How to Choose a Content Management System in the SEO Context

WordPress. Joomla. Drupal.

The list can go on. You have likely, at one point, made use of one such content management system in SEO.

If not, you’ve definitely heard of it and know that it is an absolute blessing when it comes to managing your content workflows and processes.

And today, we’ll tell you how to pick the right one, keeping in mind your SEO goals.

But before that,

What Exactly Is a Content Management System?

A content management system is software that allows your team to create, modify, share, and review content that is to be published on your website.

Why do you need it? What is the role of content management (through an easy-to-use software) for your business?

The answer to that is simple: not everyone in your team has a high level of technical expertise.

While a qualified web developer can create a website from scratch by writing lengthy code, it is likely that most other members of the team do not have that kind of a skill set.

One way to work around this is to have a single person or a team of web developers in charge of publishing content on the site.

But do you know what this would mean?

The rest of the team would have to come to them EVERY time they need to add something to or modify something on the site – even if it is just a period on the homepage.

Wouldn’t it be much easier if non-technical individuals could take charge of content management in its entirety on their own?

It would create a much smoother workflow.

Well, they can do that with an electronic content management system.

With full control over how they manage the content of the site, they can make sure it stands out at all times, without much, or ANY, assistance at all.

Ok, great.

But where does SEO come into all of this?

Content Management System in SEO

In today’s world of online search, content goes hand in hand with SEO, or search engine optimization.

One of the main goals of your content strategy is to bring you to the top of the SERPs, or search engine results pages.

Another aim (although it’s linked to the previous one) is to bring traffic to your site through engaging copy and the smart optimization of content.

Just like you can’t have an SEO strategy without content, you cannot choose a content management system without looking at it from an SEO perspective.

For the simple reason that content is incomplete without SEO.

SEO Factors to Keep in Mind When Choosing a CMS

We will go through some important SEO elements when it comes to content and how they have a role to play in your decision.

Let’s begin!

Meta Tag Optimization

Meta tags play a vital role in how well you do in search engine results pages.

They tell the search engine, as well as the user, what your page is about. This affects how you are ranked and how interested your consumers are in visiting the page.

Title Tag

Your title tag is basically the title that appears on the search engine results page, your browser window, and when the page is shared on social media.

It is crucial to optimize the title tag for search engines, while also making it interesting enough for users to click on the link.

Some elements of this include:

• Number of characters in the title
• Keyword incorporation

The CMS you use should ideally facilitate you in creating the perfect title tag.

In WordPress, for example, with the Yoast SEO plugin, this is possible. In the SEO analysis, Yoast tells you if your title works from an SEO perspective or whether it needs improvement.

Meta Description

Your meta description is also a crucial factor in driving traffic to your site.

A good description reflects the content of the page you’re leading users to, piquing their interest.

The CMS you choose should have an option where you can add and edit your meta description, as well as get an idea of how well you’ve done.

In WordPress, again, you can add (and update) a meta description for the page. The CMS will guide you until you get it right.

Robots Meta Tag

Using robots meta tags, you can guide search engine bots on how to crawl and index your website.

You can do this with “index,” “noindex,” “follow,” and “nofollow” commands among many others.

The content management system you opt for should provide you with this functionality to make your job easier.

Keyword Incorporation

Keywords are what make it possible for you to rank in SERPs as a result of particular user queries.

And that is why your content needs to be well optimized for keywords that are relevant to the topic being discussed.

The right CMS will make it easy for you to specify the keywords in your content.

And as we discussed, it will rate your content based on how well you have incorporated the keywords into the content.

URL Customization

The URL of your page should be as short as possible without it becoming vague.

This helps you rank better in search engines and the page is also more likely be to shared by your readers.

Your content management software should give you the option of easily drafting a desired URL and evaluating it at the same time.

Like so, in WordPress (we thought we’d be consistent in our examples):

Alt text

Adding an alt text to your images also helps you rank well.

It helps Google understand your images and then display them in relevant image results.

It is best to optimize your images with alt text that contains one of your keywords.

How can you do that?

Well, a CMS should make it as easy as 1, 2, 3!

For instance, WordPress lets you add alt text when you are adding an image or if you choose to edit it later.

Website Navigation

It is quite obvious from the name what your site’s navigation menu does – it helps the user navigate the site with ease.

Your navigation bar, thus, needs to be optimized to perfection. But that’s not all you need to take care of.

Improving navigation for SEO involves:

• Creating a sitemap
• Including contact information
• Fixing broken links
• Using breadcrumbs
• Redirecting users from a deleted page to another one
• And more

And that is another thing your CMS should make easy for you. You should be able to take care of all these elements to contribute to the SEO-friendliness of your site.

Social Media Integration

Brands don’t need to hold events to meet their consumers anymore – they can e-meet them and interact with them on their social media channels.

The best part? They can use their influence on social channels to lead traffic back to the site.

But the opposite is also possible – you can lead people from your site to your social media pages.

You can also encourage people to share your content, such as a blog post, on their social media feeds directly from the site.

All this is made possible…and EASY…with the right content management system in SEO.

Technical SEO aspects

There are many elements of technical SEO that affect how well you rank on search engines.

Your content is great, your graphics are out of this world, but what if your page takes an age to load? What if it isn’t secure or doesn’t meet all the World Wide Web standards?

Your content management system should help you manage these technical SEO issues and more:

• Page speed – Slow web pages mean reduced traffic. Your content management system should facilitate faster loading times through impeccably written code, image optimization, file compression, and more.
• Site search – Your CMS should enable you to give your users the best site search experience possible.
• W3c compliance – The CMS should make it easy for you to comply with the World Wide Web standards so the site provides a positive user experience to all visitors.
• Mobile use – A CMS that ensures mobile content management and handles other mobile optimization elements is a must in today’s world of handheld devices.

That was a brief overview of some of the SEO related tasks a content management system should help you with if you are to employ it.

But what are the options that you have?

Which content management systems are leading the industry?

We found a great resource that answers these questions and will help you make a wise decision when paired with the information we shared in this blog post.

The Best Content Management System (CMS) for SEO

Content Management System in SEO – Make the Right Choice

Your content plays a massive role in your ranking. So you cannot compromise on any aspect of the process of creating, publishing, and sharing it.

And choosing the right content management software is the key that opens a world of opportunities.

Analyze your specific SEO needs against the features provided by different CMS options and you will reach a decision you can stand by.

Still confused about which CMS is best for the needs of your enterprise? A content management consultant from our team can guide you! Get in touch.