Articles - Page 149

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

janus-boye

Most readers of CMS Critic will be familiar with WordPress’s huge user numbers. What you might be less familiar with is the extent to which the semantic publishing platform’s popularity might in part be driven by its friendliness to the digital marketing community and, in particular, SEO professionals.
Search engine optimisation specialists have become major standard bearers for WordPress. An SEO specialist often runs at least one website outside of their main job and WordPress is nearly always the chosen platform. By why is WP so favoured by this particular community; what are the features that SEO types love; and what plugins should be in your WordPress SEO toolbox?
<h3>SEOs aren’t technical</h3>
While search engine optimisation specialists are often very literate and numerate they very rarely have any technical or coding skills. So a CMS that sets up a brand new website in under 10 minutes with no need for advanced technical knowledge is a gift to them.
Search professionals appreciate not only the ease of set up but the huge WordPress community and masses of ‘how to’ style articles on the web. This vast cache of resources means that despite very little coding know-how an SEO specialist can make sizeable customisations to their WordPress site by accessing the hive-mind.
<h3>WordPress has SEO baked in</h3>
Straight out of the box WordPress has a ton of SEO-friendly features.
<ul>
<li>URLs are a factor in how a page ranks. WordPress lets you choose from a variety of permalinks to increase the chances of other sites linking back to you and to get all important keywords into the URL of a page.</li>
<li>Pingbacks and Trackbacks join WordPress sites together in something resembling a social network. Other site owners are notified when you reference them and vice-versa, increasing the chances that they’ll link back to you.</li>
<li>Images are increasingly important to SEO as search engines pulls them into results pages and social networks like Google+, LinkedIn and Facebook pull them into posts. WordPress makes image formatting easy and lets you edit the all-important alt-image attribute without any extra plugins or customisation.</li>
<li>A huge number of available themes lets you pick a site structure that compliments your SEO efforts without requiring any technical input.</li>
</ul>
Of course many of these features have been prompted by a desire to follow best digital publishing practices rather than a desire to make WordPress a great platform for SEO. But a large part of the work of an SEO specialist is ensuring web pages adhere to best practice in the eyes of Google and the other search engines, so the benefits are there regardless of intent.
<h3>There are a ton of WordPress plugins for SEO</h3>
Here are a few of the most important:
<ul>
<li><a href="http://wordpress.org/plugins/google-analytics-for-wordpress/">Google Analytics for WordPress</a> inserts tracking code into all your pages automatically so that all your traffic data is available in Google’s Analytics tool. This plugin from Yoast doesn’t just provide vanilla tracking but also lets you customise where the tracking code is placed, how downloads and clicks on outbound links are tracked etc.</li>
<li><a href="http://wordpress.org/plugins/wordpress-seo/">WordPress SEO</a>, also authored by Yoast, is an extremely powerful and feature-packed SEO plugin that lets you edit meta-data alongside a page’s content, analyse the page for optimisation based on a specified keyword phrase, <a href="http://moz.com/learn/seo/canonicalization">canonicalise your content</a>, exclude specified pages from being indexed by search engines and it can generate tags and data to help social networks like Facebook recognise your content. It even lets you edit your robots.txt and ht.access files from WordPress.</li>
<li><a href="http://wordpress.org/plugins/google-sitemap-generator/">Google XML sitemaps</a> generates a new XML sitemap every time you update your site’s content. An XML sitemap helps the spiders of Google, Bing et al to find all the pages on your site, increasing both the likelihood and speed with which they get indexed by search engines.</li>
<li>Social media and SEO are becoming increasingly intertwined as the search engines incorporate social data into their algorithms. This <a href="http://wordpress.org/plugins/social/screenshots/">plugin from Mailchimp</a> allows your users to comment via their social media profiles, lets you pull in social media mentions as comments and lets you automatically broadcast your new posts to your social networks. <a href="http://wordpress.org/plugins/digg-digg/">Digg Digg</a> adds the essential social sharing buttons to your pages and posts.</li>
<li>Tracking the end goals of your SEO efforts is vital. <a href="http://wordpress.org/plugins/contact-form-7/">Contact form 7</a> provides simple but very customisable contact forms to which it is easy to add Google analytics tracking.</li>
</ul>
The vast number of plugins available for WordPress mean that whatever your SEO strategy you’ll almost certainly find a combination to suit. By leveraging the power of WP plugins you can make major SEO changes to your site without ever having to login to an FTP server or write a single line of code.
<h3>You can write your own SEO-friendly theme</h3>
The main problem with using plugins for all your SEO needs is that they have the potential to slow down your page load times – another increasingly important factor in search engine algorithms.
Luckily a decent WordPress developer can bake all the features that an SEO consultant specifies, and which would otherwise be provided by plugins, directly into a customised theme. This allows for faster page load times, a better user experience and better rankings in search.
<h3>An admission</h3>
I have to admit here that I don’t have a great deal of experience with using other Content Management Systems. But, from the perspective of an SEO professional who’s never written a line of code in his life, it would take a lot of persuasion to pull me away from a platform that requires so little programming knowledge, that offers so many options for customisation, that has so many bespoke SEO plugins and that is supported by such a large community of search experts.

