Traditional CMS architecture was the standard architecture used for web development. However, companies today are looking for platforms that offer flexibility and scalability provided by headless CMS platforms.
Here is an overview of headless CMS systems, how they work, and how they differ from traditional CMS platforms.
Diving Deep into Headless CMS
A headless CMS represents a content management system that separates where the content is stored (body) from where it is presented (head). The benefit is that headless CMS platforms allow you to store the content while you can send it to display anywhere, displaying flexibility in presentation.
The body refers to where your content is stored in a headless CMS platform, while the head represents where the content ends up. Although the point of a headless CMS may sound strange, it implies that you don’t need to pick the outputs to which you send your content.
A headless CMS platform is also known as headless software. It represents a specific back-end management system that allows the content repository to be separated from the presentation layer, which is the head. The headless CMs allow you to manage content in one place while deploying the content across any frontend that you prefer for instance the popular Next.js framework.
The word headless originates from the idea that you can chop the head off the system’s body. What remains is an interface for content management and a RESTful or GraphQL API that enhances content delivery whenever it is needed. Due to this nature, a headless CMS platform does not care about how your content is displayed.
Therefore, a headless CMS platform’s focus remains on the storage and delivery of structured content. Headless CMS platforms also allow users to manage their content through collaboration.
Do You Need a Headless CMS?
The question as to whether you need a headless CMS platform for your business may not be that easy to answer. However, it depends on the needs of your business. There are cases where one CMS platform outdoes the other. To understand better, let’s understand how a traditional CMS works. Business owners have used traditional content management systems for a long time.
These platforms were designed to support the storage and presentation of content such as video, text, and images on websites. The implication is that the traditional CMS systems allow for content stored in a single location, making it impossible to reuse content.
The rise of digital channels and devices has necessitated more flexible solutions. Today, businesses are not only developing websites but also mobile applications and digital displays. Unfortunately, traditional CMS platforms have failed to keep pace, therefore being replaced by headless CMS.
A headless CMS allows for hosting and delivery of content in the cloud, allowing flexibility and scalability in terms of space. On the other hand, traditional CMS only allows for in-house hosting and delivery. The content model for a headless CMS platform is a building block from many products, while traditional CMS can only support a single page.
A headless CMS platform is built to enhance an omnichannel approach that is not supported by the traditional CMS platforms. Also, the headless CMS allows for agile management, which allows for a replaceable technology stack, while the traditional CMS is built for the waterfall workflow.
When You Need to Use Content CMS?
Here are a few ways you can benefit from a headless CMS platform.
You can use a headless CMS platform if you want to move faster. This will be facilitated by the ability to separate your content from the tech stack of your website.
A headless CMS platform can also be useful when you use a website that uses JavaScript frameworks or those created using static site generators.
If you want to enrich your e-commerce marketing experience, you can take advantage of a headless CMS platform and use it with your marketing team.
A headless CMS can also come in handy when you are looking to manage content for your intranet.
How Structured Content Supports Headless CMS
Although a headless CMS allows the user to deploy content across different presentation layers, it does not solve underlying problems associated with unstructured content. Unstructured content is not broken down into small building blocks, making it difficult to move across different layers.
A structured approach, therefore, helps to assemble the various elements of a webpage into distinct elements that can still be assembled to create the same webpage. This is made possible through editing tools that help to share content between systems.
Conclusion
As you see, no content management system provides your business with efficiency in every case. You select the CMS platform that suits your business needs. However, your business should aim for shopping off the presentation layer of your content and making it accessible for more than one platform whenever necessary.
A headless CMS platform will allow you to reuse content easily. It allows you to retain your content even after changing your technology stack.
