Articles - Page 94

Brightspot Illuminates the Future of CMS with Human-Controlled, AI-Powered Storytelling 

matt-garrepy

<p></p>
<p>If you’re the type to judge a book by its cover, then you’ll love Yola straightaway. The site has a really friendly, fun, and inviting look that will appeal to pretty much everyone. But, what’s behind that pretty face?</p>
<p><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/screen_shot_2016-02-28_at_12_24_18.png" /></p>
<p><a href="http://www.yola.com" target="_blank">Yola </a> was set up in 2007 and it’s helped to create more than 10 million websites since then. It was first launched as ‘SynthaSite’ but the name wasn’t a hit with initial users – who complained that the name was too difficult to say or even remember.</p>
<p>As a result, SynthaSite became Yola – the Hindu word for ‘hatch’. This meaning is reflected in one of Yola’s key slogans ‘<em>Yola is where you hatch your big ideas’</em>.</p>
<p>Yola is hardly a new kid on the block, so I decided to check it out and see whether it’s been keeping up with the plethora of new website builders on the market. Read on to find out.</p>
<h2>Getting Started</h2>
<p>Getting setup with Yola is simple, just insert your email address and password and you’ll be logged in with a free account straightway. After this, you just have to type in your chosen domain name and your home/office address details also.</p>
<p><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/screen_shot_2016-02-28_at_00_25_00452x0-is.png" /></p>
<h2>Themes</h2>
<p>Once you’ve set up your Yola account you’ll be presented asked to select a theme for your site. However, there are only 10 themes available on the free package and the quality of the templates seems inferior in comparison to Wix.</p>
<p><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/screen_shot_2016-02-28_at_00_25_21879x0-is.png" /></p>
<p>After you begin editing your site, a number of premium theme options will also appear – but these are also pretty unremarkable. Of course, you can edit and customize your site to the way you want it, but that takes time and effort that not everyone has to spare.</p>
<h2>Ease Of Use</h2>
<p>The Yola interface is quite easy to use and little ‘pop up tips’ follow the user around the site to ensure that it's easily navigated.</p>
<p><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/screen_shot_2016-02-28_at_11_02_00.png" /></p>
<p>However, the drag-and-drop editor on the free version is quite restrictive in comparison to other website builders and it’s not very intuitive. The drag-and-drop is actually limited to page sections, so you can’t drop elements wherever you like on the page which it takes a bit of getting used to.</p>
<h2>Features</h2>
<p>On a basic level, Yola offers the same DIY building blocks as other website builders. For more tech savvy users, the advanced functionality allows for HTML/CSS coding also.</p>
<p>Yola’s features on the free version are pretty sparse, but I was impressed with the SEO capability with allows you to edit your meta tags and page descriptions.</p>
<p>The premium package will also grant you access to ecommerce functionality, mobile and facebook publishing, and more advanced analytics and SEO options.</p>
<p>Yola’s internal blog creator discontinued in 2012 (<em>why?!</em>), but Yola does allow users integrate with a Tumblr blog. I don’t know how if many businesses are using a Tumblr blog, though.</p>
<h2>Customer Support</h2>
<p>The customer support seems pretty standard with Yola. There’s a chat function which is ‘live’ Mon-Fri from 3am-5om EDT, and this is supported by a community forum, training webinar, and help center. Users can also speak with a Yolo expert via email or phone.</p>
<p><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/screen_shot_2016-02-28_at_11_25_58.png" /></p>
<h2>Pricing</h2>
<p>Yola is a offers a freemium service. The free version will only allow you to set up a Yola site with 3 pages and a subdomain, so it’s likely you’ll opt for a paid plan if you’re using Yola.</p>
<p>The paid plans consist of Bronze ($4.16/m), Silver ($8.33/m), and Gold ($16.99/m). For more on pricing, <a href="https://www.yola.com/pricing">click here</a>.</p>
<p><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/screen_shot_2016-02-28_at_11_32_51864x0-is.png" /></p>
<h2>Pros:</h2>
<ul>
<li>
<p>Beginner friendly: easy to use and navigate</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Solid ecommerce offering</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>HTML/CSS coding option available</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Good SEO capability</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h2>Cons:</h2>
<ul>
<li>
<p>Themes are a little dated and the selection isn’t great</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Drag-and-drop feature is a little restricted compared to other site builders, and it’s not as intuitive</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Free version is pretty sparse</p>
</li>
<li>No internal blog</li>
</ul>
<h2> </h2>
<h2>What’s The Verdict?</h2>
<p>Overall, Yola is a decent website building platform. It’s definitely not one of the better platforms I’ve tried – but I was limited to the free version which really isn’t very extensive in its offering. That said, it’s definitely beginner friendly and the ecommerce functionality looks pretty solid at a glance.</p>
<p>Personally, I think that Yola could get a little more creative with the interface and features offering if it wants to keep up with its competitors. So it’ll be interesting to see what if it expands its offering over the next year. If you’d like to try Yola out for yourself, you can sign up for a free account <a href="https://www.yola.com/">here</a>.</p>
<p>What’s your website builder of choice? We’d love to hear from you in the comments section below!</p>
<p></p>