Why WordPress is a gift to SEO professionals

mike-johnston

So you’re in the market for a new CMS. You’re likely feeling anxious about making sure your final decision is one that you’ll still be happy with in five years. Since today is Halloween and we’re all a little focused on the things that may scare us, I figured this would be a great week to offer up some pointers on how to avoid having your CMS purchase come back to HAUNT you. (Boo!)
Shopping for a CMS can be frightening. You don’t want to pour your budget down the drain, only to experience regret due to the fact that your decision left your organization’s needs unmet. So let’s discuss some points to consider right now when the only investment you’ve made so far is time in the buying process.
You Need to Take a Test Drive
When comparing options for your next CMS, what better way to get an inside look than to experience a demo or free sandbox or both. These options can be really insightful into how a system operates. And let’s be honest, just as with other large purchases in life, would you really be comfortable buying a car without a test drive or a home without an inspection? The same theory applies here.
You’ll Actually Want the “Warranty”
This point goes with the one above, but let me explain what I mean by “warranty”. Whenever I buy a large, costly item, the warranty always seems much more attractive and important. When it comes to a new CMS, you could compare having a warranty to the level of customer service and support you will receive once your CMS has been purchased. Will you have access to benefits such as an extensive and active user community, installation flexibility, an annual user conference you can attend, and unlimited support contacts? Also, will the CMS provider release regular updates, and for that matter, will they still be in business five years from now? Research what real benefits come post-purchase and make sure they’ll meet your needs.
 Don’t Get Fooled By Flashy
When shopping for a CMS, try to look past the flashy features that sound great on paper but won't ever actually be used by your content contributors and CMS administrators. Sure, having an infinitely customizable workflow sounds awesome in theory, but you know that most of your users have no desire to jump through hoops to get their content published. Evaluate your true needs first, so you won't get distracted by flashy features that aren't necessary for your organization. If you’re a large organization with many sites, data portability, copying sites, and sharing content may be incredibly important components of a quality CMS for you. If you’re a smaller organization, you may be more concerned with a short learning curve for end users, easy content creation wizards, and in-context edit. Look for the qualities you need, and don’t get distracted by those you really don’t.
 Are They Resourceful?
You’ll want to purchase your CMS from a resourceful vendor. They should be versed not only on their product but also on the industry as a whole and the needs of their target audience. Some of the best resources include webinars, case studies, and of course, white papers. For example, one white paper that applies to this article’s topic is The Top 10 CMS Buying Mistakes, which you can download for free by simply filling out the short form below. This white paper is a fantastic resource covering topics such as factors you should consider in your purchase, why you need to look beyond pricing, and CMS selection pitfalls to avoid.
 [[halloweenform]]
Is there a Return Policy on this?
Lastly, the return policy can also be a deciding factor when it comes to your purchase of a larger item. To be clear, there isn’t usually a return policy on content management software. What I mean is that often, the time and resources it will take an organization to implement a CMS almost make it impossible to change course after you get up and running, even if you are didn’t invest all that much “money” into it. You’ve already invested a lot of time and energy and–let’s face it–emotion into moving your site over to the new CMS, so it’s that much more important that you make the right choice.
Halloween may be almost over, but you CMS selection decision could haunt you year-round for years to come if you choose the wrong one. <a href="http://www3.hannonhill.com/cms-critic-top-10-link">Download The Top 10 CMS Mistakes white paper now</a>, so you can avoid the biggest mistakes and keep the Trick out of you CMS Treat.

