Choosing the Right CMS for Your Medical Website

What is a CMS?

A Content Management Systems (CMS) is a web-based system that is the platform your website is built on. A CMS is intended to allow site editors an easy mechanism to update website content. CMS also offer significant advantages for website developers. 

What CMS are available?

It’s important to note that although other CMS may possess more market share than Drupal (our selected platform), this factor is not necessarily indiciative of the the best choice.

When comparing WordPress with Drupal, you could make a similar comparison between Ford and Mercedes. Ford has more market share, but we all know which car most of us would prefer to drive.

While the reasons for choosing a CMS are not obvious – rest assured that Online Medical has thought long and hard about the platform that best suits your needs. As we have the luxury to choose the absolute best solution for our requirements, we assessed a wide range of factors – with an emphasis on quality.

How are they different?

Unfortunately, many CMS platforms were initially designed with quite specific usage scenarios in mind. They are still suffering from limiting programming choices made early in the development history of each platform. Wordpress and to a lesser extent Joomla were designed intially as blogging platforms, while Magento is quite heavily slanted towards e-Commerce applications.

Advantages of WordPress vs. Drupal’s Drawbacks

While Drupal boasts impressive client lists, here’s why WordPress might be a better fit for many users:

Security Concerns with Drupal:

• Developer Skill Gap: Drupal’s lower barrier to entry for developers can lead to poorly coded modules, potentially impacting website security. WordPress has a larger, more established developer pool, leading to generally higher code quality.

Design Limitations of Drupal:

• Limited Customisation: Drupal themes often result in a “look” that sacrifices brand identity. WordPress offers greater design flexibility, allowing for unique website experiences.

Performance Issues with Drupal:

• Plugin Overload: The sheer number of Drupal modules can lead to bloated code, causing slower loading times and hindering user experience.

Advantages of WordPress:

• Strong Security Infrastructure: WordPress receives constant security updates from a vast community, making it a secure platform when managed properly.
• Superior Design Flexibility: With a wider variety of themes and customisation options, WordPress empowers users to create unique, brand-specific websites.

Data-Driven Benefits of WordPress:

• Faster Loading Times: WordPress’ focus on user experience means websites are generally lighter and load faster than Drupal counterparts. This can improve search engine ranking and user engagement.
• Reduced Development Costs: With a larger pool of skilled developers and readily available plugins, WordPress offers potentially lower development costs compared to Drupal, which often requires custom module creation.

Choosing the Right CMS:

While Drupal is powerful for complex websites, WordPress excels in user-friendliness, design flexibility, and overall performance. Consider your website’s needs and resources when making your decision.