Headless CMS is a term you have likely come across if you are a web developer or a techy. If you don’t know what it is, this article will aim to explain it as simply as possible. It will also highlight some of the main reasons why brands need to adopt this technology. A headless CMS is the latest upgrade to the traditional, aka monolithic content management systems.
What is a Headless CMS?
Petr Palas, the CEO of Kentico Cloud, explains the difference between monolithic and headless CMS as “[A headless CMS] decouples the content and the presentation”. As opposed to a traditional CMS that doesn’t. A headless CMS provides tools to create content that multiple channels can access.
The content is available on the cloud and is accessible to channels through APIs. An API, if you were wondering, is the Application Programming Interface. Think of it as the connection between your command and the system’s response.
Jake Lumetta, the CEO of ButterCMS further simplifies the explanation as “A headless CMS lets you build websites and apps that are decoupled from content management tools and integrated via API.
So, editors can write content through a user interface while developer’s engineer how it gets displayed on the company website, smartwatch app or even the down-town Kiosk screen using whichever front-end tools they like”.
Now you know what it is by definition. But you might not understand how it works. Let’s find out how a headless CMS works.
How Does a Headless CMS Actually Work?
To make things simple, let’s break down the functionality into 3 basic steps:
1. Editors and creators develop content and input it into a headless CMS.
2. Content stays there, stored in smaller content blocks, usually using cloud storage.
3. Front-end developers then access the content and design its presentation for any channel. They have to use third-party frameworks to make content readable for different channels. Sometimes, the headless CMS platforms also include front-end delivery templates and tools. With these CMS platforms, developers don’t need to use third-party frameworks.
Now you should have a better understanding of what a headless CMS is and how they work. Let’s move on and take a look at why brands need to make the shift to a Headless CMS.
4 Reasons You Need to Adopt a Headless CMS
It’s understandable if you are uncertain of the benefits of a headless CMS. The purpose of this article is to help you make an informed decision about the technology.
Here are 4 reasons why shifting to a headless CMS is a good move for you:
1. Planning for the Future
2. Increasing Output Efficiency
3. Added Security
4. Centralized Content Management
#1. Planning for the Future
It’s not news that technology is always evolving. While that’s terrific, it also means a lot of work for developers. They have to re-engineer websites and applications for new technology. With monolithic CMS platforms, making large-scale changes meant having to redevelop content. But, with headless CMS platforms, your content is adaptable to any new technology.
#2. Increasing Output Efficiency
Headless CMS introduces a content-first approach when developing. With the traditional approach content development occurs after the software development has started. Once the software development reaches a specific stage, the content creating can begin. With a content-first approach, development of both content and the software is simultaneous. Content-first approach to developing has proven more efficient than the traditional approach.
#3. Added Security
Cybercrimes are on the rise. There is no denying the fact that the internet is more security challenged than ever before. A headless CMS adds an extra layer of security for your platforms. It does this by negating the purpose of a content management admin. That means, if you are building a website, you don’t need an administrator to manage your content. Since you don’t need an on-platform database, there is no data storage point for attackers to target. This greatly improves the security of your platform.
#4. Centralized Content Management
Headless CMS platforms make your content available for use with various platforms. They do this by using universal formatting and centralized content management. Centralized content management makes your content available for anyone. Provided they have the right to access it, of course. You are able to manage all the content from one place. Rather than having it scattered across many platforms.
Conclusion
Headless CMS is a new way of managing and developing your content. Instead of developing content for different platforms separately, you can use the same content across all platforms. This is helpful for companies that need to constantly update content. Especially when it comes to their products or most importantly service packages like say, Cox Packages. Info about these packages must be updated on a regular basis, with new offers. With monolithic CMS, they would recreate content for their website, and mobile apps. This is ineffective, considering they have varied offers in different cities. A headless CMS allows them to create content only once. The content is then optimized for different platforms and channels. So, if you have multiple platforms, you should consider a Headless CMS.