Trick or Treat? Don’t Let Your CMS Purchase Mistakes Come Back to Haunt You

Essentially, WooCommerce by <a href="http://www.woothemes.com" target="_blank"> WooThemes</a> is just another free WordPress plugin. However, you would be extremely hard-pressed to find a similar plugin which holds the same level of potential.
Launched in late September 2011,  <a href="http://www.woothemes.com/woocommerce" target="_blank"> WooCommerce</a> now supports a sizeable slice of the ever-growing ecommerce pie, boasting over 1.6M downloads from across the globe.
The open-source platform provides users with a feature extensive, yet hugely user-friendly experience, making it perfect for ecommerce startups to get a feel for online business in a way which is easy to digest, and doesn't cost an arm or a leg.
So, let's take a look at just how WooCommerce fits the bill for budding online merchants.
<h2>1. It's Free</h2>
<a href="http://www.woothemes.com/" target="_blank"> <img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/1.png" alt="WooCommerce" /> </a>
There is no shortage of high-quality e-commerce CMS currently on offer, all of which endeavour to help merchants sell online easily and innovatively. Most of the time, the only drawback is that they all come at a price. All except WooCommerce that is.
<a href="http://www.woothemes.com/woocommerce/" target="_blank">WooCommerce is completely free to download, right now</a>. Yet, despite being free and open-source, WooCommerce offers extensive features out of the box, whilst also being extremely flexible both by nature, and via the additional of extensions, which I will mention later.
<h2>2. Huge Flexibility</h2>
Perhaps one of WooCommerce's biggest benefit to ecommerce newcomers, is that merchants using the platform can exercise a whole lot of flexibility with their products, without having to know too much about the technical side of things.
Products can be categorized, given sale prices, independent attributes, and more. Additionally, WooCommerce stores are capable of selling physical, virtual, downloadable and even affiliate/external products.
<h2>3. More Than Ecommerce</h2>
WooCommerce doesn't force users to go beyond their comfort zone when building their online store, yet at the same time, it readily opens the door for more than just ecommerce.
For example, WooCommerce users can build a fully functioning store within a professional website, alongside an integrated blog. All of these dimensions of a business' online presence are harnessed in one place, and presented together seamlessly, and it's all thanks to WooCommerce being a WordPress based platform.
<h2>4. Familiar Friendliness</h2>
Speaking of WordPress, the hugely popular CMS <a href="http://trends.builtwith.com/cms" target="_blank">supports over 51% of the top million websites currently in existence</a>, and so it would be fair to say that many ecommerce startups will have had the pleasure of using WordPress, for similar, or unrelated online project.
With WooCommerce being a WordPress plugin, past users of the platform will benefit from being able to recognize the user-friendly WordPress interface. That kind of familiarity when building an online store could easily save time and confusion, whilst bolstering creativity.
<h2>5. Vast Customization Options</h2>
<a href="http://www.woothemes.com/" target="_blank"> <img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/33.png" alt="WooCommerce" /> </a>
Being free hasn't made WooCommerce a rigid platform. In fact, there is a lot of room to customize and tweak your online store to a level of uniqueness.
Currently, users can choose between 39 different WooCommerce enabled themes – many of which are free, via the <a href="http://www.woothemes.com/product-category/themes/" target="_blank">WooThemes Store</a>. Once a theme has been selected, you can then get to work on changing pre-set CSS styles and colour themes, tweaking the code and experimenting with the special features which each theme offers.
<h2>6. Professional Yet Simple</h2>
Although WooCommerce is a free, user-friendly ecommerce platform, you shouldn't let that fool you into thinking it isn't a professional online store solution – because that's exactly what it is.
Built into the platform can be found detailed order tracking and customer engagement tools, which allow merchants to view past and open orders, update delivery statuses, apply discounts and so forth. In fact, tax settings, inventory management, shipping options, coupon codes and pretty much everything else you need for a professional ecommerce setup, is part of WooCommerce, right out of the box.
<h2>7. Analytics Made Easy</h2>
A core tool used by any website owner, is their analytics tool. Many ecommerce startups may not know how to apply an analytics system to their website, nor will they know what statistics need focused analysis. Thankfully, WooCommerce has such merchants covered.
The built in analytics system makes a wide array of statistics crystal clear. Figures like total sales, sales by date, average order totals, individual customer statistics and much more are all neatly presented via graphs, without the user ever having to leave their admin panel. It's that easy.
<h2>8. Apps Galore</h2>
As it is, WooCommerce has the ability to help any aspiring online merchant set up, and run his business easily, and professionally. Yet, for those looking for extra functionality, WooCommerce once again doesn't disappoint.
There are hundreds of <a href="http://www.woothemes.com/product-category/woocommerce-extensions/" target="_blank">WooCommerce Extensions</a> available, some of which are free, and some of which require a fee. From these extensions, one can find applications relating to accounting, payment gateways, marketing, reporting and more.
<h2>9. Room For Growth</h2>
As simple as WooCommerce is as an ecommerce platform, it also allows you to exercise some growth and expansion in terms of how you manage your store, products and customers.
For example, modifying templates is made easy whether users want to do so directly via the theme files, or whether you use the many hooks &amp; filters. WooCommerce also has various APIs ready to be used for building extensions, along with an extensive documentation library, so that users can get to know how WooCommerce works, inside and out.
<h2>10. Because WooThemes</h2>
<a href="http://www.woothemes.com/" target="_blank"> <img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/3.png" alt="WooCommerce" /> 
</a> Finally, one of the very best reasons for WooCommerce being perfect for ecommerce startups, is because of WooThemes themselves.
WooThemes have been around for a while, producing stellar WordPress themes, extensions and plugins, including WooCommerce. They  have a wonderful track record of being reliable and exceedingly professional with both their products, and their support system. On top of a <a href="http://www.woothemes.com/meet-the-team/" target="_blank">myriad of real, contactable people to talk to</a>, WooThemes users can benefit from community forums, video tutorials, and more.
So there you have it, ten very good reasons for why you should strongly consider using WooCommerce to propel your first ecommerce project to success.
To learn more about how WooCommerce can benefit ecommerce startups, check out the section on <a href="http://www.woothemes.com/woocommerce" target="_blank"> WooCommerce on the WooThemes website</a>.

