What exactly is Shopify CMS?
Can Shopify Plus be used as a Content Management system CMS?
This question has two answers: yes and no. CMS is an abbreviation for material Management System, which is a software application that allows users to create, store, edit, manage, and publish material.
Shopify and Shopify Plus are CMSs in the sense that they can both manage material that growing e-commerce enterprises require, but they were not designed to handle all content requirements for merchants today.If you already use Shopify Plus, you will notice that it works well for adding product copy and content, but you may be constrained when it comes to creating unique visual blogs. You may feel like you need a better CMS option for progressive content with more options (e.g., WordPress is often the most well-known), but Shopify / Shopify pLus can be extended to work better than WordPress in many ways, and you should not start with the assumption that Shopify has limitations. We can add almost anything into any Shopify store, so even if Shopify appears to be restrictive in terms of content, it isn’t.
We can even create a headless ecommerce experience by combining WordPress and the Shopify storefront API. Both can theoretically be used together.
Shopify was designed as an e-commerce platform, thus it can be useful for content management such as product photos, descriptions, and integrations with other tools; however, it has historically been unsuitable for content-heavy pages, blogs, documentation, and other forms of rich content. Previously, you would have needed the assistance of a Shopify specialist to accomplish this. Sections on Shopify 2.0 have challenged the notion that Shopify isn’t a good CMS, and although we wait for sections to be completely integrated into the Shopify blog, we can see the possibility of using Shopify as a fully fledged CMS for any site that wishes to leverage ecommerce. You can now build fantastic content almost anywhere by dragging and dropping parts.
Advantages of Using Shopify Plus as a CMS
Manage Products
Shopify makes it simple to manage products. Merchants can manage product material, whether it’s adding new products or editing descriptions and photographs; the drag and drop features make arranging content straightforward. Other content, including as blogs and pages, can also be managed within the same platform, but it may be more basic than a specialised CMS; however, Shopify 2.0 and “sections everywhere” fix this for the majority of merchants.
Various Marketing Features
Use Shopify as a CMS for other important marketing functions. Shopify is designed for SEO, assisting brands in ranking for essential keywords and providing one-click access to Google Product Search. The ability to easily connect new tools as needed makes it an appealing CMS alternative.
Themes for Templates and Custom Options
Shopify is ideal for users that want creative control with ease. Users get access to the Shopify theme store, which contains over 70 free and premium layouts. Shopify, like a CMS, assists businesses in providing high-quality websites to clients and even allows control over the HTML and CSS for any theme for customization.
Shopify Hosting Security
Shopify has access to secure hosting and limitless bandwidth for content-rich stores. This is beneficial to organisations since it eliminates the requirement for third-party content asset management.
Hosting that is lightning quick
Shopify’s hosting is superb and robust, and it is really quick – especially when compared to dedicated servers.
SEO
For SEO purposes, having all of your content (ecommerce and blog) on one domain rather than separated among subdomains is considerably preferable.
The Drawbacks of Using Shopify Plus as a CMS
Although we have highlighted the benefits of utilising Shopify Plus as a CMS, the disadvantages should not be overlooked. Using Shopify as a CMS may not be ideal for larger enterprises with more content, assets, and customers, or even for smaller merchants with more sophisticated needs.
Platform for Ecommerce Development
Shopify is wonderful for eCommerce tasks like inventory management and order processing, but it wasn’t designed with content in mind and falls short when compared to WordPress. When compared to purpose-built CMS platforms, some may find the front end possibilities more limited out of the box. Simple blog choices are accessible on stores, but if a complex design or post structure is required, the assistance of expert Shopify developers / Shopify Plus developers is required. Shopify is only appropriate as a CMS if you have or plan to have an ecommerce store.
Features for Large Businesses are Limited
What are the advantages of utilising a CMS?
Some advantages of using a CMS are as follows:
- Simple content generation and editing without technical knowledge.
- For effective organisation, centralised content management is used.
- Tools for collaboration that allow numerous people to contribute to the website.
- Templates and themes are pre-installed for speedy website creation.
- Scalability to support increasing content and user traffic.
- SEO-friendly elements that boost search engine exposure.
- User permission controls are used to manage access levels.
- Website integrity is maintained through regular updates and security patches.
Conclusion on Shopify as a CMS
When it comes to content management, Shopify is more than adequate for the vast majority of enterprises. You get a very versatile, ecommerce first CMS out of the box, and Shopify 2.0 with sections everywhere has destroyed most limits that previously hindered content development.
It may not be appropriate for larger enterprises with more sophisticated content requirements. A Shopify headless ecommerce build with another CMS (maybe WordPress) in a subdirectory or on a subdomain may be a better fit. To be honest, in the last ten years, we have only seen 2-3 examples where Shopify was not appropriate, thus in the vast majority of cases, Shopify can be customised to your needs by an expert developer.
FAQs
1: What exactly is a content management system (CMS)?
A content management system (CMS) is a software tool that enables users to produce, manage, and alter digital material on websites without the need for advanced technical skills or programming language knowledge.
Yes, CMS platforms are popular among small enterprises and individuals because of their ease of use, low cost, and scalability. They give a user-friendly interface that enables non-technical users to easily manage their website content.