Yola Review

grainne-logue

<p></p>
<p>When it comes to website creation tools, there are a few criteria that all online businesses compete on; price, an intuitive layout, and ease of use.</p>
<p>In recent years, <a href="http://www.jimdo.com/">Jimdo</a> has become one of the more popular website builders on the market for this very reason. This popularity has been based on its plethora of features, easy navigation, and powerful online store features.</p>
<p>According to the Jimdo site, almost 200,000 online stores have been created since Jimdo launched in 2010, with small business owners, creatives, and bloggers as its primary customers.</p>
<p>One thing that causes a lot of CMS to go downhill is the addition of new features. It can be easy to bloat a CMS with unnecessary tools or widgets but it looks like Jimdo has managed to avoid this pitfall.</p>
<h2>Getting Set Up</h2>
<p>Getting your Jimdo account up and running is a pretty simple process.</p>
<p>You just pick a basic template, insert your email, set a password, and you’re on your way.</p>
<p><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/sign_in_2663x0-is.png" /></p>
<p>From there, you’re taken to a menu where you can select your domain name. Jimdo has a few options here – a free subdomain, your own .com domain for €5 a month, or transferring your own domain over via their nameservers.</p>
<p><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/domain512x0-is.png" /></p>
<h2>Features</h2>
<p>As I mentioned earlier, Jimdo places a premium on ease of use. The opening page takes you straight down to business – which is refreshing. Navigation is quite simple and, if anything, maybe a little <em>too</em> simple in places. I would have liked a few more layers of complexity for certain aspects, but this doesn’t hamper the overall experience.</p>
<p>It’s also somewhat ‘inflexible’ when it comes to editing some things. You can’t move some of the text windows, for example.</p>
<p><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/editing_page672x0-is.png" /></p>
<p>Jimdo has a well designed and intuitive layout. It also has the kind of drag-and-drop functionality that has become the standard in sites like these. This is an editor with no lag and it ran incredibly fast on all of the browsers I tested it on. You should be aware that all your changes are made live to the site as you save each element.</p>
<p>A ‘preview’ button combined with a feature that only publishes your changes on full completion, might be better suited to the rookie site builder. As it is, every change you make goes live straight away.</p>
<h2> </h2>
<h2>Intuition in Design</h2>
<p>If you click on a picture, you can edit it. If you click on text, you can edit it with the <strong>rich text editor </strong>right there on the screen. Everything is very simple and works as you’d expect it to.</p>
<p>You can create your own template from scratch but the available templates are of a great standard and contemporarily designed.</p>
<p><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/templates816x0-is.png" /></p>
<p>The design styles are clean and nicely put together but they might be a little basic for some people’s tastes and seemed a little ‘samey’ to me.</p>
<p>I also found that some templates were a little rigid in their layout but they are well designed overall.</p>
<h2> </h2>
<h2>Options</h2>
<p>Jimdo has quite a comprehensive settings page but all the premium features are listed on the free page’s settings, which means that you only find out you don’t have them after you click. A little frustrating.</p>
<p>All of Jimdo packages have a shop function with scaling features. The free package has 5 items, the professional package has 15, and the business package allows you unlimited items.</p>
<p>This online store function is one of Jimdo’s main selling points and it is quite well put together. However, <a href="https://www.paypal.com/">Paypal</a> is the only payment processing option available. This can be a big problem if you don’t want to use that site.</p>
<p><strong>Domains and Email accounts:</strong> Jimdo offers an email service with its premium packages which is something none of its competitors offer. This makes the premium packages extremely good value as they don’t charge extra for this service.</p>
<p><strong>App:</strong> Jimdo’s app is one of the best available when it comes to creating a website on a tablet or smart device. It’s available on both Android and iOS.</p>
<p><strong>Widgets:</strong> All of the plans offer a wide range of Widgets (e.g. YouTube embed, image galleries etc)</p>
<h2>Price Points</h2>
<p>Jimdo is quite reasonably priced. To be honest, the <strong>Free</strong> option isn’t really worth the effort of setting it up. It’s fine for testing something out, but no business or blogger will realistically use this subdomain as it hosts advertisements and offers only a basic package of features.</p>
<p>You can easily upgrade from your Free package to the Premium or Business package and the added features make it well worth it.</p>
<p>Premium packages start at <strong>€5 a month</strong> for the Professional package (charged yearly). This allows you to have one domain name of your choosing, numerous SEO options, and a lot of space.</p>
<p>The Business package is a really good option at <strong>€15 a month</strong>. It seems pricey but you get a ton of features including two domains, unlimited email addresses, unlimited shop items, unlimited storage, discount codes, full SEO customization, and more.</p>
<p>The extensive features available in the Business package make it an extremely good option for the medium sized eCommerce company. For more on pricing, <a href="http://www.jimdo.com/pricing/" target="_blank">click here.</a></p>
<h2>Pros:</h2>
<ul>
<li>
<p>Very quick and easy setup.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Fair pricing scale and lot of good features on their mid-range price option.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Offers email hosting with their premium packages.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Well designed app.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Wide range of widgets and features</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h2>Cons:</h2>
<ul>
<li>
<p>The platform is only compatible with Paypal, which limits your options drastically.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Lack of a preview button on page means changes are published live to the site.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Slightly inflexible page editor.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h2>To Sum It Up</h2>
<p>Jimdo is a good website builder that’s just a shade away from being a great website builder. It falls down slightly with its Free package and the depth of editing available on the various templates.</p>
<p>Jimdo’s Business package really seems to be the best deal and it gives you everything that a potential online store could want – at quite a reasonable price for the various features on offer. So if you’re thinking about signing up to Jimdo, I definitely recommend trying going for this option. If you do, you’ll have an intuitive, powerful, easy to use website builder that is well worth the money you’ve paid for it. To sign up for Jimdo, just click <a href="http://www.jimdo.com" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p>Have you tried Jimdo for your business? Why not share your thoughts with us in the comments section below.</p>
<p></p>


Jimdo Review

<p></p>
<p>Low-cost web-builders and template sites have seen a huge push in the last five years. With heavy advertising, big promises and low-costs, many businesses are getting a taste of what a web-platform can do for them.</p>
<p>The upside is that more businesses than ever before are able to get an online presence. The downside, is that the perceived value of operating a business website has dropped substantially.</p>
<p>The true cost of an effective business site, is drowned out by the persistent messaging the industry puts out – that operating a website is not only easy but it is practically free.</p>
<p>With <a href="http://www.shoutcms.com/" target="_blank">ShoutCMS</a>, we are targeting customers who are seeking a platform that delivers more business functionality as a standard.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.shoutcms.com/" target="_blank"><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/shoutcms.jpg" /></a></p>
<h2>An Opportunity, Not a Problem.</h2>
<p>We can look at the current trends in CMS platforms as two primary directions. You have low-cost web-builders who serve up a slice of the latest in design and cultural trends. These platforms are great at manipulating text, images and social networking. Then you have platforms with enterprise level features, who excel at data management, inventory, transactions, and customer relationships – all for a price.</p>
<p>The middle ground is being served primarily by WordPress. It is by-and-far the most widely used platform, and the shear amount of plug-ins, flexibility, and familiarity will keep it this way for years to come.</p>
<p>For our company, we saw the opportunity to develop a platform that kept the ease-of-use, had a lower total-cost of ownership, and started businesses out of the gate with a feature set to last them the lifecycle of their website. They won’t have to worry about upgrading, about maintaining plug-ins, and they will have suite of features that were designed from the ground up to work together.</p>
<h2>Core Business Features in a Unified UX</h2>
<p>With ShoutCMS, we didn’t just want to build great tools, we wanted to have tools that worked great – together.</p>
<p>The advantages of building ShoutCMS as a software-as-a-service platform, is that not only is the level of integration between internal features higher, ongoing development of the platform is made substantially easier as all users are on a persistent architecture. Customers are kept up-to-date as patches and security issues can be addressed across the board.</p>
<p>The core features that we built-in to ShoutCMS:</p>
<ul>
<li>Invoicing</li>
<li>Ecommerce</li>
<li>Contact management</li>
<li>Group level communication</li>
<li>Group level and individual level security</li>
<li>Group level and individual level content access</li>
<li>Group level pricing</li>
<li>Page publishing</li>
<li>Mobile device compatibility</li>
<li>Design customization</li>
<li>Integrated email management</li>
</ul>
<p>Aside from architectural advantages, the user gains the most in that the user-experience is similar across the platform. They gain the confidence of building a page for their website, and then find that managing products, articles, and contacts is largely the same.</p>
<h2>Usability Impacts the Economy at Large</h2>
<p>When customers gain the confidence in their tool, they achieve what the CMS industry set out to achieve in the first place – getting customers to maintain their own websites instead of neglecting them.</p>
<p>With more businesses using their websites, and having tools at hand that make their day-to-day easier, the net benefit is that they have a greater chance at success. Each of those successes add to economic growth.</p>
<p>This is where inspiration begins.</p>
<p>To find out more about ShoutCMS, <a href="http://www.shoutcms.com/" target="_blank">check out their website</a>.</p>
<p>Also, stay tuned for more featured coverage during this <a href="/tag/shoutcms-featured-week/" target="_blank">ShoutCMS featured week</a>.</p>
<p></p>