10 Reasons Why WooCommerce is Perfect For Ecommerce Startups

Ah, Social Networking. We love it so much that we just can't stay away. Some people love social networking so much that they want to start their own and there are more and more niche networks opening up every day.
For all of this activity, you need a great platform and this year, we have several amazing solutions competing for the People's Choice Award for Best Social Networking Solution.
As a reminder, here is the list of nominees for this year:
<ol>
<li><a href="/products/dnn-evoq-social/"> DNN Evoq Social </a></li>
<li><a href="/products/phpfox/"> PHPFox </a></li>
<li><a href="/products/oxwall/"> Oxwall </a></li>
<li><a href="/products/socialcore"> SocialCore </a></li>
<li><a href="/products/social-engine"> Social Engine </a></li>
</ol>
We are very excited to announce that we've had a huge turnout this year in both the nomination stage and the voting stage and we're looking forward to even more exposure for these great products for the 2014 awards season.
The winner for this year, according to your votes, is…
<img style="max-width:150px" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/best-social-networking-solution150x0.png" />
Social Engine!
Social Engine is a popular social network software that comes in two editions: SocialEngine Cloud and SocialEngine PHP (non-hosted). SocialEngine is completely unbranded and can be changed in any way you like. There are plenty of addons and themes and the community is large. SocialEngine Cloud, their hosted solution, is far different from the PHP edition and we’d recommend you try out the demo to get a taste for what it is and how it works.
They offer a 14-day free trial which is a great way to test out the software prior to purchasing so we’d suggest you take a look if you are considering getting social network software in the future.
<a href="/social-engine">Check out Social Engine</a>

2013 People's Choice Winner for Best Social Networking Solution

SetSeed 8 adds an all-new interface with improved mobile experience and new APIs that allow web designers and agencies to use SetSeed to power an own-branded website builder product.
SetSeed was designed by Ben Vallack to solve problems associated with WYSIWYG-based CMSs.
<blockquote>
“WYSWIG editors are simply not the right tool for the job. Websites are dynamic and responsive. Unlike print, webpages look different on different devices. Therefore, there can be no ‘What You See Is What You Get' because everyone gets something different.” Said Ben Vallack, SetSeed's designer and developer. “SetSeed uses an entirely different approach. Content is presented in a single portable list. It's presented without any of the style and layout that is shown on the actual website. This makes it really easy to work with your content in a way that works for the modern web.”
</blockquote>
Several APIs are also included with SetSeed 8 that for the first time allow SetSeed CMS to be used as a website builder.
More and more end-users are looking for a turnkey website builder product instead of shelling out for a bespoke website. As a result, web designers and agencies are looking to cash-in on this trend by offering their own website builder solution. Up until now, creating a website builder has been an extremely complex process, often requiring complete custom development to achieve. SetSeed makes it possible for web designers and agencies to launch their own website builder with very little time or cost investment.
SetSeed 8's new user interface is designed to welcome beginners from the start.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/setseed.jpg" alt="SetSeed CMS 8" />
The new side-by-side live preview system clarifies and builds on SetSeed's beyond-WYSIWYG approach and allows all dynamic content to be seen in context on the webpage. Drag-and-drop an image, contact form, gallery or product into the content ‘blueprint' and see it in the live preview straight away.
<blockquote>
“Now that SetSeed 8 can be used as an automated website builder, it's crucial that new users can start using SetSeed to manage their content without needing any training.” said Ben. “Content management for a modern, dynamic website can be very complex. But SetSeed's simple concept of Storage and Webpages makes it easy to grasp – even for novices”.
</blockquote>
SetSeed 8 also brings many improvements to the experience of editing content on mobile devices and tablets. Other CMSs often only offer feature-limited stand-alone apps to allow content management on the go. SetSeed CMS is a ‘responsive' web application that runs just as well on a small touch-screen device as it does on a large mouse-based desktop. This means end-users can enjoy the full SetSeed CMS feature-set wherever they are.
Visit setseed.com to learn more about what's available with <a href="http://setseed.com/">SetSeed 8</a>.

SetSeed CMS sees major update with version 8

E-Commerce Solutions are super popular these days with millions of online stores selling everything from arts and crafts to memorabilia and much, much more. It's no surprise that this newly created category for Best ECommerce Solution had such an active amount of voters and nominees.A solid E-Commerce solution needs to offer multiple payment gateways, solid support, an easy-to-use builder, and excellent reporting. All of these items are well showcased in the amazing products that were nominated for this years Best ECommerce Solution award.Here is the list of nominees for 2013:<ol><li><a target="_blank" href="https://www.shift4shop.com/index2.html">3dcart</a></li><li><a target="_blank" href="https://archive.codeplex.com/?p=aspxcommerce">Aspxcommerce</a></li><li><a href="/products/bigcommerce/">BigCommerce</a></li><li><a target="_blank" href="https://business.adobe.com/products/magento/magento-commerce.html">Magento</a></li><li><a href="/products/shopify/">Shopify</a></li></ol>All of the above solutions are incredibly popular but it came down to two very popular solutions; Magento and Shopify.In the end, one winner rose to the top and that was…<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/best-ecommerce-solution150x0.png" />Shopify!Shopify has really been gaining market quickly and is one of the top ECommerce solutions out there. If you are in the market or considering starting an online store, you'd be remiss not to try out their offering.With an excellent interface and tons of customization, it's no shock they won People's Choice for Best ECommerce Solution.Check out our <a href="/shopify-review-ecommerce-only-simpler/">Shopify Review</a>, <a href="/products/shopify/">Learn more about Shopify</a> or visit <a target="_blank" href="https://www.shopify.com/">them on the web</a>

