkthrough yesterday with Jahia CEO, Elie Auvray, I can confidently say this is going to be a game changer for the company that will likely propel them forward into a much stronger position in the ECM market. ” – Mike Johnston, CMS Critic
</blockquote>
 Major enhancements on its core content platform: 
<ul>
<li> Distributed development: Jahia Studio, the User Experience builder, is unique on the market and makes Jahia 7 far more powerful and productive than any other Java CMS.  
<ul>
<li> ​ Source repository integration :  Developers can work as a team, remotely and simultaneously, directly on the integration server or on their desktop. All sources modifications are pushed to a repository to which the Studio is linked. Changes are versioned in the source repository and all changes can be tested on a single server to validate compatibility and to develop with agile methodologies at blazing speed.</li>
<li> Simplified and controlled code editing : developers have direct access to the sources of their modules. They can edit sources through an online interface and code wherever they are, even without an IDE installed locally . Direct editing of sources (scripts, classes, resource bundles, xml or properties files) allows to test changes on the fly.</li>
<li>And many more tools to truly help IT and business teams work together –  </li>
</ul>
</li>
<li> Private App Store: this new Jahia software is installed by customers and/or partners on their enterprise environments and enables them to safely re-use developments delivered on one project to the next, from one environment to the next, either on premises or on the cloud. Jahia Private App store industrializes the distribution of developments with safe apps that will not put corporate assets and missions critical projects at risk. Jahia 7 secures the deployments by introducing a major technical improvement : leveraging OSGI, it is now possible to hot-deploy modules on servers without downtime or restart, even when they contain java classes –  </li>
</ul>
This new release really should be considered an open source User Experience Platform as it includes a comprehensive new product line up consisting of:
<ul>
<li> Jahia Digital Factory (formerly know as Jahia xCM): Leading open source CMS that gives power and autonomy to digital workers. <a href="http://click.icptrack.com/icp/relay.php?r=74469271&amp;msgid=339158&amp;act=8Y2D&amp;c=870976&amp;destination=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.jahia.com%2Fproducts%2Fdigital-factory"> More info on Digital Factory </a>  </li>
<li> Jahia Workspace Factory (formerly know as Jahia Wise): the document sharing solution that delights marketing teams. Its a hybrid application featuring Document sharing, collaboration and social communities. <a href="http://click.icptrack.com/icp/relay.php?r=74469271&amp;msgid=339158&amp;act=8Y2D&amp;c=870976&amp;destination=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.jahia.com%2Fproducts%2Fworkspace-factory"> More info on Workspace Factory </a>  </li>
<li> Jahia Portal Factory : is the best way to unite content and business applications together – whether they are internal or external data and apps. Availability: in the next coming weeks <a href="http://click.icptrack.com/icp/relay.php?r=74469271&amp;msgid=339158&amp;act=8Y2D&amp;c=870976&amp;destination=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.jahia.com%2Fhome%2Fproducts%2Fportal-factory.html"> More info on Portal Factory </a>  </li>
<li> Jahia eCommerce Factory is the solution e-merchants were dreaming of. Tying together the content management and portal features from Digital Factory and Portal Factory, eCommerce Factory embeds Mogobiz the open source ecommerce framework from Jahia’s strategic partner eBizNext. Availability: in the next coming weeks <a href="http://click.icptrack.com/icp/relay.php?r=74469271&amp;msgid=339158&amp;act=8Y2D&amp;c=870976&amp;destination=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.jahia.com%2Fhome%2Fproducts%2Fecommerce-factory.html"> More info on eCommerce Factory</a></li>
</ul>
<h2>Screenshots</h2>
Here are some screenshots for everyone so you can see some of the tools in action. 
Jahia 7  Digital Factory – Edit mode:
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/jahia_7_-_digital_factory1633x0.png" alt="Jahia 7 Digital Factory - Edit mode:" />
Jahia 7 – Digital Factory – Edit mode with mobile in context rendering:
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/jahia_7_-_digital_factory_edit_mode_with_mobile_in_context_rendering1633x0.png" alt="Jahia 7 Digital Factory - edit mode with mobile in context rendering:" />
Jahia Studio – Visual templates building:
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/jahia_studio_-_visual_templates_building1633x0.png" alt="Jahia Studio - visual templates building:" />
Jahia Studio – Integrated browser based IDE:
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/jahia_studio_-_integrated_browser_based_ide1633x0.png" alt="Jahia Studio - integrated browser based IDE:" />
Of significant important here is that Jahia will be providing guaranteed update support for customers. To quote their press release: 
<blockquote>
While developing Jahia 7, Jahia kept in mind that all its customers should be able to protect their existing investments on its technology. This is why all existing project based on Jahia 6.5+ will benefit from a guaranteed update policy: a secured Upgrade Tool will deliver the update in no time. Jahia guarantees the update and would actually do it at no charge for those of it customers experiencing issues.
</blockquote>
If you are looking to see what Jahia 7 is made of, there are a number of upcoming webinars that will showcase the product. Simply choose one that fits your schedule:
<ul>
<li><a href="http://click.icptrack.com/icp/relay.php?r=74469271&amp;msgid=339158&amp;act=8Y2D&amp;c=870976&amp;destination=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.jahia.com%2Fhome%2Fcompany%2Fevents%2Fmedia-list%2Fwebinar-developers-getting-start.html">April 22nd –  Developers: Getting started on Jahia 7</a></li>
<li><a href="http://click.icptrack.com/icp/relay.php?r=74469271&amp;msgid=339158&amp;act=8Y2D&amp;c=870976&amp;destination=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.jahia.com%2Fhome%2Fcompany%2Fevents%2Fmedia-list%2Fwebinar-jahia-version-7-a-functi.html">April 24th – Jahia 7: a Functional Overview</a></li>
<li><a href="http://click.icptrack.com/icp/relay.php?r=74469271&amp;msgid=339158&amp;act=8Y2D&amp;c=870976&amp;destination=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.jahia.com%2Fhome%2Fcompany%2Fevents%2Fmedia-list%2Fwebinar-developers-discover-the.html">April 29th – Developers: Dive deeper into the new Jahia 7 Studio features </a></li>
<li><a href="http://click.icptrack.com/icp/relay.php?r=74469271&amp;msgid=339158&amp;act=8Y2D&amp;c=870976&amp;destination=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.jahia.com%2Fhome%2Fcompany%2Fevents%2Fmedia-list%2Fwebinar-developers--system-admin.html">May 6th – Developers &amp; system administrators: Jahia 7 Studio and the Digital Industrialization</a></li>
</ul>

