Articles

Visual Editor Article

<hr /> During a recent <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/products/agility">Agility CMS</a> “Ask Me Anything” webinar, I was subjected to a trifecta of “dad jokes” – courtesy of <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/playing-to-win-in-the-headless-cms-game-interview-with-joel-varty-cto-at-agility">Joel Varty</a>. In addition to his part-time standup vocation, Joel is the Chief Technology Officer of the Toronto-based headless <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/what-is-a-content-management-system-cms">content management system</a>, where he’s spent almost two decades innovating around digital experiences and supporting notable brands like Cineplex, Mitsubishi Electric, and ScotiaBank.As a comically blessed father myself (IMHO), I appreciated his technique and material – especially the closer about a sad math book that couldn’t solve its own problems. Insert rimshot.Dad jokes aside, Joel is as cool as they come on stage. I’ve seen him bake under the hot lights of the now-famous <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.boye-co.com/blog/2024/8/kajoo-wins-cmsidol24-montreal">“CMS Idol” competition</a>, and from my perspective, he’s one CTO who keeps his demo muscle in solid shape (I’m sure there’s a dad joke in there). As advertised, Agility’s AMA session effectively “pulled back the curtain” on its new <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://agilitycms.com/product/web-studio">Web Studio,</a> which promises enhanced features for customers to create, preview, and collaborate on web content. Web Studio reflects a tacit transformation we’ve been seeing across the headless CMS market, one where pure-play platforms have been bridging the visual gap. Content creators want a simple UI that enables them to see exactly what their stuff will look like when it’s live. At the same time, they need to collaborate with team members to preview, review, comment on, and approve their pages before publishing. Agility's Web Studio delivers the full monty and then some – with dynamite features already penciled in on the roadmap. The company has flown Web Studio with a few test pilots as part of what it calls its “Ambassador Program,” and the solution is getting solid reviews. As part of the AMA, I got a first-hand tour of Web Studio, and I concur. As billed, it’s a heckuva lot more than just a WYSIWYG editor. The entire experience feels intuitive, elegant, lightweight, and easy to navigate – and fits seamlessly into Agility’s clean, minimal framework while providing easy access to all the essential tooling. <figure class="image image-style-align-center image_resized" style="width:66.45%"><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2024/11/joel-brendan-headshots.jpg" alt="" /></figure>Agility's AMA presenters: Joel Varty, CTO (left), and Brendan Cooney, Senior Manager Joel conducted the webinar with <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/bmcooney/">Brendan Cooney</a>, Senior Manager at Agility. They showcased how content creation and teamwork are central to the new experience and woven into its new attributes.A bit of history on the genesis of Web Studio: It began as a feature called Preview Center, which made its debut at the <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://aarhus25.boye-co.com/">Boye Aarhus 2023 Conference</a> and ended up <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.boye-co.com/blog/2023/11/agility-wins-the-2023-small-feature-award">winning the event's coveted “Small Feature Award.”</a> The achievement sparked some new thinking – both practical and blue sky – which Joel crystallized during the AMA.“What if Brendan’s typing in a field, and then I’m typing in a field? What happens there? That snowballed into ‘now we need Figma-style comments,’ [and] ‘now we need Google Docs style content editing.’ So it kind of turned into a whole lot of things, which is really exciting for us.”Here’s a snapshot of what I saw, and what you can expect as it rolls out.<h3 id="it’s-a-lot-less-lonely-with-presence">It’s a lot less lonely with Presence</h3>One of the coolest new features in Web Studio is the Presence Indicator, which visually displays an icon of who’s online in the system. With a click, you can jump to the specific page or asset that a person is working on and collaborate in tandem. It’s simple but super handy – and editors are sure to love it.  <figure class="image image-style-align-center image_resized" style="width:83.64%"><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2024/11/agility-web-studio-presence.jpg" alt="" /></figure>The Presence Indicator (appearing at the top of the Agility UI) shows other team members actively working in the system As Joel and Brendan noted, Presence accentuates collaboration in a personal way, making the experience feel like hanging out with friends. By reducing the friction to share and connect within the system, Agility is offering a more human (er… humane?) experience – one that can reduce the challenges around communicating and collaborating.