The Biggest Industry Lie: Building a Website is Easy

mike-johnston

<p></p>
<p>Yesterday, we kicked off another featured week with a focus on Canada-based platform, <a href="http://www.shoutcms.com/" target="_blank">ShoutCMS</a>.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/shoutcms-can-you-run-a-business-website-on-less-than-100/" target="_blank">The premier article outlined the core features of the platform</a>, which seeks to bridge the gap between website builders and enterprise-grade systems by bringing essential business-running tools to entrepreneurs and SMBs.</p>
<h2>An Insight into ShoutCMS</h2>
<p>To give us a deeper understanding of ShoutCMS, Mike Johnston, the Founder of CMS Critic, ventured down to the ShoutCMS headquarters in Edmonton, Alberta, to have a chat with ShoutCMS CEO Dragan Marjanovic.</p>
<p><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/9xo6NVjaMGU?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe></p>
<p>To find out more about ShoutCMS, <a href="http://www.shoutcms.com/" target="_blank">check out their website</a>.</p>
<p>Also, stay tuned for more featured coverage during this ShoutCMS featured week.</p>
<p></p>


Mike Johnston Interviews ShoutCMS CEO Dragan Marjanovic

<p></p>
<p><a href="http://www.shoutcms.com/" target="_blank">ShoutCMS</a>, this week's featured product here on CMS Critic, is packed with many built-in features for day-to-day business use including invoicing, eCommerce, mass mail, integrated email management, contact database and content management.</p>
<p><iframe src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/149925268?dnt=1&amp;app_id=122963" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; fullscreen" allowfullscreen></iframe></p>
<h2><strong>The Sum of All Parts </strong></h2>
<p>ShoutCMS is looking to bridge the gap between the all-inclusive, feature-ridden, flagship CMS solutions and those of the popular web-builders that have dominated the market.</p>
<p>There is a gap in the market right now that ShoutCMS is looking to fill, one that in many cases is addressed by configuring multiple solutions together instead of a single application that does a range of tasks.</p>
<p>For developers, who have their trusty kit of plug-ins or through tying together multiple applications, putting together a low-cost business savvy solution is attainable, but at a price.</p>
<p>Typically, this isn’t an elegant solution as all of these different pieces must be kept up-to-date and integrated via APIs or custom-software. You are now in the business of providing a service to your customer to manage this risk and keep your solution running.</p>
<p>Using a multi-application approach can lead to a higher cost of total ownership for the client, who in the end, is paying for many services instead a single system. For small teams in web design or marketing, they are also incur development and staffing costs to keep hybrid solutions running.</p>
<p>To make it easier and more affordable to run a business website, ShoutCMS has brought together a number of industry features in a single solution. We’ll now take a look at how the integration of these brings benefit.</p>
<h2><strong>Big Business Features, Small Business Pricing</strong></h2>
<p>ShoutCMS comes standard with mobile-responsive front-end that businesses can customize to suit their brand. The real power of ShoutCMS is under the hood, as it features aren’t afterthoughts, but work well together offering a higher level of operation than you get from a single interface business application;</p>
<ul>
<li>Online invoicing and transactions</li>
<li>Ecommerce with integrated shipping and support for major payment gateways</li>
<li>Simple yet robust Mass Mailer</li>
<li>Complete contact database organized by groups and tags</li>
<li>Built-in page styles and mobile galleries</li>
<li>Articles and blogging</li>
<li>Integrated email management (using the optional ShoutCMS email package)</li>
</ul>
<p>All of these features come with a single price of $59/mo. for US and Canadian customers with an additional $29/mo. for company email services.</p>
<h2><strong>Forever Updates</strong></h2>
<p>It isn’t often that a CMS that is so feature rich offers itself to the larger business market. What may be the cherry on top of the cake, is that not only does the pricing meet business budgets, ShoutCMS offers lifetime feature upgrades with its monthly license.</p>
<p>The team is continually updating it feature set while at the same time tightening the integration between these that seeks to offer a new standard in CMS experience.</p>
<p>You can start today with ShoutCMS and get an install setup instantly. For businesses looking to use the platform as the backbone of their operations, ShoutCMS also connects with local vendors and offers hands-on support so it can be configured to your look and business flow.</p>
<p>To find out more about ShoutCMS, <a href="http://www.shoutcms.com/" target="_blank">check out their website</a>.</p>
<p>Also, stay tuned for more featured coverage during this ShoutCMS featured week.</p>
<p></p>