Jahia announce the release of Jahia 7

Kentico have released the latest version of their popular web content management solution.
Kentico 8 represents a significant improvement over previous releases with a completely redesigned and improved interface and a number of enhancements to their integrated marketing suite as well.
<blockquote>“Digital marketing today requires a unifying brand identity and faster level of responsiveness to the ever-changing needs of customers, wherever they might be,” said Kentico CEO and Founder Petr Palas. “With Kentico 8’s enhanced integrated marketing solution, our customers get a sophisticated but easy-to-use and affordable set of tools that allow them to quickly launch and manage highly personalized and integrated digital marketing activities across all digital mediums.”</blockquote>
Kentico has added quite a bit to this release and we'll go through them here to get you up to speed but first, here's a quick video showcasing the new version.
<iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/0vkTXiK9rn8?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
<h2>The New Interface</h2>
The new interface of Kentico 8 has almost a Windows 8 Metro look and feel to it, as you can see below. Clean and clear buttons and typography make it very visually attractive.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/moodboard_ui.jpg" alt="Kentico 8 screenshot" />
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/dashboard.png" alt="Kentico 8 screenshot" />
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/applist.png" alt="kentico 8 screenshot" />
<h2>Reworked Help Section</h2>
Another very important change in this new release is the brand new help section. Completely reworked from previous versions, the new help provides special how-to instructions and tips &amp; tricks related to the application you are using. Take a look:
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/help.png" alt="Kentico 8 Help" />
<h2>Marketing Suite Additions</h2>
The integrated marketing suite has also seen some cool new additions including:
<ul>
<li>Persona-based recommendations for boosted engagement and loyalty.<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/users.png" alt="Kentico 8 personas" /></li>
<li>A/B Testing Improvements 
Test variants of pages on particular audience segments, for deeper insight and more targeted results.</li>
<li>Social marketing 
Post content on and get analytics from Facebook and Twitter all from within the UI.</li>
</ul>
These are just a few of the changes and improvements in this new release. To get the full experience, check out their website <a href="http://www.kentico.com/kentico8">http://www.kentico.com/kentico8</a>

