CMS Hidden Costs? Not so fast.

By
Angie Herrera

Over at Vitamin back in early August, [Paul Boag wrote about 5 hidden costs of running a CMS](http://www.thinkvitamin.com/features/biz/the-5-hidden-costs-of-running-a-cms) (content management system). Namely: > 1. The cost of training 2. The cost to quality 3. The cost to functionality 4. The cost of redundancy and flexibility 5. The cost of commitment As one commenter put it, these points (and their explanations) seem reasonable on the surface. But the arguments are a little thin once you start looking closer. ## The cost of training The truth is, there's no way around this. **Anytime** you add a new system - *any system* - to an organization, there's going to be training / learning involved. There's no way around it. There's nothing "hidden" about that. ## The cost of quality Boag himself mentions that technology cannot solve everything. So his own argument that a CMS creates bottlenecks in publishing content is a contradiction. A CMS will not solve an organization's publishing workflow. It can help it or it can hinder it, but in the end it's up to the organization how publishing content should work. ## The cost of functionality It's true - a website that's not built on a CMS has infinite possibilities. But the costs to get it built and add the functionality can double or triple because you're building it from the ground up. Finding the closest off the shelf solution can be more cost-effective. Further, and this is perhaps a bigger advantage for larger, more complex sites, using a pre-existing CMS solution means you're not throwing semi-tested alpha quality software into the wild. And let's not get started on the issue of security that custom systems can often fail miserably at. ## The cost of redundancy and complexity Similar to the cost of training, this is often just a fact of how it is. It's a tradeoff. You can't expect a system that is created for as wide an audience as possible to fit every niche use. But a solid CMS system will allow for the unnecessary features to be hidden or removed altogether; more so if the system is modular. This isn't any different than using a computer in general. Though I'm pretty savvy at using my Mac (even I've dived into Terminal), there are puh-lenty of features I'm sure I have never touched. Would I consider this a hidden cost? No. ## The cost of commitment Boag is right, changing your mind about your chosen system can be expensive. He even goes on to say that one should have her eyes wide open when selecting a CMS. Agreed. But that doesn't mean that the commitment you'll make is a hidden cost. If you're going to invest the money into a system then you had better do your homework. For myriad reasons, businesses change a lot quicker than they used to and thinking you can just plug and play with any system is a fatal mistake. CMS solutions are no different.