ShoutCMS: Can You Run a Business Website on Less than $100

<p></p>
<p>Everywhere you look these days, there are experts and articles talking about the importance of social media for business. Whether it’s discussing Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or LinkedIn, I could point you to 100 articles which offer 100 reasons why each one should be a crucial element of your marketing campaign.</p>
<p>So, unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past few years, you’re probably pretty clear on the importance of integrating social media into your gameplan for success.</p>
<p>But what’s the next step?</p>
<p><a href="/social-engine">SocialEngine</a> have answered that question with a social media network that is designed specifically for your customers or employees, and managed by you.</p>
<p style="text-align:center"><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/screen_shot_2016-02-19_at_18_53_16.png" /></p>
<p>SocialEngine has been around for a while now, and the company have continuously upped their game to meet consumer demands. For that very reason, they’ve been hugely successful with their latest offering.</p>
<p>Available as a PHP download (starting with a one of payment of $299 for their Starter package), or as a cloud-based subscription service for $39 a month, SocialEngine claims to provide the best solution for creating your own social network.</p>
<h2>Getting Set Up</h2>
<p>Everything about the initial online setup is easy and intuitive. Name your site, choose your URL, fill out a few questions (or don’t, it’s up to you), and you’re ready to roll.</p>
<p><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/screen_shot_2016-02-19_at_19_03_43.png" /></p>
<p>When you first log-in, you’re greeted with an incredibly simple layout which allows you to control billing, account information, subscriptions, and support tickets from one screen. A clearly labeled button takes you to your site’s control panel, and I thought this created a nice separation between the overall controls of the site and the visual control of the front end.</p>
<p><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/screen_shot_2016-02-19_at_19_07_03.png" /></p>
<p>The layout is simple, cleanly designed, and offers a ton of options. With SocialEngine, it seems that intuition is the name of the game.</p>
<h2>Excellent Design</h2>
<p>This kind of complex site could have been a design nightmare, but the team at SocialEngine have made their design and admin interface extremely easy to use. Every single thing you need to manage this site is just a click away.</p>
<p><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/screen_shot_2016-02-19_at_19_12_56.png" /></p>
<p>The interface is drag-and-drop based and clearly labeled. From here, you can set your email templates, add Google Adsense or Analytics, manage members, and manage themes and add-ons.</p>
<p>It’s incredibly powerful and all encompassing.</p>
<h2>Price Comparison</h2>
<h3>PHP Download</h3>
<p>The PHP download option is a pricey option, but it allows full control over the source files – which may appeal to some businesses. The Starter package ($299) doesn’t include the option for forums, video sharing, blogs, or instant messaging. So, if you’d like these included, you need the Professional pack which costs $449.</p>
<p>Both Starter and Professional packs come with only 30 days of free support and the option to pay for an installation service for $30 extra.</p>
<p>To get free installation and up to 60 free days of technical support, you need the Advanced download which costs $699. For that price, you can avail of additional features such as music sharing. It’s pricey, but probably worth it if you want complete control of the source code.</p>
<p>Personally, I thought the support packages for the Starter and Professional packs could have offered a bit more, given the price point. Just 30 days of free support doesn’t seem like anything near enough for launching a PHP package of this complexity.</p>
<h3>Cloud-Based Service</h3>
<p>SocialEngine’s cloud-based subscription might be a good option for those with a stricter budget and less technical expertise. <a href="/social-enginesign-up" target="_blank">Pricing</a> runs at $39 a month or the equivalent of $29 a month if you pay a year in advance.</p>
<p>This price includes full access to their customer support service, where you can get in touch via a contact form, email them directly, or use the live chat option. All of these are 24/7.</p>
<p>You get the exact same features as with the PHP download, with the exception that all the information is stored on SocialEngine’s servers.</p>
<p>The yearly service for $348 seems to be a no-brainer. It offers practically all the features the PHP download version does, with customer service included for just $50 more than the Starter package. Sure, it’s a yearly payment versus a one-off payment but it’s seems like money well spent to me.</p>
<p>Both price choices offer a generous 14 day trial to assess their service in full.</p>
<h2>Feature Rich</h2>
<p>Make no mistake, SocialEngine provides all of the tools you could ever need to match <a href="http://www.facebook.com" target="_blank">Facebook</a>, <a href="http://www.twitter.com" target="_blank">Twitter</a>, <a href="http://www.linkedin.com" target="_blank">LinkedIn</a>, <a href="http://www.reddit.com" target="_blank">Reddit,</a> or <a href="http://www.pinterest.com" target="_blank">Pinterest </a> – feature for feature. It’s incredibly comprehensive and even lets you pick a theme to match these sites in style and feel.</p>
<p><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/screen_shot_2016-02-19_at_19_15_04.png" /></p>
<p>The extensive gallery of plug-ins will allow you to mix and match all the best features of the social networks to your own preference, so that you can create a completely unique site.</p>
<p>Both download and cloud options have a wide range of privacy options that are incredibly easy to control.</p>
<h2>No Branding</h2>
<p>The SocialEngine team have resisted the urge to allow branding on their build, which allows you to completely control the branding of your site from top to bottom. None of your members will ever know that SocialEngine powers your site. You control the logos, the colors, and the content. It’s a great feature for large companies who want to have a custom build, without the investing the megabucks it would cost to build and maintain this kind of project from scratch.</p>
<h2>Pros:</h2>
<ul>
<li>
<p>One of the most comprehensive community building apps on the market.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>White label feature lets you brand it exactly as you like.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Tons of features and customizable options.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Excellent UI &amp; UX design.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h2>Cons:</h2>
<ul>
<li>
<p>Price-point for the source code download is a little steep and feels like a railroad to their subscription model.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Customer service options limited on the cheaper subscriptions.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>The Basic packages feel a little sparse on features like HD video and audio.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h2>So What’s The Verdict?</h2>
<p>Whether you’re trying to create the next Reddit or simply make an internal social network for your employees or customers – SocialEngine gives you the power to do it.</p>
<p>Do I have any issues with it? Sure – the PHP download is incredibly pricey and doesn’t offer enough free support, unless you want to drop nearly $700. Having to pay extra for support after the 30 or 60 days expire is a bit cheeky when you consider the hefty download fee.</p>
<p>However, outside of my price concerns for the PHP download, this is a superb product. It has tons of features, an intuitive design, excellent support on the cloud-based version, and extensive free trials. If you’re in the market for something like this, I definitely recommend giving Social Engine a try.</p>
<p>You might not end up as the next Mark Zuckerberg, but SocialEngine will get you as close as you could hope to get on the technical side.</p>
<p>To sign up for a free trial with SocialEngine, just <a href="/social-enginesign-up" target="_blank">click here</a>. And don't forget to let us know what you think the comments section below.</p>
<p></p>


