A content management system is arguably the most crucial piece of software for any publisher. And this is exactly why there are so many types of CMSs out there. But out of all the CMS, two types are the most famous: API-driven CMS and traditional CMS.
Traditional CMSs have been in existence for decades, and a large number of publishers still use them. API-driven CMSs are relatively new, but they are making waves in the space of digital publishing. In this article, we are going to compare the features and the benefits of these two major types of CMSs.
Let us clear the basics first: what is an API-driven CMS, and what is a traditional CMS? Or what are the key differences between them?
An API-driven CMS (also called a headless CMS) is a content management system in which the backend and the frontend are linked through APIs. A traditional CMS, on the other hand, is the type of content management system in which the backend and frontend of your website or application are coupled together.
1. Content Distribution:
Traditional CMSs are built to focus on a single channel distribution. For example, if you have a traditional CMS built for your website, you can not use it for other channels such as apps or AR/VR. If you want to distribute your content to a new channel, you will have to build a new CMS.
API-driven CMSs give omnichannel freedom. The same content can be delivered to websites, apps, jumbotrons, smartwatches, and AR/VR. The headless CMS doesn’t decide the output of the content; you do.
2. The Developers’ Side
In the case of traditional CMSs, developers have to build websites and web apps in line with CMS’s architecture and supported technology. This translates to lesser customization. In contrast to this, API-driven CMSs are highly customizable. Developers can use different types of data formats such as JSON and multiple APIs to pull content from the backend and publish it on the frontend.
3. Scalability
Most of the traditional CMSs host all the content on their own servers, which makes it harder to handle traffic spikes. Also, since the frontend and backend are couples together, you see more server downtime when the CMS goes offline, or the developers do maintenance work on the website or app.
API-driven CMSs are better suited for scalability since there is a clear separation between the frontend and the backend. If the CMS goes offline for any reason, the frontend will see virtually no downtime. Adding to that, API-driven CMSs also offer stability during traffic spikes.
4. Performance
Slow websites and apps hurt digital publishing businesses in many ways, such as poor customer experience, high bounce rate, poor SEO, and so on. As it turns out, your CMS has a lot to do with the performance of your apps and websites.
To add features to your traditional CMS, you have to add a plugin of one kind or the other. The number of installed plugins increases over time which affects the performance of your website. API-driven CMSs use various performant page rendering methods such as Static Site Generation and Server-Side Rendering and boost your website’s speed.
API-driven CMSs are future-proof as the content output can be molded according to your specific need. They are more flexible, scalable, and secure as compared to traditional CMSs. If you are a digital publisher, moving to a new API-driven CMS is definitely going to be worth every dollar.
At Quintype, we have developed the Bold CMS that helps you create, curate, and distribute the content seamlessly. If you are interested in migrating to a new CMS, we are here to help you.