Kentico 8 Introduces Slick new Interface and Improved Marketing Suite

It’s happened to all of us: an online ad piques our interest in an item, and suddenly we’re debating a purchase.
Then, you link to the product’s <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/netlify-to-host-headless-commerce-summit-for-talks-on-building-world-class-e-commerce-experiences/">e-commerce</a> store, only to find that it’s slow, unresponsive, or just bad. You refresh a few times and pray for a digital miracle. Maybe you browse a bit, holding your nose. But if you’re like many people, you give up and head to a competitor's site.
Many outside factors can impact an online purchase decision. Even if an item is lucky enough to make it to a cart, it’s frequently left for dead. You could chalk some of this up to pre-buyer’s remorse or other real-world distractions, but a new study from <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/netlify-to-host-headless-commerce-summit-for-talks-on-building-world-class-e-commerce-experiences/">Storyblok</a> – a <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/top-free-headless-cms-platforms/">headless CMS</a> provider – suggests that poor website design could be the culprit.
According to the company’s survey published this week, 60% of consumers estimated that on average, they abandon five purchases per year just due to poor website performance.
Five purchases may not seem like a lot, but collectively it adds up to billions in unrealized revenue, all due to a less-than-stellar website experience.
<h2>Bad websites mean big business losses</h2>
As Einstein once theorized, time = money. Or was that <a href="https://www.pinterest.com/pin/350999364678568583/" target="_blank">Gary Larson</a>?
Time is indeed the enemy of all websites, particularly those with transactional e-commerce experiences. It starts with performance, and according to the <a href="https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/lighthouse/blipmdconlkpinefehnmjammfjpmpbjk?hl=en" target="_blank">Lighthouse</a> keepers at Google, pages should ideally load on mobile and desktop in <a href="https://seattlewebsearch.com/2020/11/your-website-needs-to-be-faster-than-3-seconds/" target="_blank">less than three seconds</a>.
Storyblok’s study takes the time conundrum a step further, digging into a user’s behavior on a web page and how the design experience might further impact their likelihood of sticking around. Based on the survey, 42% of participants said they decide whether to remain on a page in less than 10 seconds, while 20% decide in less than five. That means websites don’t have a lot of time to impress shoppers and convert interest into purchases.
And what about those “extra” features some sites make a point to have? Well, put earmuffs on those chatbots because ease of navigation, faster loading speeds, and a simple web design matter a lot more to shoppers.
“Consumers want easy-to-navigate, intuitively designed, and fast-loading websites,” said Storyblok CEO and co-founder <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/dominikangerer/" target="_blank">Dominik Angerer</a>. “However, a lot of e-commerce websites are falling short. Five purchases per shopper in missed sales may not seem like a lot, but when you scale this up to the number of potential new customers businesses are missing out on, it becomes a very significant amount of money.”
<h2>Avoiding “website embarrassment”</h2>
A great UI/UX can significantly impact a website’s <a href="https://raoinformationtechnology.com/blog/importance-of-ui-ux-design-for-your-website/#:~:text=A%20high%2Dquality%20UI%2FUX,brand's%20offered%20items%20and%20services." target="_blank">trust and credibility</a>. That’s why leading brands invest significantly in design and usability testing, as well as enhancing accessibility to ensure digital equality.
Still, getting the digital gum off your shoes can prove daunting in a world littered with bad UX. Let’s say a consumer actually decides to proceed with a purchase on a poorly functioning website. It turns out that experience still gives them the “ick”– and they would rather forget about it.
According to Storyblok’s survey, 42% of Americans and 18% of Europeans revealed that on at least one occasion, they were too embarrassed to say where they purchased a product – all because the website was so poorly designed.
Maybe we call this… digital shame?
Kudos to Storyblok for uncovering this data point, which is both entertaining and alarming. All jokes aside, any company that might be the target of this shame isn’t just missing out on sales – it's damaging the reputation of its brand.
<h2>Leveraging headless CMS and composable commerce to improve website experiences</h2>
As talk elevates around a <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2022/10/02/business/global-recession-fears-explained/index.html" target="_blank">looming economic recession</a>, online shopping continues to be the gem in an otherwise rusting crown of retail. Outlooks are still trending upward, with 23% of those surveyed anticipating more holiday purchases online this year. Meanwhile, 51% of respondents are planning to make the same number of online purchases as last year.
To meet the shifting demands of online consumers, Storyblok sees technology as a key activator for improving the digital experience in an omnichannel world. This is crystallized by the rise of composable commerce and the need to meet consumers anywhere, anytime, on any device or form factor.
“Additional functionality is still an important factor in attracting customers, but it’s critical to get the basics right first,” said Angerer. “For example, by investing in a headless, composable commerce tech infrastructure, companies can set the foundation for a great, fast-performing user experience.” 
<h2>Shopping in a metaverse marketplace</h2>
<a href="https://www.solodev.com/metaverse/" target="_blank">The metaverse</a> has become all the rage in 2022, with leading brands investing heavily in AR/VR strategies – particularly when it comes to e-commerce. According to Storyblok’s survey, transactions in virtual and augmented reality environments might be gathering more attention.
In fact, 42% of respondents said they would be encouraged to make more purchases with an AR or VR experience. Surprisingly, that percentage rose to a whopping 57% when filtered to the U.S. market. That’s big news for retailers who are struggling to find new opportunities for growth.
The results of this study echo what we’ve heard over and over for years: consumers don’t just want products. They want experiences – and giving them what they want isn’t as hard as it might seem. New features aside, brands that provide a great UX with an easy-to-use, easy-to-navigate website and an abundance of payment options will make it hard for shoppers to say no, even if the storefront is in a virtual world. 
If e-commerce sites can KISS (keep it simple, stupid) and make up with shoppers, they’ll likely feel less “ick” at the bottom line. And investing in quality design and the right technology stack – including <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/the-future-is-composable-a-conversation-with-new-mach-alliance-president-casper-rasmussen/">composable, MACH-ready solutions</a> – can help keep the gum off everyone’s shoes.
<h2>About Storyblok</h2>
Storyblok is a headless CMS that enables developers and marketers to deliver powerful content experiences on any digital platform. Developers create flexible components that are independently managed by content teams through a collaborative visual editor and customizable workflow. Published content is delivered through an API, so changes are made once and will appear everywhere: websites, mobile, IoT, the metaverse, and beyond. This approach reduces maintenance and makes content management more efficient. Leading brands such as Adidas, Renault, and Marc O’Polo use Storyblok to manage and share their content with the world. Storyblok was named the #1 CMS for 2022 by G2.
 
