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What is Web Content Management
The following section addresses the
specific question of
"What is Web Content Management",
and how this fits into the greater goal of
Content Management.
- First, we address the issue of Content
Management, and discuss how web content management requires
a specific strategy.
- Next, we analyze web content management
more specifically, focusing on the key concepts such as the separation
of content and presentation, and examine what makes web content management
successful.
- Finally, we examine the question of
whether or not your organization really needs a web content management
system.
Understanding
Web Content Management within the greater context of content management
What is content?
Content can mean many different things.
We start from a common understanding of what the scope of business content
is.
Content supports the work that the enterprise
does and interacts in many ways with business operations. Enterprise Content
Management is the discipline involved with the capture, storage, and management
of this kind of content across the enterprise. It makes information easy
to find, use, update, and discard when the time comes.
Content can be categorized into the following
types among others:
- High-volume production content, such
as document imaging and computer output, archiving, and presentation
- Rich media, such as audio, video, and
photos
- Web content, such as Internet, intranet,
and extranet
- Collaborative content, such as office
documents, discussions, and e-mail
Enterprise content management has the following objectives:
- Provide an efficient and secure solution
for managing content within the enterprise, including enterprise-wide content
storage, access, search, distribution, and retention. This is especially
true with the current focus on corporate accountability and regulatory
compliance.
- Build knowledge-based environments to
leverage corporate know-how and expertise.
Importance of content management
Prior to discussing the specific aspects
of the importance of Web content management, we begin by discussing
the underlying importance of content management. The ability to
effectively manage content, and more importantly information and specific
knowledge, directly affects your organization’s ability to succeed in
the marketplace. Business information is, in most cases, the most valuable
asset that you offer to your customers, employees, or business partners.
Accordingly, that makes information, together with the ability to manage
it, integral to the success of every business.
Value is the knowledge that you add before
you offer something. Business value is based on the information that you
share. This concept is true both for the production and for knowledge and
service industries. Looking at where this information exists, you find
that it is often divided and decentralized throughout organizations. Information
is stored frequently as content. For example, critical information can
include product descriptions, instructions, policies, key customer issues,
competitive strategies, and so forth. The effectiveness of the information
you offer, and in many cases the value that you provide, depends directly
upon the ability to distribute that information in a timely and efficient
manner.
Information within the context of
Web content
When your organization offers information
via a Web browser, this material is considered Web content. Web
content consists of two parts:
- The content
- The design or presentation of that content
Going forward, we explain this concept in greater detail and discuss the
advantages of handling the content and the design of the content separately.
We begin by discussing the two approaches
to creating, managing, and publishing Web content:
- Static Web content
- Dynamic Web content
Static Web content
Static Web content is embedded
directly into the design and placed statically on a Web page. This type
of content is most likely the result of programming rather than content
authoring. Due to its static nature and embedded design, this type of content
can be difficult to reuse and change.
Static Web content solutions often require
someone within an IT department, or at least a person who possesses Web
design and some Web-based IT skills, to translate content into HTML before
it can be posted to a Web site or a portal. Accordingly, static Web content
is more difficult to use within a dynamic Web site, which changes frequently
and requires up-to-date information to deliver maximum value. Additionally,
static Web content is often impossible to reuse due to its embedded design.
Dynamic Web content
Rather than embedding the information
directly together with the design, dynamic Web content treats the
content and the presentation of the content as two distinct entities. By
separating the Web content from the presentation layer, you can manage
and deliver content quickly and efficiently, independent of its presentation.
The ability to manage both content and its presentation layer as separate
entities is enabled most frequently by using Web content management systems.
With Lotus Web Content Management, companies
or organizations can use the flow of information. Putting information in
the hands of the right people easily and efficiently is a key component
in sustaining a competitive advantage. Authors do not face the technical
side of Web technologies. Content that is created information can be integrated
with multiple uses and processes, distributed or shared throughout and
beyond an organization. For example, a single product sheet can contain
complete pricing information, including internal prices that you only want
to share within your organization. By taking advantage of the Multipublishing
feature, you can publish a subset of the same document for your customers,
without needing to maintain to separate documents.
Content management within the context
of applications
Applications offered through a Web browser
also use content that is managed by a content management system. For example
a product catalogue or online store contains content that is accessed through
an application that (usually) provides a powerful and helpful navigation
tool. However, with ever-growing volumes of critical information distributed
across Internet portals, e-business applications, intranets and extranets
in various formats, deploying and maintaining effective content management
methodologies can be a significant challenge.
Web content management is not just about
customers. It is important to employees, business partners, suppliers,
and vendors because these groups represent the backbone of an organization.