<h3 id="instant-field-locking-and-built-in-commenting">Instant field-locking and built-in commenting</h3>Content collisions are a pain, but version conflicts might be a thing of the past with Web Studio’s slick new field locking feature. Simply slide the lock button into place and you effectively control your session. At the same time, your collaborators can see what fields you’re working on and what changes you’re making in real time. Users can also leave comments with total ease. Just tag a team member with an “@“ and leave a notification, comments, or even reactions. You can also resolve the comment once you reply, making the function more like a task assignment or project management feature. You can also access a full history of comments. All around, it’s definitely a win for users and teams.Once you see the commenting and collaboration tools, it’s logical to thread the needle with other communication tools in the broader ecosystem. As Joel indicated, users can expect both email and Slack notifications in the near future.<h2 id="previews">Previews</h2>Out of the box, Web Studio provides both a staging and preview environment in addition to your live view. It’s all easily within reach. You can also leverage the <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://github.com/agility/web-studio-sdk">Agility Web Studio SDK</a> to decorate the fields and components. Previews also work with pages and content items. A big upgrade: you’ll be able to switch between multiple deployments, an action that's been less flexible in the past in Agility.  <figure class="image image-style-align-center image_resized" style="width:86.64%"><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2024/11/agility-web-studio-preview.jpg" alt="" /></figure>Web Studio provides a seamless preview within Agility as well as easy-to-use commenting features You can also manually expand or collapse your window to preview and inspect different device sizes. That might sound like a simple expectation with most modern CMS UIs, but it's more fluid than you think. The word “silky” comes to mind, and it's worth seeing in action.One other cool benefit is the commenting mode, which allows you to click anywhere and leave comments on your preview. It's just another example of how collaboration has been baked into the foundation of Web Studio.<h3 id="decorating-components">Decorating components</h3>This is where developers can customize their components for editors. As Joel demonstrated in real time, you can access code in Agility to decorate your component fields, making it easier for developers to render changes and empower content creators to do their thing. Once his changes were complete, it was all pushed to <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://vercel.com/">Vercel</a>, and… presto. Ready in minutes.As he noted, it takes a little more time to set up new components the right way, but doing so ultimately enhances the editor experience. Joel reinforced the importance of this vital relationship between developers and content creators, and how it can unleash greater value.  <h3 id="the-critic-consensus">The Critic Consensus</h3>Visual editing and preview capabilities have become an expectation for every headless CMS. But delivering the right mix of capabilities – wrapped in a simple yet satisfying experience – is the real dealmaker. Agility Web Studio offers a differentiated visual experience and a fantastic upgrade to the platform’s easy-to-use interface. With trick features like the Presence capability, users should find it intuitive and (dare I say) fun to interact and collaborate around content. And in the high-pressure, high-stakes world of accelerating your marketing content, finding more productive and rewarding ways to make the journey is a win-win.The collaboration enhancements are slick, and the in-app commenting and task resolution capabilities are sure to please marketers, developers, and content creators alike. The seamless ability to share, review, and approve within Agility should help reduce bottlenecks and laborious back-and-forth emails.From a broader market perspective, headless CMSes continue to appreciate steady demand as fixtures across many RFPs. That’s also why we continue to see new platforms entering the market. While the noise has dampened from the peaks of 2023 and early 2024 (I must have been talking to a new headless platform every week), opportunity and choice continue to drive persistent growth.Generally speaking, choice is good for buyers. But above all, they want confidence and trust – and that’s where platforms like Agility have a key advantage in a sea of sameness. As a veteran player, they’ve amassed a solid track record with globally recognized brands, powering workloads with mission-critical performance and compliance considerations. <h3 id="one-last-note-on-the-‘art-of-the-live-demo’">One last note on the ‘Art of the Live Demo’</h3>No one wants to code in front of other people. It’s a bit like using a public restroom – which, for many people, is fraught with