I’m always telling you that you should be using a web content management system (CMS), but what does everyone else think? A few good ways to find out how and why other organizations are using CMSs is to check out these useful surveys.

Here are some nice ones from …

UC Davis

Helpful take-aways:

• Over 60% of respondents are in institutions currently using a Web CMS
• Institutions were more likely to employ open source or custom-developed solutions over proprietary/commercial systems
• Most instances of Web CMS systems are small, centralized deployments of under 40 sites and 40 or fewer total users
• Over 75% of Web CMS adopters provide formal training to users
• Most Web CMS adopters would choose the same system if they had to do so again
• Overall, there were no clear-cut “market leaders” in the broad field of Web CMS solutions identified by the higher ed institutions that responded to the survey. However, Plone and Drupal – both open source solutions – are in relatively heavy use.

CMS Web Report from CMS Watch

The full version is almost $1000, but you can see a free excerpt.

Helpful take-aways:

• Most Web CMS customers face a greater risk of over-buying than under-buying

What CMS are you using? Take our survey – it’ll take five seconds. Promise.

Now’s your chance to introduce yourself: two events are coming up where I’ll be making presentations online.

One is a show and tell event about our online learning services, which you can catch on the Nonprofit Technology Network (N-TEN), a good network you should get to know anyway.

The other is a web primer on what a CMS (content management system) is, why it matters and how to budget for a new one:

Both are free and open to the public, so sign up, pass the word and say hi.

If you’ve heard the words “Drupal” and “Joomla” but think they may be ancient tribes, have I got the online seminar for you. Since one of the most common questions I hear from a potential client is “What is a CMS, anyway?” we’ve put together a webinar to answer just this question.

Sign up on our website (for free), and you can learn:

• What a CMS (content management system) is and what it does (hint: it’s a great way for you to manage your website)
• Why it’s important for nonprofits
• Advice on how to budget for a CMS project
• And more!

Hope to connect with you May 20 at 2 p.m. Eastern.

http://www.talance.com/event-registration