A great social network relies on presentation to draw people in. Poor presentation is always noticed, and it will hurt your following. If you want to build a social network and enjoy the benefits of a having an organic marketing engine, it must fit with your organization’s branding.
Choosing the right content management system (CMS) will make all the difference. An effective CMS provides all the tools to build your social engine without overwhelming all its users. The following are the 5 most important features that a modern CMS should provide.
1) Open Source Code
Most code is closed source or proprietary, and cannot be modified by anyone but the owners or creators. Open source code can be legally modified by anyone.
Maybe this seems unimportant, but even if you don’t know code, someone you know or can hire will. You can modify a CMS with open source code to fit your needs, no matter what they are, making this a vital feature of any CMS.
2) Modular Structure
Every CMS comes with tons of features, some of which are unnecessary for your social engine. These extra features can confuse clients or slow down your network. It’s better if extra features come from plug-ins that you then add or remove as needed to reduce confusion and keep the site running smoothly.
3) Easy Content Management
Open source code is nice to have, but it shouldn’t be necessary for every task. Simple actions like tweaking menu options, slightly shifting the layout, or adding an image or post should be simple for admins to complete. Make sure the CMS you choose makes it easy for admins to make small changes without learning code.
4) Permission Control
Once your social network has grown, it’ll be too much for one person to moderate and maintain. You’ll need moderators to handle spam comments, add additional posts, and more. Some networks even need levels between admin and moderator or below them, so a good CMS will allow the admin to add new user levels or adjust powers specifically for each user.
The ability to add users with varying levels of power over the site is vital. Never choose a CMS that lacks this feature.
5) Extended Plugins & Themes
Developers can’t foresee every need. A community of modders and designers usually springs up around a program to fill voids left by a busy developer. The right CMS will have a robust modding community with plenty of extended plugins and themes to choose from.
It’s also important to note that an open source CMS will naturally have a more active community, since plugins operate smoother when the creator knows the code they’re adding to on a deeper level.
Thanks for reading. We hope you took away some new ideas. Feel free to comment below with any thoughts you might have. We’d love to hear from you. Also, if you’re interested in starting your own social network using a platform that totally meets all these suggestions, check out SocialEngine. We think you will really like what you see.