anxiety. When Joel started to manually update a component on the fly, he demonstrated how easy it is to customize. That said, when a few tags went off the rails, he kept his cool and made the whole process feel smooth and authentic. Call it Murphy’s Law, but there’s always a bump or two in the road. The “agility” (see what I did there?) to keep rolling when things don’t go as planned is, in itself, a testament to the presenter. If you’re evaluating a CMS, I still stand by the impact of a live demo from a qualified practitioner – bumps and all. Yes, good documentation is a must-have; ultimately, we're trying to empower our users and get out of the way. But a solid CMS in your composable stack is a critical decision, and Agility is doing it right by emphasizing the human part of its proposition.Speaking of which, you can learn more about Web Studio <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://agilitycms.com/product/web-studio">here</a>. Dad jokes not included. <hr /><h4 style="text-align:center" id="looking-for-guidance-on-agility-cms?--talk-to-us.-">Looking for guidance on Agility CMS?  <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/contact">Talk to us. </a></h4><hr /><h3 id="upcoming-events">Upcoming Events</h3> <img style="width:29.58%" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2024/01/cms-kickoff-2025-logo.png" /><h4 id="cms-kickoff-2025"><a href=" https://www.boye-co.com/conferences/cmskickoff25">CMS Kickoff 2025</a></h4>January 14-15, 2025 – Tampa Bay Area, FloridaMeet industry leaders at our third annual CMS Kickoff – the industry's premier global CMS event. Similar to a traditional kickoff, we reflect on recent trends and share stories from the frontlines. Additionally, we will delve into the current happenings and shed light on the future. Prepare for an unparalleled in-person CMS conference experience that will equip you to move things forward. This is an exclusive event – space is limited, <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.boye-co.com/conferences/cmskickoff25/tickets">so secure your tickets today.</a> <img style="width:30.46%" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2024/11/cms-summit-25.png" alt="" /><h4 id="cms-summit-25"><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.boye-co.com/conferences/cmssummit25">CMS Summit 25</a></h4>May 13-14, 2025 – Frankfurt, GermanyDon't miss the first European edition of our prestigious international conference dedicated to the global content management community! CMS Summit 25 will bring together top-notch speakers, our renowned learning format, and engaging social events. Hear from leading practitioners like Deutsche Bahn, Dr. Oetker, and more – and join customers, agencies, and CMS vendors as we discuss current trends and what's ahead for the content and digital experience fields. Connect and network at the only vendor-neutral, in-person conference focused on CMS. Space is limited for this exclusive event, <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.boye-co.com/conferences/cmssummit25">so book your seats today.</a>

Agility CMS Web Studio Aims to Streamline Content Creation and Collaboration

matt-garrepy

<hr /> When it comes to UX, we tend to wizzywag around the value of the <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.techtarget.com/whatis/definition/WYSIWYG-what-you-see-is-what-you-get">WYSIWYG</a>.It's true. Even though WYSIWYGs are a foundational part of so many software experiences, we take them for granted. Maybe it’s because they feel a little commoditized, offering similar features and functionality. But is that true? Some WYSIWYG experiences are elegant and robust. Others? Not so much. And when it's the latter, you probably take notice.The concept of “What You See Is What You Get” draws its origins back to Douglas Engelbert’s 1968 presentation, <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mother_of_All_Demos">“The Mother of all Demos.”</a> Xerox PARC picked up on the signals (well before Apple pilfered their UI), and a few years later, began developing the first WYSIWYG editor. It would take decades before they became a staple in word processors and <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/what-is-a-content-management-system-cms">content management systems.</a>Rich text editors have been an essential feature of CMSes since the beginning, providing portals for content. Some are designed to look and feel familiar, as if you’re working in Microsoft Word or Google Docs. Others are more visually equipped, enabling you to preview what your “stuff” looks like to a reader once it’s published. Having a clear and intuitive rich text editor makes a CMS easier to use. A good WYSIWYG delivers a simple canvas to content creators, enabling them to do their job with ease while having access to code in the right places. But that’s if the editor is good.This is where <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://ckeditor.com/">CKEditor</a> has been focusing its superpowers. The modern, feature-rich JavaScript editor is infinitely customizable, enabling