What is a Content Management System?
A Content Management System (CMS) is a third party software application
which allows web site administrators to add, update or delete content,
photos, and documents to their web site in "real time". Many web sites
are modified using these web-based tools as they require little to no
knowledge of HTML or web scripting languages. CMS programs make it easy
for a webmaster or site owner who does not know HTML or have access to
a WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) HTML Editor, such as
Macromedia's Dreamweaver, to update their site.
In today's high paced web world, a good CMS is integral to the
efficient operation of a web site. Many webmasters and web site
developers are building database driven, or dynamic web sites, which
require a third party solution, such as a Content Management System, to
update the content that lives in the database. In addition, a CMS
allows the web site owner to outsource content development remotely to
contract copywriters and other willing contributors. With built in
access level hierarchies, webmasters can allow various users to
register as authors and start submitting articles and news to be
published on their site.
How do Content Management Systems Work?
Content Management Systems create a dynamic web site environment, where
all the content is stored in a database or XML file. Using a web-based
interface, the webmaster can select which page they want to update and
then can modify the web content in a text editor, with many of the
familiar formatting keys that can be found in a word processing
program. Once the content has been updated, with the simple click of a
button, the CMS will turn their text into HTML code and publish the
content to the web site.
Problems Between Search Engines and Content Management Systems
Historically, search engines have had difficulty indexing dynamic
pages. While their ability to index and rank dynamic pages has improved
dramatically, there are some basic things to avoid. One of the greatest
enemies of search engines is URL strings that contain many URL
parameters. URL parameters are variables that are passed to the CMS
through the URL, which tell it what information to retrieve from the
database. URLs with too many parameters generally make little logical
sense to the average user and may also scare off search spiders. For
example see:
www.mysite.com/mg/vbclass/search.asp?A9_MAKEVBCookie=Yes&vertical=CLTH&cat=Mens&
subcat=ID&displayTarget=Subcategory
It is suggested to limit the number of URL parameters to two or three
per URL to ensure that that search spiders will not have difficulty
indexing pages deep within the web site.
Certain URL parameter names may automatically flag a filter on the
search engine. One example is the URL parameter names that contain
'ID', such as 'sessionid', 'sid' or 'userid'. Historically, search
engines detect the term "ID" and assume it is associated with a session
dependant variable. As a result, search engines have learned to flag
these parameter names and it can cause problems with page indexing.
Passing session dependant variables through the URL is a problem for
search engines because the spider essentially sees a unique URL each
time they visit the site because the session dependent variables change
with each visit. For example, on one visit to the site, a page URL may
be http://www.mysite.com/page.asp?sessionid=12345. The next time the spider visits the page, the URL may be http://www.mysite.com/page.asp?sessionid=56789.
This creates a situation where a spider may think that there are
multiple URLs with duplicate content, resulting in penalties which will
negatively impact search rankings.
Based on the above, it is imperative to employ a CMS that does
not pass session dependent data, such as session variables, through a
URL string. Doing so will not only create potential usability issues
for the end user, but will also result in indexing problems for the
search engine spiders.
Finally, search engines gather understanding from your web site's
content by filtering through the HTML code. For this reason, it is
extremely important that your CMS generate HTML code that adheres to
the latest requirements of the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). Use the
W3C Code Validator to determine if your code meets the W3C standards.
Be aware that some CMS's add in many lines of proprietary code or
JavaScript at the top of the file, which can choke search spiders. This
violates a cardinal rule of SEO; 'To always have more content then
code'.
Finding a Search Engine Friendly CMS that will Work for You
Now that we have explored many of the potential problems with Content
Management Systems, lets look at how to go about finding one that will
be both search engine friendly and suit your specific needs. First you
will need to determine what server platform you will be using. Many
Content Management Systems use scripting languages and databases that
are platform dependant. If you are married to a particular platform, it
may limit your CMS options. Ideally, you will want to find a CMS that
is platform independent, which can run on any server.
There are many search engine friendly CMS's that will allow the
web site owner to generate a URL structure that is both meaningful to
their users and digestible by search engine spiders. Instead of having
a URL that is packed with parameters, you can create a URL structure
that looks like this: http://www.mysite.com/children/hats/prodid/121576.
Your next step is to check whether your CMS builds HTML pages to the
latest standards established by the W3C. Most CMS providers will be
able to tell you if their solution generates valid code. If they can't,
then ask for a sample page and run it through the W3C Code Validator.
In order to rank effectively in organic results of the search engines,
it is imperative that your CMS allows you to update your title tags,
meta data and alt tags on a page-by-page basis.
The most important aspects of a good CMS are the ease of use and
richness of content formatting features. This one is a no-brainer
because the very reason that you are looking for a CMS is that YOU
DON'T WANT TO CODE. Any good CMS should provide an editing stage that
is similar in feature and function to a standard word processing
program, such as Microsoft Word. The technical term for this is a
WYSIWYG Editor or a Rich Text Editor. This important feature will allow
you to type and format your content using standard buttons and keyboard
shortcuts. When you publish the content to the live web site, the CMS
will write the HTML, CSS and scripting to display your content as it
was formatted during the editing stage. Many Content Management Systems
are offering additional technologies, such as RSS feed, shopping cart
solutions, forums and live chat integration, which can really enhance
the functionality of your web site. The key is to find a CMS that will
suit your core needs and then determine what add-ons would be
beneficial. The ends result will be a web site that is easy to manage
and usable for both your customers and the search engines.
This Article was written by Mike Goldstein. Mike is the SEO Manager at
Rock Coast Media, a Boston-Area search engine marketing firm that
provides results-driven custom search marketing solutions.
