Content Management or Experience Management? Hype or Hope?

Alphabet Soup

CMS, DEM, CEM, and WEM.  It appears that the  digital world is trying to compete with the government or the military as it pertains to the creation of acronyms.  Traditional Content Management Systems (CMS) are now self-styling themselves as Digital Experience Management (DEM), Customer Engagement Management (CEM) or Web Experience Management (WEM) platforms.  In the drive to differentiate competing platforms, CMS software providers have begun to define themselves as something other than... well... CMS software providers.  Some of this has to do with the evolution of the software, development of new features and functionality, acquisition and integration of complimentary technology, or just plain marketing jargon.

Managing the Experience

Much of what is being discussed in relation to the "Experience" is the ability to provide personalized content delivery based on the attributes of your site visitors and to move them through an automated process, driven by content, to achieve your business objectives. In addition, by "Management" a platform might include Multi-Variate testing, campaign pages and other Marketing specific features. Some of these systems also claim the ability to track, monitor and report on the effectiveness of your site.  Best of all, it's as easy as snapping your fingers right?  Wrong!  Considering costs for configuration and implementation need to be a part of your decision making process and should be openly discussed with the software provider and implementation partner. 

Proof is in the Pudding

It is very difficult for an organization searching for a new Content Management System to know which platform can deliver the promise of their marketing narrative.  Some CMS companies claim a fully integrated approach is the solution while others suggest a best of breed approach to deliver the "Experience Management" features that their product offers.  To that I say... "Don't believe anything you read and only half of what you hear".  The only way to determine a smoke and mirrors pitch (and trust me, they are out there) is to ask for references and client examples.  If the CMS company will not provide references for existing customers actively using their "Experience Management" features run, don't walk, to the nearest exit.  That is, of course, unless they will allow you to Beta test these features for free.

Know Your Needs

Ultimately the "Experience Management" pitch can be totally intoxicating.  Technology is moving so fast in the digital realm and there are amazing things that you can do with your web site to increase leads, sales and revenue, improve operations, service customers and achieve your on-line goals.  It appears that most companies are prepared to be "early adopters" in order create a competitive advantage.  This is not necessarily a bad thing and it is important to push the envelope in order to grow your business.  That said, understand the needs of your customers and align these needs with your business objectives in order to determine what features and functions you will need from your Content Management System.  Try to look forward over the next 3-5 years to make sure you are selecting a platform you can grow in to.  If you find that you don't need all of the bells and whistles that are included in these "Experience Management"  platforms, there may be more affordable options that will provide you the basic "Content Management" features that you need.

Don't Believe the Hype

If your company is looking at an "Experience Management" platform, you owe it to yourself to make sure you don't fall prey to strong marketing and a slick sales pitch.  Several Content Management platforms can absolutely deliver on this promise of Experience Management and have happy customers willing to back them up.  On the other hand, there are "bad actors" in the marketplace that will sing you the Experience Management song, back it up with truck loads of marketing collateral but can not produce a single, happy customer to reference.  This evolution of these CMS platforms provide an incredible opportunity for organizations to leverage the web to create a competitive advantage, achieve their goals, and provide an great user experience for their customers, prospects and partners.  Once you have separated the contenders from the pretenders the real selection process can begin.