Social Engine Review

<p></p>
<p>Whether your business has 10 customers or 100, it’s essential to have the right CRM in place. The most important thing to know about this CRM system is that it’s not just a piece of software; it’s a key component in building a strong relationship with your customers.</p>
<p>So, you need to get it right.</p>
<p>The implementation process is crucial to the success of your CRM system and it’s important to get your team on board from Day 1. After all, what good is an amazing CRM tool that nobody actually uses?</p>
<p style="text-align:center"><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/bigstock-checklist-on-notebook-109688111_1469x0-is.jpg" /></p>
<p>According to <a href="http://www.salesforce.com/smallbusinesscenter/resources/quickbooks-crm-business-accounting-software.jsp">recent studies</a>, a fully utilized CRM system can increase company sales by 29%. But the key is in the term ‘fully utilized’. A CRM tool that’s sitting gathering dust isn’t going to do much for your business.</p>
<p>Follow this 10 Step CRM Implementation Checklist For SMEs to ensure that your CRM is utilized to its full potential.</p>
<h2>1. Define Your CRM Strategy And Develop Clear Objectives</h2>
<p>Before you even start using your CRM, it’s important to know what exactly you want to achieve with it and how you intend to do so. This is where you also need to identify your KPI’s, so that you can continue to measure the success of your CRM and make adjustments where needed.</p>
<p>For more on how to build a winning CRM strategy, <a href="/how-to-build-a-winning-crm-strategy/">click here</a>.</p>
<p>Once you’ve developed some clear objectives, you should share them with your employees to ensure that everyone is working towards the same end goal.</p>
<h2>2. Choose The Right CRM For Your Business</h2>
<p>There are tons of CRM systems out there designed to meet various requirements and budgets. So, once you’ve identified what you need in a CRM system, it’s time sit down and do some research.</p>
<p>For some extra help, check out my post with <a href="/7-free-crm-systems-that-prove-customer-relationship-management-is-easy/">7 Free CRM Systems</a> for small/medium sized businesses.</p>
<h2>3. Make It Easy</h2>
<p>If you want your employees to use your CRM on a regular basis, then you’re going to have to make the process as easy as possible. If this means training them over and over again, then so be it. Keep at it until the new system become ‘routine’ rather than a chore. You need to create a CRM ‘culture’ rather than simply adding it to their to-do lists.</p>
<p>Sure, they might hate you for a few weeks as you eat into their schedules with training sessions, but they’ll be all the happier at the end of it when the CRM system is helping them with their work, rather than derailing it.</p>
<p>You can give out a few ‘gold stars’ too, if that’s your thing. Or a few reward vouchers, whatever works. Is someone on your team particularly adept with the new system? Great, make them your CRM advocate. They’ll be essential in getting everyone else motivated and using the system.</p>
<p>Has someone else really pushed themselves to get on board, despite being the least tech-savvy individual on the planet? Don’t ignore that, reward them for it. Once you acknowledge that your employees are adjusting well and recognize their hard work, they’ll be even more encouraged to stick with it.</p>
<h2>4. Listen To Your Customers</h2>
<p>You don’t have to create a survey or anything like that, you simply have to listen to what your customers are saying about your company. Assess the complaints you’ve had recently and how they’ve been resolved. Is there anything your new CRM can do to avoid these grievances in the future?</p>
<p>This kind of customer intel is crucial in identifying what areas to focus on with your CRM system.</p>
<h2>5. Integrate Your CRM With Other Systems</h2>
<p>No man is an island, and your CRM shouldn't be one either. Not unless you want it to be less effective. It needs company, i.e. the other systems that you use on a daily basis.</p>
<p>Is it complementary to these systems? And what about data import/export – has this process been streamlined? Once you’ve successfully integrated your CRM with your other commonly used systems/tools, you’ll save yourself and your team a lot of time and resources.</p>
<h2>6. Create An Internal Guidelines Document</h2>
<p>Regardless of the size of your business, you’re still going to need a place to lay out some common guidelines about your CRM. For example, how to input data or register a new sale on the system. Your company intranet is one of the best places to store this document for easy access.</p>
<h2>7. Use The Features You Actually Need</h2>
<p>Your new CRM system might have 100s of features, but that doesn’t mean that you have to use all of them. It’s more important to focus on the features that will work for your business and help you to streamline the current processes within your organization.</p>
<p>Talk to your team and figure out what to prioritize first. You can look at all of the fancy ‘extras’ later on in the game, when you’ve everything else set-up and running perfectly.</p>
<h2>8. Stick With Essential Fields</h2>
<p>It’s important to gain the customer data you need from your CRM, but it’s also important not to overwhelm your team. If your sales team are working hard to hit targets, the last thing they’ll want to do is update a client contact form with about 20 different fields to fill in.</p>
<p>Would you rather they were on the phone to prospective leads or stuck typing irrelevant details into your CRM?</p>
<h2>9. Make Sure Your Hardware Can Keep Up</h2>
<p>It’s important to ensure that your staff are updating their PC’s on a regular basis; if your software isn’t upgraded then it’s going to slow down your new CRM system and frustrate your team. This kind of team is not a happy team.</p>
<h2>10. Evaluate</h2>
<p>Even if your CRM system is working fine, it’s important to keep evaluating it and assessing how it’s benefiting your business. Organise a chat with your team every month or so to see how they’re getting on with it and to discuss any issues that might arise. This will ensure that they keep using the CRM to the best of its potential.</p>
<h2>Successful Implementation = Results</h2>
<p>Remember, your CRM implementation is something that you really need to invest in if you want to see results. By following this checklist, you can ensure that you get the most out of your CRM tool and continue to do so.</p>
<p>Have you recently implemented a new CRM system in your business? Is there anything you’d add to this checklist? Let us know in the comments section below.</p>
<p></p>


10 Step CRM Implementation Checklist For SMEs

<p></p>
<p>It’s one thing to have a database full of customers, but it’s another thing to have a database full of customers who actually like you.</p>
<p>Successful customer relationship management is all about getting to know your customers and creating a personal relationship with them that goes beyond a few Twitter promotions.</p>
<p style="text-align:center"><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/bigstock-successful-business-meeting-wi-75274462538x0-is.jpg" /></p>
<p>The idea is to make your customers want your product because <em>you</em> sell it, and not simply because they need it. This kind of brand loyalty goes a long way and it’s definitely something that you have to invest sufficient time and resources into building. Once you’ve built that kind of community around your business, you’ll reap the rewards in the long run.</p>
<p>If you’re still in the ‘dating’ phase of your customer relationship development, that’s perfectly fine – as long as you’re on the right track.</p>
<p>Here are 10 ways to know that you’re doing it right.</p>
<h2>1. You Know How To K.I.S.S</h2>
<p><em>‘Keep It Simple, Stupid’</em>. If you know how to do this, then you’re well on the road to CRM success. Many smaller companies get carried away with their first CRM system and end up choosing a tool with a ton of unnecessary features. Talk to your team first and figure out what you actually need from your CRM, before choosing one based on what you think you need instead.</p>
<p>Once your CRM is up and running with the least possible hassle, you’ll have much more time to dedicate to your customers. I recently wrote a post that will help you to avoid the 10 most common pitfalls when choosing a CRM, check it out <a href="/10-pitfalls-to-avoid-when-choosing-a-crm/">here.</a></p>
<h2>2. You Understand The Importance Of Birthdays</h2>
<p>It doesn’t matter how old you are, it’s always nice to get an unexpected ‘happy birthday’ on the big day. This is a tiny piece of information that you can easily obtain from your customers when they sign up, but it’ll have a huge impact on the status of your relationship. A quick ‘happy birthday’ email or birthday discount will really add a personal touch to your communications.</p>
<h2>3. You Provide Your Customers With Quality Content</h2>
<p>If you want your customers to trust you then you have to provide them with knowledgeable and credible information. It’s important to show that you have an in-depth understanding of your industry and all of your content (blog/social media) should be created to meet the specific needs of your target audience.</p>
<h2>4. You’re Psychic</h2>
<p>Well, not exactly, but you do know what your customers want before they contact you directly. How? You simply gaze into your crystal ball/computer screen and do some social media monitoring with a handy tool like <a href="http://www.socialmention.com/">Social Mention</a> or <a href="https://hootsuite.com/">Hootsuite</a>.</p>
<p>This is the best way to find out what your customers are saying in real-time; to collect valuable insights into market trends; and to get involved in online conversations about your business.</p>
<p>Also, if an issue does present itself (i.e. an unhappy customer on Twitter), you can nip it in the bud before it escalates <em>and</em> use that info to improve your offering overall.</p>
<h2>5. You Care About Your Customers</h2>
<p>If you want your customer relationship management to work, then you have to work at it – and this means listening to what your customers needs and fulfilling those needs. What it <em>doesn’t </em>mean, is bombarding them with irrelevant sales pitches and promotions every day of the week.</p>
<p>As great as you think your product/service is, it’s useless if it’s not useful to your customers.</p>
<p>Interact with your target audience, listen to them, and make them feel valued. What are their pain points? What challenges are they facing? What do they need from you in order to overcome those challenges?</p>
<p>If you work on really understanding your customers, it will make all of the difference when it comes to selling your product – because you’ll be armed with the information to ensure that it meets their expectations from the outset.</p>
<h2>6. You Never Compete On Price</h2>
<p>A sale achieved by competing on price is always a short term win. Your customer won’t see the true value in your product/service and will jump straight to the next lowest bidder.</p>
<p>If you really feel that your pricing is alienating some of your customers, then you can think about providing another version of your product/service with less features. This is the only advisable method to reduce your pricing. Never compete on price – it just doesn’t work.</p>
<h2>7. You’re Different</h2>
<p>You need to be able to vocalize the benefits of your product or service to your customers. It’s not just about what your product/service does, it’s about what it will do for <em>them</em>. This is the part where you really need to blow them away and set yourself apart from your competitors.</p>
<h2>8. You Say Thank You</h2>
<p>Sure, it’s the polite thing to do – but it’s also the profitable thing to do. Customer loyalty programs are a proven way to retain and grow your business; in fact, <a href="http://blog.accessdevelopment.com/customer-loyalty-statistics-2015-edition">62% of Millennials</a> say they’re essential.</p>
<p>By rewarding your customers for their support, you’ll also improve and solidify your relationship with them in the long run.</p>
<h2>9. You’re Consistent</h2>
<p>Consistency is key when it comes to managing customer relationships; your customers need to know what to expect from you and it’s your job to set those parameters.</p>
<p>For example, if you’re firing out 3 newsletters one week and none the next – then you’re not being consistent. It’s important not to spam your customers but it’s also important to communicate with them on a regular basis.</p>
<h2>10. You Keep Your Promises</h2>
<p>If you say you’re going to resolve a situation within a certain time period, then do it. If you say you’re going to call a customer back within a certain time period, then do that also. It’s crucial to follow through on any commitments you make to your customers if you want to gain their loyalty, trust, and business for the long haul.</p>
<h2>Treat Your Customers The Way You’d Like To Be Treated</h2>
<p>The most important thing to remember is that your customers are real people and they have specific wants and needs that they expect you to fulfil. If you can do this, then you’ll build customer relationships that last a lifetime – or at least until you retire and move to Barbados.</p>
<p>Do you have anything you’d like to add to the CRM tips above? Why not share them with us in the comments section below.</p>
<p></p>