2013 People's Choice Winner for Best ECommerce Solution

Semrush - Be an SEO hero

Be an SEO hero with Semrush

#ffffff

This week, via the Liferay Symposium event being held in San Francisco, Liferay Portal 6.2 was officially announced.
Liferay, Inc, provider of the world's leading <a href="http://www.liferay.com">enterprise-class open source portal</a>, which is trusted by numerous Fortune 500 companies, have now enhanced their flagship product with a number of direct changes and additions, making it easier for enterprises to engage with their audience.
Attendees of the North America Liferay Symposium event are getting their hands on Liferay Portal 6.2 for the first time, with live demos on the floor and sessions tailored to highlighting key uses of new features. Let's explore exactly what those attendees will be experiencing.
<h2>More Modern, Intuitive &amp; Flexible</h2>
Liferay Portal 6.2, which is now available as part of the Liferay Enterprise Subscription, has introduced a higher emphasis on flexibility, by offering modernized support for both mobile and web apps.
All websites and content created with Liferay Portal 6.2 will now automatically display correctly on mobile devices in a responsive fashion. Administrators can make use of  mobile device previews right from the interface, enabling them to quickly see how pages look on smaller screens. Different rules can also be defined to handle specific devices and families in various ways.
To compliment these mobile enhancements, a new mobile Software Developer Kit (SDK), currently in the works for 6.2, will help developers build custom native apps that incorporate Liferay Portal functionality, including collaboration applications and integrated back end systems.
Accompanying these announcements, the Liferay CEO, <a href="http://www.liferay.com/about-us/leadership/bcheung" target="_blank">Bryan Cheung</a>, had this to say:
<blockquote>“Today’s enterprises need to interact with their customers, partners, and employees through compelling, seamless experiences across several channels. Liferay Portal 6.2 is a modern, intuitive platform designed to help enterprises understand and reach their customers across mobile, web, and live contexts.”</blockquote>
<h2>Better Mobile Engagement, Smoother Interfaces &amp; More</h2>
With increased mobile readiness with responsive layouts, one-click mobile previews, mobile device rules and a Mobile App SDK, Liferay have certainly added a new dimension to their Portal's mobile engagement. But there's more.
On top of these flexible mobile enhancements, Liferay Portal 6.2 users will also get to enjoy an entirely new, smoother interface with Twitter Bootstrap theming. Users also have access to the Bootstrap theme library, plus a new Control Panel theme with streamlined site administration features.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/liferay_-_liferay_portal_6_2_app_manager700x0.png" alt="Liferay Portal 6.2" /> 
Additionally, the update brings about an improved web management experience, thanks to Site Hierarchies for managing both content and users across multiple sites, along with Application Display Templates, which allow developers to quickly customize the look and feel of their applications.
Multi-Language support has also been enhanced for content, URLs and applications.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/lifeary_-_liferay_portal_6_2_control_panel700x0.png" alt="Liferay Portal 6.2" />
Finally, Liferay Portal 6.2 also brings increased platform stability through portlet sandboxing, and greater modularity in Liferay Portal architecture with ability to manage multiple versions of libraries. This improved modularity also makes it easier to share libraries across multiple plugins, upgrade and rollback portlets from version to version.
To find out more about what Liferay Portal can offer you, check our <a href="http://www.liferay.com/products/liferay-portal/overview" target="_blank"> Liferay's official breakdown of their popular product</a>. If you want more information on Liferay's current North America event, including agendas and speakers, you can find everything you need to know right here.
Additionally, you can learn more about <a href="/products/liferay/" target="_blank"> Liferay via our CMS Directory</a>.

Liferay Portal 6.2 Announced at Liferay's North America Event

It's no surprise that website builders are so popular. Millions upon millions of people choose them every day to build amazing portfolio websites, online stores, company websites, and personal blogs and with the number of people using them, the developers have had to work hard to add functionality to keep up with demand.
This year, we had a number of excellent products in the mix for Best Website Builder and it's no surprise that the ones that ended up being nominated are the People's Choice.
As a reminder, here's the list of nominees for this year's award:
<ol>
<li><a href="/products/adobe-business-catalyst/"> Adobe Business Catalyst </a></li>
<li><a href="/products/jimdo/"> Jimdo </a></li>
<li><a href="/products/squarespace/"> Squarespace </a></li>
<li><a href="/products/ucoz/"> UCoz </a></li>
<li><a href="/products/webydo/"> Webydo </a></li>
</ol>
And the winner of this year's People's Choice Award for Best Website Builder goes to…
 <img style="max-width:150px" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/best-website-builder150x0.png" alt="best website builder" /> 
Adobe Business Catalyst! 
Adobe Business Catalyst is really much more than just a website builder, it's a powerful hosted CMS with integrated everything. With a host of powerful tools from one of the biggest names in the industry, Adobe, Business Catalyst is the ultimate solution for all sizes of business and personal sites. It's so powerful, you can use it to run a midsize business from it without any problem at all.
<a href="/products/adobe-business-catalyst/"> Learn more about Adobe Business Catalyst </a> or visit them <a href="http://businesscatalyst.com"> on the web </a>
Congratulations to the Business Catalyst team on their win! Stay tuned to find out who walks away with the Critics Choice Award (selected by our panel of judges) coming soon.