developers and organizations to build exactly what they need. It’s long been a staple of <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/products/drupal">Drupal</a> and other CMSes across modules, plugins, and other tools that help shape content for publishing on websites and across screens.Of course, it’s not just CMSes. CKEditor is nearly ubiquitous, used in apps and experiences by leading global brands like Salesforce, Disney, IBM, and countless others across industries. It’s been downloaded a staggering 50 million times and is in use by 100,000+ customers, making it one of the most popular resources of its kind. CK Editor’s flexibility is one key to its continued success. It offers native integrations with some of the most popular libraries, enabling builders to move quickly – whether they’re using React, Angular, Bootstrap, or other ultra-modern frameworks. The company behind it all, <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cksource.com/">CKSource</a>, knows a thing or two about the editor game. Headquartered in Warsaw, Poland, they’ve been at it for a long time, springing out of the original CKEditor – which was first released in 2003 under the moniker “FCKEditor.” One might assume that’s a blue reference, but it’s actually the initials of <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://ckeditor.com/blog/authors/frederico-knabben/">Frederico Caldeira Knabben</a>, the founder of the original project. At the time, he considered the whole exploit a “passionate hobby.” 50 million downloads later, he’s notched his place in UX history.Over the past two decades, CKSource has achieved a multitude of milestones, and its products are employed by hundreds of thousands of users around the globe. From CKEditor’s open source beginnings to its current foothold in products across the spectrum, the company became a target for <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.tiugotech.com/">Tiugo Technologies</a> – part of the PSG equity portfolio – which <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://ckeditor.com/blog/cksource-is-acquired-by-psg-a-growth-equity-firm/">acquired it in 2021</a> for an undisclosed amount. The story gets more interesting. Tiugo has been consolidating a small cabal of developer-centric apps under its umbrella, building an ecosystem of content creation and collaboration tools. This includes <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/products/buttercms">ButterCMS</a>, a headless content management system, and <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/tinymce-brings-advanced-ai-to-cms-text-editing-interview-with-fredrik-danielsson-elise-bentley">TinyMCE</a> – an alternative WYSIWYG editor with numerous CMS customers. While both tools perform similarly, there are some key differences. All of TinyMCE’s editor content is HTML-based, meaning it’s rendered in the editor the exact same way it is in the browser. It was also early to the GenAI phenom, adding GPT-powered content generation to its platform in 2023. I did a <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/tinymce-brings-advanced-ai-to-cms-text-editing-interview-with-fredrik-danielsson-elise-bentley">deep dive on the feature</a> at the time it was launched. CKEditor stores its data using a different methodology and structure. It also offers over 1,000 API methods, a modern composable architecture, and a host of collaborative features, making it robust and customizable for complex use cases. It also provides an AI assistant add-on and access to its <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://ckeditor.com/docs/ckeditor5/latest/features/file-management/ckbox.html">CKBox</a> file manager for assets.Both products have pros and cons, and choice is important in the market. Regardless, the primary goal is to make the developer and end-user experience easier, richer, and more productive. Again, these tools might go overlooked in the pantheon of product composition. But given their critical importance in the day-to-day workflow for dev and content professionals, it’s no wonder WYSIWYG editors are continuing to innovate – and CKEditor just pushed the boundaries again.<h3 id="bringing-drop-in-image-uploading-to-the-editing-ui">Bringing drop-in image uploading to the editing UI</h3><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://ckeditor.com/blog/ckeditor-44-2-0-release-highlights/">CKEditor 5</a> – the tool’s most recent version, launched in 2017 – recently pushed a set of new features as part of its first major release of the year. The package includes enhanced source code editing, the ability to add emojis, a “track changes” preview capability, and a host of other improvements. Among the updates is a hip new feature called <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://ckeditor.com/blog/ckeditor-44-2-0-release-highlights/">Image Optimizer</a> – a fully functional drop-in image upload solution that enables storing, transforming, optimizing, and delivering images at scale. Image Optimizer “optimizes” your image performance, reducing the size and simplifying content creation for image-rich websites. This supports the needs of both developers and end users by easing the workflow and accelerating time to market.<figure class="image image-style-align-center image_resized" style="width:80.46%"><img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2025/03/image-1741443464990.png" alt="A screenshot of a computer