Making sure that they are equipped with the right information and can do
business with you more easily than they can with your competitor down the
street is critical. A positive Web experience motivates the user to revisit
the site like nothing else can. This is a challenge that is generally underestimated
by most companies.
To compete in today's markets,
on demand availability of information is crucial. Content management is
the key. Such a powerful management tool, reaching a wide-spread audience,
also exposes the risks that are associated with providing information to
a broad audience. This makes it necessary to include workflow, security,
and structure to reflect organization policies in a Web environment.
Emphasis on Web Content
Management
Information within the context of
Web content
When your organization offers information
via a Web browser, this material is considered Web content. Web
content consists of two parts:
- The content
- The design or presentation of that content
Going forward, we explain this concept in greater detail and discuss the
advantages of handling the content and the design of the content separately.
We begin by discussing the two approaches
to creating, managing, and publishing Web content:
- Static Web content
- Dynamic Web content
Static Web content
Static Web content is embedded
directly into the design and placed statically on a Web page. This type
of content is most likely the result of programming rather than content
authoring. Due to its static nature and embedded design, this type of content
can be difficult to reuse and change.
Static Web content solutions often require
someone within an IT department, or at least a person who possesses Web
design and some Web-based IT skills, to translate content into HTML before
it can be posted to a Web site or a portal. Accordingly, static Web content
is more difficult to use within a dynamic Web site, which changes frequently
and requires up-to-date information to deliver maximum value. Additionally,
static Web content is often impossible to reuse due to its embedded design.
Dynamic Web content
Rather than embedding the information
directly together with the design, dynamic Web content treats the
content and the presentation of the content as two distinct entities. By
separating the Web content from the presentation layer, you can manage
and deliver content quickly and efficiently, independent of its presentation.
The ability to manage both content and its presentation layer as separate
entities is enabled most frequently by using Web content management systems.
With Lotus Web Content Management, companies
or organizations can use the flow of information. Putting information in
the hands of the right people easily and efficiently is a key component
in sustaining a competitive advantage. Authors do not face the technical
side of Web technologies. Content that is created information can be integrated
with multiple uses and processes, distributed or shared throughout and
beyond an organization. For example, a single product sheet can contain
complete pricing information, including internal prices that you only want
to share within your organization. By taking advantage of the Multipublishing
feature, you can publish a subset of the same document for your customers,
without needing to maintain to separate documents.
Overview of Web content
management
In the past, different forms of information,
such as Web content, e-mail, product information, or customer data, were
kept in separate, disconnected content management repositories. Today,
this is not a viable solution. To thrive in an on-demand environment, you
need flexible, cost-effective content management solutions to manage any
type of information, including structured data and unstructured content.
You need content management solutions that enable data and content to be
integrated with multiple applications and processes, distributed or shared
throughout and beyond your organization. Furthermore, you need it structured
and organized in the way that is best suited for your business.
The focus for today's businesses
To manage the exponential growth of business-critical
information, respond faster to the marketplace, and increase employee productivity,
your content management capabilities must address three key areas:
- Responsiveness
Streamlining operations and providing an integrated view of all forms of
information can improve your customer relationships and enable your employees,
partners, and suppliers to work together more efficiently. It can also
help you reduce costs and capitalize on new opportunities.
- Productivity
When employees spend more time looking for information they need to perform
their jobs, such as documents, e-mail, reports, Web content, and more,
they spend less time working and generating business. If they are not working
with the latest information, they can miss opportunities and make costly
mistakes. When customers cannot find what they are looking for on a Web
site, they leave frustrated and dissatisfied, no matter how good the information
or prices might be. That can add up to a lot of wasted hours and missed
opportunities. The effort to bring visitors back again is costly. Companies
that give their employees a simplified, personalized, and easily accessible
user interface to access and share critical information enjoy a competitive
advantage.
- Compliance
Effectively manage your content to address the increasing demands of government
and industry regulations. Keep focused on your business goals and use compliance
as a lever for change to affect process improvement and business transformation.
When looking at existing enterprises, we find that numerous specialized
applications and databases are often already established when it comes
to business-critical information. Lotus Web Content Management becomes
increasingly important for companies and organizations to leverage the
complete spectrum of data assets within their enterprise and share it electronically
among suppliers, customers, partners, and employees. Content that is created
and managed from authors for the purpose of Web publishing becomes only
one component. Enterprise content management (general ECM) provides a basis
for the next generation of data management, enabling customers to collect,
manage, and distribute all forms of business information. An employee of
a human resources department who updates a phone number in an internal
application, for example, has actually executed a step within a greater
content management context. Namely the changed number was simultaneously
published to the Web. It is mandatory to integrate content from a broad
range of existing data sources. Open standards for content exchange are
the key.