2013 People's Choice Winner for Best Website Builder

Running an organization with a large number of employees is no easy task, especially when regular staff training needs to be carried out to ensure that industry knowledge is not just maintained, but also increased.
<a href="http://learncore.com/" target="_blank"> LearnCore</a> is a modernized learning management system built from the ground up to offer a user-friendly experience to both administrators and learners. The LearnCore platform can enhance the training content your organization already offers, via personalized course and test creation, direct user management, social features, and even constructive gamification.
Thanks to a careful blend of these features, LearnCore is a training platform that actively engages the user on a number of levels, making the overall learning experience a far more effective one.
<iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/URdf9Jc-_J4?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
<h2>A Powerful Learning Environment</h2>
LearnCore offers administrators every essential tool needed to build a comprehensive course and testing system for corporate staff.
Administrators can quickly and easily construct questions, tests and courses based on existing staff training materials. Various forums of content can be uploaded and arranged into bite-sized modules, perfect to help staff brush up n their industry knowledge.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/2700x0.png" alt="LearnCore" /> 
LearnCoredoesn't stop there though. Administrators have access to detailed analytics and tracking features, which can relay updates on the progress of different staff members, including their course completion rates, average scores and all other activity within the LearnCore platform.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/11.png" alt="LearnCore" />
Organizations also have the freedom to create specific user types, giving each type different levels of access to various features and modules. Users are created extremely quickly using the user management interface, requiring only a full name and corresponding email address.
<h2>Keeping Staff Trained, Yet Entertained</h2>
Any software that seeks to modernize the way users interact with information, will need to ensure that it is moving with the times in terms of accessibility – and that's exactly what LearnCore has done.
For example, the platform is perfect for teams who are regularly on the move, relying on mobile devices to keep on top of their work. As a SaaS (Software as a Service), LearnCore lives in the cloud, which frees it up to be accessed from any device connected to the Internet, including smart phone and tablets. LearnCore's responsive nature means that no matter which device is used, the user will experience the platform in a smooth, device-tailored way.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/3700x0.png" alt="LearnCore" />
Additionally, LearnCore has an integrated both social and gamification features in ways which will promote learning and discussion between team members.
The discussion forums existing within the software, enable administrators and general users alike to ask questions, share information and interact with each other in a constructive fashion.
Accolades and credentials can also be awarded to team members whenever they pass modules or courses, which will help keep users engaged, and entertained as they get through their educational content at office, at home or in the office.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/4.png" alt="LearnCore" />
What's more is, LearnCore has cleverly integrated gamification features, including credentials and accolades which can be awarded to users whenever they pass courses.
These awards, along with the social forums and mobile accessibility, will all help to keep users engaged, and entertained as they get through their educational content at office, at home or in the office.
To learn more about what LearnCore can offer your organization in terms of revolutionizing your staff training programs, <a href="http://learncore.com/" target="_blank"> visit their website</a>.
Additionally, you can find some more key information about LearnCore via our CMS Directory.

Revolutionize Corporate Staff Training with LearnCore

Forums are a critical piece of the web and this year, we felt it fitting to introduce a new category to our <a href="/cms-critic-awards/">Critics Choice Awards</a>,  Best Forum Solution. There has been a solid response this year and the nominees that were selected by our readers are great projects that are well deserving of the spotlight.
As a reminder, if you do not see your favorites in the list of nominees, please keep in mind that this is People's Choice and that means our readers have both nominated and voted for the various solutions in the list you see. While we strive to reach out to all vendors to let them know about the awards and to rally their troops, we can't hold their hands and make them all participate so the ones you see below are here because they've chosen to do so and we truly appreciate that.
Here is the list of nominees:
<ol>
<li><a href="http://vanillaforums.org/"> Vanilla Forums </a></li>
<li><a href="http://nodebb.org/"> NodeBB </a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.simplemachines.org/"> Simple Machines Forum </a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.vbulletin.com/" target="_blank">VBulletin</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.invisionpower.com/"> Invision Power Board (IPBoard) </a></li>
</ol>
It was a hard-fought fight for the top place but the solution that rose to the top was the one and only…
<img style="max-width:150px" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/best-forum-solution150x0.png" />Vanilla Forums!
Vanilla allows you to create a customized community that rewards positive participation, automatically curates content, and lets members drive moderation. It provides cloud and open source community forum software that powers discussion forums on over 680 thousand sites.
Congratulations to the Vanilla Forums development team and to all those solutions that were nominated this year.
Learn more about <a href="http://vanillaforums.org/">Vanilla Forums 
</a>
Don't forget, we have the Critic's Choice portion underway now, where a panel of judges select the winner of the Critics Choice awards so check back to see who gets picked as the cream of the crop by the Critics.