AI-generated content may be incorrect." /></figure>Source: CKEditor website How does it work? First, Image Optimizer is delivered as a plugin that handles its image optimization capabilities via CDN. Automating the compression and responsive image generation helps reduce latency with load times while battling the cost of higher bandwidth. In addition to automatically resizing and streamlining formats, Image Optimizer can improve website speed, SEO rankings, and even help to ensure compliance with SOC2 and GDPR. For content creators, there are some killer integrated editing tools with adaptive settings that handle optimization for less technical users. This includes resizing, cropping, and tuning parameters such as brightness, exposure, and contrast. You can also apply pre-built filters.  <img src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2025/03/image-1741443465643.png" alt="A screenshot of a computer

AI-generated content may be incorrect." />Source: CKEditor website Behind the scenes, Image Optimizer’s secure, non-destructive editing preserves your original files, ensuring both flexibility and control. Additionally, it supports uploads from devices, URLs, social networks, and cloud storage sources, enhancing overall flexibility and productivity.<h3 id="powered-by-uploadcare">Powered by Uploadcare</h3>Part of the secret sauce for Image Optimizer is how it leverages the CDN layer to perform its magic. This provides a fast, lightweight solution for executing and delivering a modified image while retaining the original at its source.  To harness this feature, Image Optimizer leverages <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://uploadcare.com/">Uploadcare,</a> another tool in the Tiugo Technologies portfolio. I recently wrote about the company’s <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/uploadcare-video-cdn-adds-seamless-uploading-and-streaming-as-a-native-cms-capability">innovative video CDN</a> capabilities, and how seamless uploading and streaming can now be added as a native CMS capability. "In today's tech-driven world, speed and efficiency are everything," said <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/wiktor-walc/">Wiktor Walc</a>, Chief Technology Officer at CKEditor. "Image Optimizer, powered by Uploadcare, equips content creators and developers with a seamless solution to enhance performance, streamline workflows and deliver visually stunning content – all while saving time and resources."CDNs are an indispensable part of the expanding composable, API-first landscape. They significantly improve performance by distributing online content across a multitude of servers positioned across global geographies, allowing users to access data from the closest server. This translates into faster load times, reduced latency, and better overall UX. While CDNs can also be used to manage high traffic spikes, they also distribute traffic loads across their independent networks, providing additional security features against nasty DDoS attacks. CDNs have long been tied to content management systems, and as such, Uploadcare has worked closely with CMS and DXP platforms to leverage SDKs and develop extensions for <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/products/wordpress">WordPress</a>, <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/products/contentful">Contentful</a>, and <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/products/decap-cms">Decap CMS</a>. Uploadcare even calls <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/products/webflow">Webflow</a> a customer.Uploadcare is uniquely aligned with CKEditor’s capacity to further enhance the CMS UX. By streamlining image upload and optimization, users can experience significant benefits. "Optimized images are crucial for performance and user experience," said <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/debatur/">Igor Debatur</a>, CEO of Uploadcare. “Our partnership with CKEditor brings enterprise-grade image processing directly into their editing workflow, allowing users to create and upload high-quality visuals effortlessly.”<h3 id="what’s-next?">What’s next?