Customer Relationship Management: 10 Ways to Know You're Doing It Right

CMS Kickoff 26

Find out at CMS Kickoff 26, January 13 - 14, St. Pete FL

What's the future of CMS in the AI era?

#ffffff

<p></p>
<p>Last week, our focus was on <a href="http://www.solodev.com/" target="_blank">Solodev CMS 8</a>, as we made our way through yet another featured week.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.solodev.com/" target="_blank"><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/soldodev-logo-1_400x0.png" /></a><br />I got to <a href="/exploring-solodev-cms-8/" target="_blank">explore the enterprise platform’s core features</a>, its <a href="/solodev-cms-bringing-multi-site-management-to-healthcare-organizations/" target="_blank">presence within the healthcare industry</a>, the role it plays for <a href="/solodev-cms-powering-next-generation-local-government-websites-to-improve-constituent-services/" target="_blank">numerous local government bodies throughout the United States</a>, and the <a href="/solodev-cms-facilitating-successful-project-launches/" target="_blank">Solodev team's willingness to help launch large scale projects</a>.</p>
<p>As usual, the featured week gave me, and all our readers, an intriguing glimpse into a capable CMS.</p>
<h2>A Walkthrough of Solodev CMS 8</h2>
<p>To garnish that glimpse, here's a video walkthrough of Solodev CMS 8's features, led by Joe Forgét, Chief Innovation Officer at Solodev.</p>
<p><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Ws5LzRTK77g?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe></p>
<p>To find out more about Solodev CMS, <a href="https://www.solodev.com/" target="_blank">check out their website</a></p>
<p></p>


A Video Overview of Solodev CMS 8

<p></p>
<p><a href="https://www.weebly.com/">Weebly</a> is a user-friendly website builder that first launched in 2006 and hit 1 million users by 2008. The platform now hosts over 30 million sites and it's touted as one of the most popular drag-and-drop website builders around.</p>
<p>Weebly has undergone many revamps since its initial launch, and its latest facelift for 2016 offers more features than ever before. The popular site allows individuals to create a website in less than an hour, regardless of their level of expertise, and it’s become popular with both hobbyists and professionals alike.</p>
<p>Seems too good to be true, right? I decided to check it out and see for myself.</p>
<h2>Getting Set-Up</h2>
<p>Getting started with Weebly is simple. Users can log in with Google Plus, Facebook, or by inserting their email address – all you need for this is your name, email, and password.</p>
<p>One thing I’d add here is a ‘sign up with Twitter’ function, as it just seemed a bit odd to have left it out. Maybe that’s just me, though, being the Twitter addict that I am.</p>
<p><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/screen_shot_2016-02-12_at_01_48_57494x0-is.png" /></p>
<p>There’s a little box you can tick if you want to sign up for updates and offers which is pretty standard, but what I really liked about this was that it was unticked by default. Many sites leave it ticked automatically, so you have to go and untick it if you’re not actually interested in receiving these emails. It’s one of my pet peeves because you just <em>know</em> they’re trying to catch you out. Sneaky rascals.</p>
<p>Once you’ve registered, the below screen will pop up and you’ll be asked what the focus of your site is, i.e. standard website, blog, or store.</p>
<p><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/screen_shot_2016-02-12_at_01_50_06574x0-is.png" /></p>
<p>After this, you can categorize it as business, personal, group/organizational, wedding, education, or portfolio. If you don’t want to or none of these apply, you simply can tell them to stop asking you (they’re cool like that – there’s even a tick box for it).</p>
<p><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/screen_shot_2016-02-13_at_17_35_17430x0-is.png" /></p>
<p>Then comes the fun part, choosing a design theme.</p>
<h2>Themes and Design</h2>
<p>Weebly offers over 100 attractive, professional, and well laid-out themes, so it’ll be difficult <em>not </em>to find one you like. Most come with customizable color sets too, so you’re spoilt for choice.</p>
<p>Every single theme is mobile responsive and just one click at the top of the screen allows you see your site as a mobile viewer would. You can’t add elements to the mobile version but you can get a like for like preview that should allow you to see them.</p>
<p><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/screen_shot_2016-02-12_at_01_50_19871x0-is.png" /></p>
<h2></h2>
<h2>Choosing Your URL</h2>
<p>If you have a free account, you’ll receive a ‘weebly.com’ domain name. If you want your own custom domain then you’ll have to sign up to a $39.95 registration fee. Is it a little high? Maybe, but I think it’s worth it if you want to create a professional site. Weebly make this whole process really easy, but you can also run it through an independent domain registrar such as <a href="http://www.godaddy.com">Godaddy</a>.</p>
<h2>Website Editing</h2>
<p>The website building interface is very easy to use, with a double row of elements/apps on the left hand site and a menu bar at the top. In a lot of sites like Weebly, adding pages can be a bit of a treasure hunt. But Weebly has its Pages section clearly labelled and easily editable, so you can just add pages and rearrange them with your mouse as you see fit.</p>
<p>Designing each page is simple. Want to edit that title? Just click on it and type. Want to make it bold? There’s a familiar toolset to let you edit it on the screen. There are no gimmicks and no multiple click paths – you just edit what you see and it’s done, instantly.</p>
<p>Everything is very clearly labeled and users can design a site by dragging elements onto the various pages. There are a variety of elements available such as a contact form, map, social buttons, slideshows, and more.</p>
<p><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/screen_shot_2016-02-12_at_01_56_05798x0-is.png" /></p>
<p>The contact form offers tons of options, such a custom confirmation URL, file uploads, drop-down selects, a phone number field. It definitely gets a thumbs up from me.</p>
<p><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/screen_shot_2016-02-13_at_17_38_19920x0-is.png" /></p>
<p>However, the real player here is the App Center which launched in August 2015. The new and improved App Center is a real bonus to the site, and you can now add any number of site boosting elements to your Weebly site with a minimum of fuss.</p>
<p>Everything is drag and drop. They have a number of apps for free and, as you’d expect, a number of premium ones too. All of these add value and are handily categorized into their retrospective uses – Marketing, Site Tools, eCommerce, Communication.</p>
<p><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/picture_14608x0-is.png" /></p>
<p>Everything is cleanly laid out and all of the apps are compatible with Weebly, so you won’t encounter any of the plug-in mishaps that can happen with sites like <a href="https://wordpress.com/">WordPress</a>.</p>
<h2></h2>
<h2>Pricing</h2>
<p>There are 4 pricing options available on Weebly, ranging from Free, Starter ($4 p/m), Pro ($8 p/m), and Business ($25 p/m). The free account is decent enough and provides unlimited pages, but you’ll also have to deal with Weebly branding and promotions. With the Starter Plan, you can add your own URL and the Weebly branding is removed. You also get to avail of premium support.</p>
<p>If you opt for the Pro account you’ll get additional multimedia features and added password protection. And the next step after this is a Business account, which offers SSL support and fully integrated ecommerce. For more on the specifics of each package, click <a href="https://www.weebly.com/pricing">here</a>. The choice is yours.</p>
<h2>Pros:</h2>
<ul>
<li>Extremely user friendly with a drag-and-drop system</li>
<li>Variety of professional, sleek, and mobile responsive designs available that can be further modified with HTML/CSS</li>
<li>Pre-designed layouts</li>
<li>New and improved app centre</li>
<li>Good eCommerce functionality</li>
</ul>
<h2>Cons:</h2>
<ul>
<li>You need to fork out for the Business package for fully integrated eCommerce</li>
<li>Customization options are limited if you are a coding whiz-kid</li>
</ul>
<h2>Should You Use Weebly For Your Website?</h2>
<p>For me, it’s a no-brainer. Weebly is a superb site with an excellent and intuitive design system that makes everything as easy as possible, for even the most novice user.</p>
<p>Weebly’s biggest strength is the intuitiveness of its layout. Everything just ‘makes sense’, and everything that is clickable – is editable.</p>
<p>It really seems to have something for everyone. Want a simple drag and drop? It’s there. Want more sophistication? You can add media, embed code, add Google Analytics – all from the one page and taskbar.</p>
<p>The learning curve is very graduated and it can be scaled to adapt to the skill levels of all users. Personally, I’d rate this as the best site builder out there right now.</p>
<p>The prices are pretty reasonable too, with Weebly’s premium package coming in at a quite reasonable $25 a month. The basic package is maybe a little thin on features like HD video and audio, but they are the little extras worth paying extra for.</p>
<p>The guys behind Weebly seem to really care about their users and continuously strive to meet the needs to those users by improving their service offering. If you’d like to know more about what they provide, check them out over <a href="https://www.weebly.com/">here</a> (their blog is worth a look too).</p>
<p>Have you used Weebly yet? Why not share a link to your Weebly site with us in the comments section below.</p>
<p></p>