2013 People's Choice Winner for Best Forum Solution

<a href="https://www.weebly.com/">Weebly</a>, which is without a doubt one of the most popular website builders out there, have made some welcome changes to their Site Creator interface. The changes, which are rather dramatic visually, are definitely better than what they previously had in place and we're excited to share with you those changes today.
<h2>Weebly's New Site Creator – Before and After</h2>
Here is a before shot of the <a href="https://www.weebly.com/">Weebly</a> Site Creator:
<img style="display:block;margin-left:auto;margin-right:auto" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/weebly3600x0.jpg" alt="Weebly Site Creator" />
And here is the brand new interface:
<img style="display:block;margin-left:auto;margin-right:auto" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/6170890600x0.png" alt="weebly new interface" />
As you can see, content elements are no longer on the top of the page but are now on the left hand side. While this looks significantly different, the elements still function in the exact same way: you drag them to your site in order to add text, pictures, and other content.
<h2>Renamed Elements</h2>
Some of the elements have also been renamed. For example, the Custom HTML element is now labeled as Embed Code. The Paragraph element is now called Text. What about the picture element? Now it's Image. The Scribd element? It's called Document. 
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/weebly-renamed-elements.png" alt="weebly new interface" /> Functionally, all these elements work in the exact same way as ever, they've just been relabeled to make it clearer what they do and given better visual appeal.
<h2>New Element Toolboxes</h2>
The old toolbars felt a bit cramped and it wasn't always easy to decipher which button performed which function. The new toolboxes are bigger and very clearly labeled. Plus if you don't like where a toolbox shows up on the screen, you can click on it and drag it somewhere else.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/weebly-new-element-boxes.png" alt="New Element Toolboxes" />
<h2>New Mobile Editor</h2>
Now you can see easily see what your site looks like on iPhone and Android, as well as choose a unique mobile theme and edit your mobile site directly from your computer. Whether you make updates to your main site or to your mobile site, <a href="https://www.weebly.com/">Weebly</a> will now make sure both sites are always in sync so that you don't have to constantly flip back-and-forth between both of them.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/weebly_mobile_editor.png" alt="weebly mobile editor" />
<h2>The Site Planner</h2>
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/weebly_site_planner.png" alt="weebly site planner" />
Get ideas and inspiration to help you create a high-quality site or even to have fun refreshing your current one. Site Planner shows you how to organize your information, layout your pages, choose your site address and grow your traffic. And, best of all, it can be easily accessed at anytime while you are working on your site.
And there you have it folks! A much better look (in my humble opinion) and better usability. If you were a fan of Weebly in the past, you're going to love it even more now. If you haven't tried Weebly yet, there's never been a better time!
<blockquote>
<h3><a href="https://www.weebly.com/">Try Weebly</a> </h3>
</blockquote>

Weebly introduces newly revamped Site Creator!

Today, Telerik announced that their leading CMS solution Sitefinity is to be boosted by some direct improvements to the way users manage, view and interact with their own content, as well as analytical data.
<a href="http://www.sitefinity.com/" target="_blank">Sitefinity</a> is a powerful ASP.NET website management platform, primed to enable its 70,000 business users to execute quickly and independently. Thanks to the minimalist approach taken by Sitefinity, developers, marketing end-users and IT managers are able to work more effectively, helping to grow their business.
Currently, no less than 49 of the Fortune 500 companies currently trust Sitefinity with their web content. Now, Sitefinity 6.2 will seek to change the way everyday users interact with their websites, hoping to give those same enterprises a smoother, more user-friendly experience.
<h2>Inline Editing Introduced</h2>
The Sitefinity content management system now comes equipped with a browser-based HTML5 environment for creating and updating content. That means that authors can now edit title fields and body fields in a true WYSIWYG format.  Everything from headers, sub-heads, and body content and images can be created and modified in context of the webpage.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/4.png" alt="Sitefinity" />
This highly user-friendly method of updating content means that users will be able to tailor their content as they view it from the end-users perspective. This doesn't just simplify the content publishing process, but it also makes it a whole lot more efficient. The additional ‘Full Details Mode' allows users to edit all the pieces of a content node such as keyword tags, image alt tags, URL, and publication date.
Martin Kirov, the Executive Vice President of Telerik’s Sitefinity division, had this to say regarding the newly implemented inline editing feature:
<blockquote>“The ability to execute is becoming a bigger and bigger differentiator for the success of online marketing teams. Making digital marketers more effective by authoring content in the context of the presentation was the main driver behind the revolutionary inline content authoring experience we’re delivering with this release. Content is still in the center of the online customer experience and enriching it with context, coupled with amazing authoring experience will enable our customers to deliver compelling online experiences and grow their business.”</blockquote>
<h2>Google Analytics &amp; Admin Dashboard Enhanced</h2>
Sitefinity users will also notice that the Google Analytics web analytics service module has also been upgraded to HTML5. Based on this rich, standards-based environment, users can easily take full advantage of the Google Analytics service, in new, more effective ways.
For example, as users edit webpages, they can leverage analytic reports, including daily visits, visit duration, and unique visitors – all whilst making adjustments to the webpage for search engine optimization purposes.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/3.png" alt="Sitefinity" />
What's more, is, the Sitefinity CMS now offers its users a dynamic Administration Dashboard that gives business users visibility into areas such as website interactions, pending tasks and recent content added by either themselves or other users. This holistic overview of the website in question will almost certainly benefit enterprises and individuals alike to ascertain important information as soon as they log in to their admin panel.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/2.png" alt="Sitefinity" />
The dashboard also benefits from integration with Google Analytics. Users can personalize the display to present metrics such as daily visits, visit duration, bounce rate, traffic sources and more. Alternatively, the dashboard can be set to display content items last edited as well as type and status.
To find out more about Telerik's improvements to their popular CMS, you can have a read of the <a href="http://www.sitefinity.com/product/see-also/what's-new" target="_blank">official release notes for Sitefinity 6.2</a>.
Additionally, you can learn more about <a href="/products/sitefinity/" target="_blank"> Sitefinity via our CMS Directory</a>.