</h3>Image Optimizer is currently an add-on available with <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://ckeditor.com/pricing/">CKEditor’s Custom plan</a> and will also be available with self-service plans later this year. You can contact CKEditor for more information, plans, and pricing details. <h3 id="the-verdict">The Verdict</h3>CKEditor will not be wizzywagged. After two decades, it continues to prove its undeniable value within the software experience stack. Developers and content creators rely on it to be performant every day, and it delivers on that promise.Adding new and innovative features can certainly benefit the CMS UX, and the addition of its new Image Optimizer is a winning solution. It seems adaptable to a diverse range of needs, expanding creative freedom while enhancing operational efficiency.On a granular level, the automated resizing will remove headaches for content practitioners, while organizations benefit from improved website performance around speed and even SEO. Additionally, the lightweight image enhancement tools within the editor deliver greater control and productivity. All positive outcomes.To be sure, there are custom solutions in other platforms that provide image compression and editing at different layers in the workflow. Even CKEditor’s CKBox file manager provides some basic editing capabilities, allowing you to crop, resize, rotate, and flip images. But adding more expansive optimization features directly to the WYSIWYG editor is a smart evolution of a tool that exists at the publishing edge. While the solution is non-destructive to the original source – and that’s a good thing – there could be some lingering questions about maintaining governance with manipulated images. As such, it might lend itself to very specific use cases. This is where CKEditor's flexibility and customizability are key assets for establishing control. Like any new feature, you should understand your team’s relationship to the functionality and establish best practices and appropriate guardrails. One last point on the solution’s genesis: It seems that Tiugo Technologies is dogfooding its investments in CKEditor and Uploadcare to yield sweeter fruit. In this sense, it’s assembling a composable ecosystem for developers – one that now includes a headless CMS, a dynamic CDN, and rich editing tools. It will be interesting to see which direction the company evolves its portfolio to complete its vision. BTW: If you’re interested in learning more about the history of WYSIWYG and CMS, let me recommend <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.tiny.cloud/blog/history-of-cms-wysiwyg/">this article by Di Mace</a> of Tiny. It’s incredibly deep and well-researched, chronicling the timeline along key chapters in the computing revolution. Meanwhile, go check out this new feature from the “wiz” of WYSIWYG.    <hr /><h3 id="upcoming-events">Upcoming Events</h3> <img style="width:30.46%" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2024/11/cms-summit-25.png" alt="" /><h4 id="cms-summit-25"><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.boye-co.com/conferences/cmssummit25">CMS Summit 25</a></h4>May 13-14, 2025 – Frankfurt, GermanyDon't miss the first European edition of our prestigious international conference dedicated to the global content management community! CMS Summit 25 will bring together top-notch speakers, our renowned learning format, and engaging social events. Hear from leading practitioners like Deutsche Bahn, Dr. Oetker, and more – and join customers, agencies, and CMS vendors as we discuss current trends and what's ahead for the content and digital experience fields. Connect and network at the only vendor-neutral, in-person conference focused on CMS. Space is limited for this exclusive event, <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.boye-co.com/conferences/cmssummit25">so book your seats today.</a> <img style="width:31.83%" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2025/01/cms-connect-2025-logo.png" alt="" /><h4 id="cms-connect-25"><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.boye-co.com/conferences/cmsconnect25">CMS Connect 25</a></h4>August 5-6, 2025 – Montreal, CanadaWe are delighted to present the second annual summer edition of our signature global conference dedicated to the content management community! CMS Connect will be held again in beautiful Montreal, Canada, and feature a unique blend of masterclasses, insightful talks, interactive discussions, impactful learning sessions, and authentic networking opportunities. Join vendors, agencies, and customers from across our industry as we engage and collaborate around the future of content management – and hear from the top thought leaders at the only vendor-neutral, in-person conference exclusively focused on CMS. Space is limited for this event, <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.boye-co.com/conferences/cmsconnect25">so book your seats today.</a>

Still the ‘Wiz’ of WYSIWYG: CKEditor keeps innovating with new Image Optimizer to improve CMS UX

Vev’s Time Has Come: Interactive Content Builder Acquires TIME Sites, Adds Marc Benioff to its Cap Table 

<a href="https://vercel.com/" target="_blank">Vercel</a>, the cloud platform for frontend developers, has released a new tool called <a href="https://vercel.com/docs/workflow-collaboration/visual-editing" target="_blank">Visual Editing</a> – designed to help frontend developers and marketers create and edit content directly on the Vercel site. These changes can then be synchronized and sent back to a user’s headless CMS without ever opening it.
