Managing a remote team of writers can be a real headache if you have to lose productive time downloading articles and using emails and chat sessions or video conferencing. Fortunately, there’s a program widely available － a content management system (CMS) － which will organise your content and give you the kind of functionality you could only have dreamed of, together with great flexibility and versatility.

Discover what a CMS does, what the benefits are and which type will suit you and your business.

A CMS is software designed to create, edit, organise, publish and archive digital data. Content, from web pages, blogs and articles to press releases and events, can be uploaded and distributed quickly and efficiently. Your business will benefit from using CMS technology to create and manage content especially if you have little technical expertise and a small budget.

Through the use of templates, a CMS allows you and multiple users to manage the content of a website. You can also add and edit product and services descriptions, product specifications, prices, photos and videos. Web statistics can be viewed and reported. And security can be maintained by the use of differing permissions and administrative rights which create and edit relevant users for the system.

As you well know, having an online presence is essential for any business to succeed, regardless of size. Websites have become the ‘shop windows’ of many small businesses, enabling them to promote and sell their products and services to a global audience without the expense of maintaining a store on the high street.

As such, a website enables a business to remain competitive. So it should come as no surprise that research shows an increasing percentage of small businesses are investing in digital marketing and building websites.

The real beauty of a CMS is that it allows business owners, not all of whom are comfortable with technology, to build and manage a website in an easy and cost-effective way, and to update it quickly and easily so content remains fresh and up-to-date, without the need for costly web masters or programmers.

If only the basic functions of a CMS are used, little time needs to be wasted on training teams to use and manage a business website and digital content. Consequently, a business with few resources to invest in digital marketing can compete with businesses online and remain competitive.

While the cost benefits and ease of use are the main benefits, a CMS will enable you to streamline your digital content and writing processes and customise your website, so that it fulfils the requirements of your business and guarantees consistency as to how the website looks.

A CMS can be integrated into other business applications including asset management and customer relationship systems. Your website and content can be optimised to make them as mobile-friendly as possible and ensure they perform well on search engines. By means of these dynamic and easily-implemented digital marketing strategies, you can improve the customer appeal of your business, increase sales and formulate an effective plan to increase your bottom line.

Which type of CMS is right for your business?

There are two types of CMS to be considered: the proprietary systems and the so-called ‘open source’ platforms.

Proprietary platforms are developed by commercial companies which create  bespoke systems, tailored to suit the individual needs of a business. However, similar to Microsoft’s Word software, they come with a licensing fee and represent a fixed and increasing ongoing cost.

Open source are the most popular as they are “donated” to the internet and can be downloaded and used by anyone free of charge. They are easy to use, can be customised according to your business’s requirements and are updated and optimised regularly by coders.

Without doubt, the fact that open source CMSs are free make them an attractive option for a small business, although security and the risk of hacking continue to pose a threat to this type of CMS.

Take a look at Write Manage. With this website you can manage titles by listing topics and making them available to one or all of your writers. You can let your writers choose titles and encourage them to suggest titles to you.

Manage writers with automated email notifications at any stage of the article. No need for lengthy emails or chat screen trails!

Manage projects by assigning your writers and titles to different projects. The project feature allows you to search for and manage all your writing projects quickly and easily.

The dashboard enables you to see at a glance a summary of of all articles and writers and the status of each. No more downloading articles or searching through folders!

You can start with the free package which entitles you to add two writers, 50 titles and 1 project. Then move on to the professional package as you add more writers to your team. Have a look at the website for more details!