Telerik's Sitefinity 6.2 Arrives With a Host of Improvements

Bitrix, Inc have this week extended the functionality of their Intranet and Extranet solution, <a href="http://www.bitrix24.com/" target="_blank"> Bitrix24 </a> , with a mobile Intranet portal coming in the form of an iOS &amp; Android app, both of which are free to use for up to 12 users. 
 Bitrix24 is a Bitrix, Inc product which seeks to help revolutionize the way that employees work, share and interact within their company via their very own <a href="http://www.bitrix24.com/features/" target="_blank">Bitrix powered social Intranet</a>. Bitrix currently supports organizations ranging from small sized, to Fortune 500 companies including well-known enterprises like Xerox, Samsung, Volkswagen. 
 Now, with their free to use mobile Intranet portal, smaller companies can begin to modernize the way they get work done by organizing staff, projects and company interactions under one, feature extensive digital roof.
<h2>Moving With The Mobile Workforce</h2>
With today's world of entertainment, socialising and business going crazy for mobile, Bitrix's move to provide an Intranet portal for small businesses owners on the move can be considered a smart one. The Bitrix CEO, Dmitry Valyanov, had this to say on the subject:
<blockquote>
“A large portion of workforce is now mobile. The BYOD crowd wants full access to their company intranet and collaboration tools from their mobile devices. Last year, it became clear that people wanted an app that would function as a fully functional mobile intranet portal and does not require access to PC. It took us a year and a half of continuous work and improvements, but we finally did it and we did it right. Bitrix24 is currently the fourth most popular mobile intranet solution, only behind billion dollar companies like Yammer, Salesforce and Citrix, according to GooglePlay statistics.”
</blockquote>
 <img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/1.png" alt="Bitrix, Inc" />
The Bitrix24 mobile app will run seamlessly on all iOS &amp; Android devices, from smart phones, to tablets and everything in between. The application combines the looks and mechanics of social networking, such as liking and following, which naturally increases employee engagement, and can even serve as a team bonding tool.
More importantly however,  traditional intranet portal features are also incorporated, including searchable employee directories, activity streams, individual and group tasks, calendars, file sharing, work groups, instant messaging, group chat and even a CRM.
<img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/2.png" alt="Bitrix, Inc" />
Push notifications are used by the app to alert intranet users when they receive a new messages, whilst tasks and calendar events can be created, accessed and modified directly from the Bitrix24 app. Users can even view  personal or shared documents stored on the company's intranet. 
Additionally, as well as being available as a cloud service, Bitrix24 mobile intranet can be hosted on a company server for added security and peace of mind.
<h2>Fighting App-Fatigue</h2>
As well as helping to create a friendly, social atmosphere within organizations, the Bitrix24 mobile app can also provide a solution to what the Mr Valanov calls “App-Fatigue”:
<blockquote>
“Most businesses suffer from ‘app-fatigue’. People may be using Dropbox for file sharing, Google Calendars for shared calendars, WhatsApp for group messages, Outlook for contact management and RememberTheMilk as their to-do list. Not only do these apps not ‘talk’ to each other, some iOS apps aren’t available for Android and vice versa. The Bitrix24 intranet portal is essentially an one-stop solution with all communication and collaboration tools that typical business uses equally efficiently inside the office and out. It’s your office outside your office.”
</blockquote>
Essentially, instead of employees spreading work related content across a myriad of applications in a disorganized fashion, Bitrix24 can be the place where everything work related can be stored, shared and discussed. 
Bitrix24's mobile Intranet Portal is available as freemium cloud service, whilst $99 and $199 monthly plans exist to allow unlimited users along with added featured such as greater storage and personal logo incorporation. Additionally, the portal is available as a server hosted software,starting at $2299 for a lifetime license.
To find out more about Bitrix24's mobile Intranet app, <a href="http://www.bitrix24.com/" target="_blank">visit their official website</a>. Alternatively, the app can be downloaded right now from <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/US/app/id561683423?mt=8&amp;ign-mpt=uo%3D4" target="_blank"> Apple  iTunes </a> , as well as from the <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.bitrix24.android" target="_blank"> Google Play Store </a> .

Bitrix, Inc Releases Free Mobile Intranet Portal for Small Businesses

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