The feature is being launched with <a href="https://www.cmscritic.com/sanity-raises-39-million-focuses-growth-on-content-as-data-for-transformative-digital-experiences/">Sanity</a>, and its current version is in a limited private beta for Sanity CMS enterprise users.
<h2>Experience live changes instantly</h2>
Unlike a monolithic digital experience platform where users typically make content changes in a one-size-fits-all WYSIWYG editor, tech stacks with a headless CMS may find it difficult to find and edit content from the decoupled architecture. This is especially true for content-heavy marketing teams without the technical expertise to rely on a headless system.
With Visual Editing, each team can visually see the content they’d like to edit in an easy-to-use and easy-to-connect editor – and watch live edits be imported into the headless CMS. Marketing teams will no longer have to rely on developers to make changes, freeing up resources for both teams.
Activating this new feature is meant to be seamless. From a <a href="https://vercel.com/blog/visual-editing" target="_blank">Vercel blog article</a> announcing the tool, implementing Visual Editing with Sanity's modern CMS does not require any changes to how a site is programmed. CMS providers can simply add an additional argument when calling a CMS API, and visual editing becomes available.
<h2>Focus on user experience</h2>
Vercel has made many strides to enhance the user experience, including <a href="https://vercel.com/docs/concepts/incremental-static-regeneration/overview" target="_blank">Incremental Static Regeneration</a>, which allows users to create or update content without redeploying a site. Another feature called <a href="https://vercel.com/docs/concepts/deployments/preview-deployments" target="_blank">Preview Deployments</a> allows users to preview changes in an app during live deployment without merging changes to a Git project’s production branch. A tool called <a href="https://vercel.com/docs/workflow-collaboration/comments">Comments</a> was added recently to allow teams and invited participants to leave direct feedback.
Each change marks a new level of sophistication in providing users the tools they need to edit content quickly and without the constant starting and stopping often documented by any large content team in charge of deploying multiple sites or massive quantities of content.
<h2>What’s next for Vercel?</h2>
With many recent changes dedicated to improving user experience and actively deployed features that cement that commitment, there appears to be a lot of interesting innovation on the horizon. The announcement of its latest product feature has already delighted customers, marketers, and developers alike, even while still in beta. 
It's worth noting that Vercel is an <a href="https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230404006070/en/Vercel-Expands-its-Cloud-Offering-to-AWS-Marketplace-and-Joins-AWS-ISV-Accelerate-Program" target="_blank">AWS partner</a> and a <a href="https://machalliance.org/newsroom/MACH-Alliance-Announces-New-Members-Capgemini-Sitoo-and-Vercel" target="_blank">member</a> of the MACH Alliance, a nonprofit organization committed to expanding MACH (microservices, API-first, cloud-native SaaS, and headless) architecture.
<h2>About Vercel</h2>
Vercel is the cloud platform for frontend developers, providing the speed and reliability innovators need to create at the moment of inspiration. By providing the toolkit frontend teams love, Vercel unlocks developer potential and enables you to go from idea to global application in seconds. Vercel enables customers like Under Armour, Nintendo, The Washington Post, and Zapier to build delightful user experiences on the Web.
<h2>About Sanity</h2>
Sanity is the platform for structured content that lets teams build exceptional digital experiences. By treating content as data, modern organizations use our APIs to build optimal editing workflows and share content between systems to increase digital velocity. Our mission is to be the most versatile system for creating and distributing digital content to any device, application or channel. Dual-headquartered in San Francisco and Oslo, Norway, Sanity is used by thousands of companies including Unilever, Puma, National Geographic, and Condé Nast. Learn more at <a href="https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.sanity.io%2F&amp;esheet=52763704&amp;newsitemid=20220628005411&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.sanity.io&amp;index=8&amp;md5=f5b2de497d993d89c1f5d03eadc1fb60" target="_blank">http://www.sanity.io</a>.

Vercel Launches New Visual Editing Feature with Sanity CMS

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