Weebly Review 2016

<p></p>
<p>Over the course of this Solodev CMS featured week, I’ve <a href="/exploring-solodev-cms-8/" target="_blank">overviewed the enterprise platform’s core features</a>, its <a href="/solodev-cms-bringing-multi-site-management-to-healthcare-organizations/" target="_blank">presence within the healthcare industry</a>, the <a href="/solodev-cms-powering-next-generation-local-government-websites-to-improve-constituent-services/" target="_blank">role it plays for numerous local government bodies throughout the United States</a>, and its <a href="/solodev-cms-facilitating-successful-project-launches/" target="_blank">hands-on approach to project launches</a>.</p>
<p><br />To conclude this featured week, I’m going to delve into the custom integration capabilities of Solodev CMS 8, and how that helps to drive the progress of brands online.</p>
<p>The Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts is the brand I’ll be focusing on, as it’s an organization that currently benefits from Solodev’s customization capabilities.</p>
<h2>State of the Performing Arts</h2>
<p>The Dr. Phillips Center is a state-of-the-art performing arts center in Orlando, FL.</p>
<p>Opened in November 2014, the nearly $400M venue features a 2,700 seat amplified hall (the Walt Disney Theater) for Broadway theater-class events and a 300-seat venue (the Alexis &amp; Jim Pugh Theater) for smaller shows and events. A third theater, a 1,700-seat acoustic hall for ballet, operas and orchestral performances, will open its doors sometime in late 2018.</p>
<p>It’s truly a one-of-a-kind entertainment venue.</p>
<p>To establish a worthwhile online presence, Dr. Phillips partnered with Solodev to develop a start-of-the-art website that matched the sophistication of their performing arts center. A major goal for the new website was to drive more self-service transactions – particularly online ticket sales. This is in accordance with current trends. According to a report issued by Juniper Research, the volume of mobile tickets is forecasted to increase to 23 billion worldwide by 2016, more than quadruple the four billion delivered in 2011.</p>
<p>In the end, the site included a sophisticated online seat selection and ticket purchasing system that was highly customized to work in lockstep with the Center’s ticketing software platform, Tessitura.</p>
<p>As well as falling in line with prevailing customer preferences, selling tickets through the website meant lowering costs by driving more self-service actions. By keeping customer transactions online and away from expensive customer service reps, Dr Phillips could offer a more user-friendly ticket buying process with less financial strain.</p>
<h2>The Final Performance</h2>
<p>On top of meeting its goal to sell tickets easily through its website, the Dr Phillips Center website project was built to excel in other areas. This applies particularly to the website’s seat selector tools. For example, seat maps needed to render in a size large enough to be easily clicked – including with a finger on a mobile device.</p>
<p>The Select Your Own Seat (SYOS) solution was developed by Solodev to work seamlessly with the mobile-responsive capabilities of the website. For example, by using scalable vector graphics of the venue seating charts, as opposed to Flash, mobile device compatibility was ensured.</p>
<p>More customization came in the form of account profiles, which allow for multiple logins to accommodate the Center’s head of household account requirement. Site users are also encouraged to make online donations during the purchasing process, and can select parking spaces from a geo-coded map with overlays, further streamlining the customer experience.</p>
<h2>Dr Phillips Performing Arts Website Whitepaper</h2>
<p>In response to the roaring success that is the Dr Phillips Performing Arts website, Solodev developed an informative white paper, which derives helpful details from the project.</p>
<p>To find out more about Solodev CMS, <a href="https://www.solodev.com/" target="_blank">check out their website</a></p>
<p></p>


Custom Integration that Drives Business: How Solodev CMS Powers Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts

