One of the features most often requested by my web design clients is some form of content management. Basically, clients want a way to add new articles and news, or to change existing content without having to know html or any software packages such as Dreamweaver or Frontpage. Until recently, such content management systems were either extremely expensive or clunky and non-intuitive. However there are a few options emerging that makes sophisticated content management an option even for websites on a budget.

The first option is Blogger (http://blogger.com). This online content management system is designed primarily for weblogs and online diaries. However, it also works very well for non-technical clients that want to add fresh content to specific pages of the site on a frequent basis.

How to use Blogger:
As you design the website, create a web page using the standard design of the content pages of your website. Leave the content area blank. This page becomes the template for your Blogger account. You add this template to your Blogger account when you set it up, inserting a few lines of code where the text is to appear.

Now, your client goes to the online form in the Blogger account (at blogger.com). They can "cut and paste" text from any word processor into the form, then click the "publish" button. Blogger automatically adds the content, creates a new html page and uploads it to your website via ftp. In a few moments you have a beautiful web page with your fresh content in place on your site. Once it is setup, it is fairly easy for clients to learn how to add content themselves. If you choose, you can have all the older content archived on your site. Blogger is an elegant and free (for now) solution for content management on a budget.

Another solution that works identically to Blogger is MovableType (http://movabletype.org). The major advantage of this system over Blogger is that you download the software and install it on your web server. It needs Perl and a cgi-bin, and is easy to setup if you have installed cgi scripts before. Generally, this software is easier to use (in my opinion) than Blogger and has a friendlier interface. You can create as many pages as you need and update, add, or delete content with ease. Like Blogger, it also creates static html pages and has archiving capabilities. For personal and non-profit website the software is free to use and a small fee is charged for business use.

There are other services on the web that allow content updates by means of javascript links to content that resides in a database. However, I prefer systems like Blogger and MovableType that create static html pages. Static html pages can be read by search engines and provide content that can greatly enhance search engine rankings. On the other hand, javascript linking to database content cannot be read by most search engines.

So there you have it! Two great solutions to content management needs that allow small to medium size websites to have the same sophisticated content management abilities as large, well financed websites! I did an extensive redesign of this website (http://newark1.com) using MovableType as a content management system. I will provide an in-depth review and how-to soon!