<a href="https://www.boye-co.com/conferences/cmskickoff23/program" target="_blank"><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2022/12/cms-kickoff-2023-banner-1024x151.jpg" alt="CMS Kickoff 2023 banner" /></a>
<h2>Join CMS Industry Leaders, Digital Agencies, and Users at CMS Kickoff 2023</h2>
January 17-18 in St. Petersburg, FL
Don't miss the only conference tailored for everyone working with content management systems, from beginners to experts! Featuring two packed days with a carefully curated mixture of talks, workshops, activities, world-class facilitators, thought provokers, speakers, and session leads. Mingle with CMS experts, system integrators, and users from around the globe at this exclusive event in beautiful St. Petersburg. 
Register today at the <a href="https://www.boye-co.com/conferences/cmskickoff23/program" target="_blank">CMS Kickoff 2023 website</a>.

Storyblok Study Reveals Poor Website Performance Costs E-Commerce Companies Billions

mk-patterson

My choice for Best Website Builder for 2012 (and the one that will be my #1 recommendation in this category until next year's awards) is the one and only, <a href="https://www.squarespace.com/">Squarespace</a>!
<img style="max-width:360px" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/squarespace.png" />
Squarespace is an amazing product that has really proven its strength as a leader in the website builder market. With a well-laid-out interface and plenty of ways to get support when needed, SquareSpace is clearly the top choice. Now in version 6, it has become even more incredible. You can <a href="https://www.squarespace.com/templates">try out a demo for 14 days</a> with no credit card required to see what I mean.
As my choice for this year, when asked to offer suggestions for the best website builder, I will point to Squarespace. They will receive my recommendation from now until next year’s winner is announced.

Critic's Choice for Best Website Builder goes to...

Semrush - Be an SEO hero

Be found everywhere search happens

Explore a wide range of informative articles, insights, and industry updates. Stay informed and ahead of the curve with our diverse collection of news and posts covering the latest trends and developments in the industry. Page - 137

News

Power your CMS on AWS

Be found everywhere search happens