General concepts in Web
content management
In this section, we define concepts that
are fundamental to understanding Web content management and, more importantly,
understanding the benefits that can be gained.
Separation of content and presentation
As a foundation for understanding the
benefits of Lotus Web Content Management, we must first distinguish between
content and the presentation of the content. When a clear separation is
made between content and how it is presented, you can appreciate how a
single piece of content can potentially be rendered in multiple ways. For
example, a single item of content, such as a news article, can be presented
in any of the following ways:
- On a Web page in a variety of formats,
based on user preferences and personalization
- In a PDF file
- Downloaded to a PDA
- Streamed as an RSS feed
The content is the same, but the presentation can be adapted to best meet
a user’s needs within the context of their specific role or preference.
This approach also guarantees a consistent view and usage of a Web
site. If the design changes, the content parts remain unaffected. Additionally,
the content creators do not have to worry about the presentation of their
content. This is important because content creators usually do not have
significant knowledge of HTML.
Moving forward with this idea, key concepts
and functional areas that apply to Lotus Web Content Management can be
grouped in terms of dynamic presentation or content management.
Content creation and authoring
Content creation and authoring refer
to the creation of content and information that is intended to be delivered.
Content creators are guided through the authoring process, by using familiar
applications, without having to learn new technical skills.
Workflow
The accuracy, relevancy, and recency
of content is assured by automating the content life cycle, from creation
through approval and delivery to review and archival.
Management
Content becomes an asset again as control
of the site is placed back in the hands of the users who understand the
subject and customers best.
Content publication
After content is authored and approved,
the content publication stage is when the content is released for delivery
to the live site. The delivery can be a simple process, such as making
a file available on a file system to a Web server and advertising the URL.
Or it can be a more complex procedure such as moving content through a
complex workflow and into a production environment.
Content aggregation
Content aggregation occurs when content
from various sources is brought together. In a simple Web site, this occurs
manually during the content creation phase. However, in a more dynamic
and data-driven environment, the aggregation occurs at an application server
level.
Integration
Aggregation, transactional integration,
and performance enhancing caching enrich the user experience.
Content delivery
Content must be delivered to the user
in the appropriate (or desired) format. Most frequently, this implies delivery
via HTTP by using browsers and similar devices. Alternatively, content
delivery can refer to other publish-and-subscribe methods, data feeds,
or Web service protocols.
1.3.2 Do you need a Web Content Management system
Do you need a Web Content Management (WCM) system? This is a good
question to ask. The answer is: "It depends."
It is quite a standard practice for most organizations to use a Web content
management system to assist with the process of delivering content to their
intranet or Internet site. Consider, for example, a product page that details
the features and advantages of a new coffee maker. The generation of the
words and images can involve several people, including SMEs, image designers,
proof readers, legal, and IT. If we achieve this all through existing desktop
office tools, it can be quite arduous and time consuming. However, by using
a modern WCM system, the process can be streamlined to allow distributed
authoring, workflow, preview and ultimately delivery of the finished article
to the Internet Web site, notifying the appropriate people. For both intranet
and Internet sites, content is king. Without it being current, timely,
and appropriately placed, the site can be perceived in a lesser light.
From the content delivery process alone, a WCM system seems like a good
choice.
With the content creation, approval and delivery process being the top
capability that benefits from a WCM system, are there other areas that
can lend weight to using a WCM system? The answer is "Yes".
Ensuring that the Web site has a consistent look and feel (branding) is
extremely important. It is important for a businesses' brand awareness
and for ensuring that visitors to the Web site are comfortable with the
layout, presentation, and navigation to content. A WCM system provides
a structured approach and framework to allow the separation of content
and design while ensuring consistency where required. Componentization
is also an area that the WCM framework affords you, by allowing a higher
degree of reuse, ultimately building more with less. Again this is another
clear area where a WCM system seems like a good choice.
Content and design are just two important aspects of any Web site (intranet
or Internet) that benefit from a WCM system. In addition, the following
aspects are important to a Web site:
- Content: The creation, approval,
and delivery process streamlined to take advantage of your organization's
distribution of knowledge and skills.
- Design: Separation of design
from content to allow for the design process (in-house or agency) to deliver
consistent branding of your business, its products, and services.
- Componentization: Reuse of assets
to allow the business to deliver more with less, and saving money.
- Standards: A system to employ
best practices where accessibility is required.
- Integration and delivery: Providing
a framework from which a business can integrate with systems, services,
and information including growth from Web sites to portals and beyond.
With these concepts in mind, you can be reassured that you are making the
right decision to use a WCM system. While there might be many factors to
consider, the following decision tree can guide you to some that might
help or provide a starting point to expand upon.