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<p>So far during this Solodev featured week, I’ve <a href="/exploring-solodev-cms-8/" target="_blank">explored the enterprise platform’s core features</a>, its <a href="/solodev-cms-bringing-multi-site-management-to-healthcare-organizations/" target="_blank">presence within the healthcare industry</a>, and the role it plays for <a href="/solodev-cms-powering-next-generation-local-government-websites-to-improve-constituent-services/" target="_blank">numerous local government bodies throughout the United States</a>.</p>
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<p>And although Solodev CMS has a healthy stake in both of those industries, it also powers websites across the rest of the enterprise spectrum.</p>
<p>One thing those enterprise websites (and the enterprise companies behind them) have in common, are successful launches.</p>
<p>The planning that goes before it, the execution that brings it about, and the work that comes after it with the goal growth. Here’s how Solodev aims to streamline the entire process.</p>
<h2>The Benefits of Solodev Launch</h2>
<p>Large web deployments are really interactive business platforms that accomplish the digital goals of an organization.</p>
<p>Typically, this involves many steps and moving parts, including; design, build, migration, integrating with third-party technology to streamline business operations, and workflow management.</p>
<p>As such, Solodev CMS’s powerful out-of-the-box features make it an ideal launch platform for mid-to-enterprise class custom application and integration projects.</p>
<p>With Solodev’s built-in RESTful API, custom, complex front-end builds can be developed that handle various business critical transactions within a site by getting/leveraging data from third-party sources.</p>
<p>In many cases, the client or referring agency partner needs assistance with these large migration and deployment projects. Which is why Solodev came up with Solodev Launch.</p>
<h2>The Solodev Launch Team</h2>
<p>The Solodev Launch program leverages internal Solodev resources to ensure that projects get launched on time, on spec and on budget.</p>
<p>Solodev puts forth a mix of skills to assist end clients or agency partners with the build, design and integration processes.</p>
<p>In other words, Solodev is able to deploy a team of experts to helps smooth over the launch process, so their client can focus on other issues that require their attention.</p>
<h2>Solodev Launch in Action</h2>
<p><strong>Florida Department of Education</strong></p>
<p>Solodev has put its launch team into action on many deployments in the past. On one such occasion, the Florida Department of Education was the client in question.</p>
<p>The FDOE serves more than 2.7 million students in the state’s more than 4,200 public schools and 28 colleges. This makes it one of the largest education systems in the United States.</p>
<p>As a result of its size, the Solodev launch team had to help migrate 3,500 pages of content along with 20,000 digital assets including documents, images, and media files. A monster of a job, but it was done.</p>
<p>Today, the FODE website can handle 100,000 concurrent users, and currently averages 30,000 users per day.</p>
<p><strong>Dr. Phillips Center </strong></p>
<p>A good example of the level of customization that the Solodev Launch team can accomodate comes in the form of the Dr. Phillips Center, a newly opened (November 2014) state-of-the-art performing arts center in Orlando, FL.</p>
<p>Their website was developed in Solodev CMS 8 and is hosted in the Solodev CMS 8 AWS environment.</p>
<p>It includes a sophisticated online seat selection and ticket purchasing system that was highly customized and vastly improved the user experience with the Center’s ticketing software platform, Tessitura.</p>
<p><strong>Miami Beach App</strong></p>
<p>Furthermore, the Solodev RESTful API also allows developers to build apps that access data from the CMS.</p>
<p>The Miami Beach Visitor and Convention Authority springs to mind here. They needed to create apps around visitor activities and leveraged Solodev CMS to develop a powerful mobile application platform.</p>
<p>Today, the Miami Beach app works like a comprehensive 411 resource that provides granular details on every business as well as on city amenities and happenings.</p>
<p>The app contains nearly 7,000 business listings each with extensive detail. Those listings are accessible by category, so in addition to finding an accountant nearest their location, visitors and residents can select a hotel based on its architect or a restaurant based on the noise level of its dining room. Now that’s detail.</p>
<p>Solodev can also accommodate sophisticated integrations with solutions like CRMs, Marketing Automation Systems, and third party API integration.</p>
<p>To find out more about Solodev CMS, <a href="https://www.solodev.com/" target="_blank">check out their website</a></p>
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Solodev CMS: Facilitating Successful Project Launches

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<p>Following an <a href="/exploring-solodev-cms-8/" target="_blank">overview of Solodev CMS 8’s core features</a>, as well as a look at <a href="/solodev-cms-powering-next-generation-local-government-websites-to-improve-constituent-services/" target="_blank">its role in powering local government websites</a>, I’m now delving into the platform’s role in the Healthcare industry.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.solodev.com" target="_blank"><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2023/08/soldodev-logo-1_400x0.png" /></a></p>
<p><a href="https://www.solodev.com" target="_blank">Solodev CMS 8</a> is an enterprise-grade platform that has been in business since 2006. It supports hundreds of organizations and brands including; OneBlood, MobileHelp, CNL Financial Group, Springstone Hospitals, Dr. Phillips Center and the State of Florida Department of Education.</p>
<p>Like government, the healthcare industry is a sensitive one, and thus healthcare companies need to pay special attention to the content management systems they use to power their online presence. Let’s take a look at why Solodev CMS is such a popular choice.</p>
<h2>Multi-site Management for Multi-faceted Companies</h2>
<p>Today’s healthcare organizations are diverse businesses made up of multiple locations and entities. CMS platforms that can support multi-site management capabilities and allow management of all required sites from a single location offer more efficiency and streamline content management.</p>
<p>Solodev CMS brings a number of benefits to the table which suit Healthcare companies right down to the ground.</p>
<p>For example, a healthcare company with multiple branches will likely require multiple websites. Solodev allows such a company to manage all of those websites on a single platform, all from the very same installation. Thus, the company’s development and marketing teams can work from a single interface to develop and manage content.</p>
<p>To help manage those different teams and all their members, Solodev provides user permissions to selectively restrict access to sites, sections within sites, or even particular content.</p>
<p>Also, a centralized approval dashboard shows staged content across sites awaiting approval, so Editors can work through submitted content before anything goes live.</p>
<p>Another extremely useful dimension of Solodev CMS 8 is its website cloning ability. Perhaps the biggest benefits of website cloning within the same brand, is the enforcement of a consistent design across sites, ensuring a familiar and therefore professional presence across all websites.</p>
<p>In practice though, Solodev’s website cloning feature has far more benefits, as Springstone, Inc. has come to know.</p>
<h2>Solodev &amp; Springstone</h2>
<p>Springstone is rapidly growing, private healthcare organization with multiple hospitals across the United States.</p>
<p>Springstone facilities treat patients with mental illness and substance abuse issues in underserved communities throughout North America. Springstone has plans to expand over the next few years by opening twenty new facilities – doubling its hospital count.</p>
<p>Each of Springstone hospitals has its own dedicated website, managed entirely from a single instance of Solodev CMS.</p>
<p>On top of all the benefits listed above, Solodev’s ability to clone existing websites will make Springstone’s expansion far easier, at least as far as their online presence goes. At the very least, it will grant their development team with a solid starting point to build each new site upon.</p>
<p>Furthermore, Solodev allows for the same piece of content or other asset to be shared across all sites – so company-wide announcements and alerts can be made far more quickly.</p>
<p>To explore more of Solodev CMS, <a href="https://www.solodev.com/" target="_blank">check out their website</a></p>
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Solodev CMS: Bringing Multi-site Management to Healthcare Organizations

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