How do I find the right content management system for my technical writing department?

“The first house you build for your enemy, the second for your friend, and the third for yourself.”

This old saying did not come about by chance: there are many things to consider when building a house:
What will my costs be? What work can I do myself and save money? Will the planned house still fit my needs ten years from now?
It’s not much different for companies faced with the task of acquiring a content management system for their technical writing department.

It’s all down to preparing properly

The biggest challenge is usually to choose from the many systems on the market and find exactly the one that best suits your own requirements. This can only be achieved if the selection and introduction of the content management system are carefully planned.
Importantly, this phase is not just about comparing specific functions and technical parameters. For some questions, it is often the subjective and intuitive assessments of your team that make all the difference – don’t forget to take these into account.
These can include, for example, the following aspects:
How does communication and cooperation with the system providers feel?
How will the new system change the way we work, and what responsibilities do we need to rethink? Which overarching strategy goals and visions do we pursue in the editorial team?

Six key points for the preparation phase

What exactly do you need to consider during the preparation phase? Of course, this always depends on the individual situation of your technical writing team. For example, the selection process for a start-up is very different from that for an established corporation.
Our practical experience has shown that, as far as the technical equipment is concerned, you should at least think about the following points before plunging into specific system comparisons.

1. What are the requirements for the structuring and modularisation of our content? For example: what content will become standard building blocks in the new system and how large are these?
2. Do we already have an idea of how the content should be stored and managed in the system (keyword: metadata management)?
3. Which editorial processes should be mapped in the system? For example: multi-level internal approvals or the implementation of translation workflows.
4. Which interfaces to other systems in the company must be taken into account (e.g. ERP, CAD or translation systems)?
5. In which formats should our content be published later (e.g. PDF, HTML, Help or XML)?
6. Are there (technical) requirements from other departments for the new system – for example, from IT on the topic of internal vs. external hosting?

Succeeding faster with external support

We firmly believe that those who deal intensively with their own requirements know exactly what matters – and can start discussions with the system providers more calmly. In a stressful day-to-day working situation, however, it is not so easy to grasp the actual goals, needs and requirements of your own editorial team. Which brings us back to the idea of building a house three times that we started out with. In order to prevent comparable things from happening to you, thus preventing you from getting your new system to work properly, it may make sense to rely on outside help.

How can an external partner help?

Anyone who needs help with selecting and introducing a content management system can, for example, turn to specialised full-service providers from the field of technical documentation.
When cooperating with a specialist service provider such as this, you can benefit from two advantages in particular:

1. A service provider has already successfully helped many companies choose and introduce the right content management system for them. In addition, their editorial team works with content management systems from various manufacturers as part of their day-to-day business. This expert knowledge of the individual systems and the best approach in the selection phase is available to you on call if you work together.
2. Thanks to their extensive practical experience and industry knowledge, service providers can give you vendor-neutral and independent advice. This way, you can quickly find the system that best suits your individual requirements.

What does a typical selection process with kothes look like?

As in other areas, the following applies when choosing a content management system: many roads lead to Rome – or at least to your own system. In any case, a strategic and well-considered approach is important.
In our consulting projects, we at kothes have established a four-stage and now widely proven method. It enables companies to select the right content management system efficiently and at a manageable cost.

Below is an example of how this selection process might proceed:

1. Kick-off with process workshop and content analysis
   Which individual use cases will the future content management system have to cover? Which functions are crucial? In order to be able to determine your specific requirements for the new system, we first analyse your editorial processes and the structure of your content in a workshop.
2. Compiling a requirements list and selecting favourites
   On this basis, we will develop a catalogue with your most important requirements for the content management system. In the next step, we will make a pre-selection of three to four suitable systems that best fit your requirements profile.
3. Presentations and testing of the favourite systems
   We will then present these favourites to your editorial team, showing you how the systems operate and demonstrating their range of functions and pros and cons. On request, you can also carry out longer tests with your own data and thus check how well the systems perform in everyday editorial work.
4. Final system selection
   In the decision phase, we support you as a critical and at the same time vendor-neutral consultant. When clarifying detailed questions, we also take on the responsibility for communicating with the system manufacturers.

What next?

The right content management system has been identified and your team wants to get started immediately. However, the technical implementation on its own is not the end of the story. Until the new system pays off in productive operation, there is still some work ahead of you and your colleagues.
Important activities include, for example:

• Development of a modularisation and metadata concept for your content
• Training your technical editors and other groups of people who will work with the content management system (translation, quality management etc.)
• Integration of your existing data into the new system

As you can see, introducing a content management system is certainly one of the more demanding – but also one of the most exciting – projects a technical writing team can face. The good news is that with foresight and a little professional support, the path to your own system solution will be a smooth one!

We hope we were able to shed some light and show you what it takes to choose a content management system. So that at the end of it all you can say: “Thanks to a structured approach, you chose your first CMS all by yourself!“