TrendWatch: CMS Watch Blog

A Thank You to the web analytics community

27-Apr-2007 [Permalink]

The web analytics marketplace is in the middle of a significant transformation, with new features coming out nearly every week, plus the occasional acquisition. In my role as Principal Analyst for the Web Analytics Report (to be released next Tuesday), I’ve tried to interpret these trends from the perspective of a buyer and user of these solutions. Enterprise analytics customers too numerous to mention were very generous providing their tips and best practices for planning, implementing, and maximizing value from an analytics initiative. The report also benefited from the input of a host of top web analytic gurus, including: Nicholas Aucher, Gary Angel, Justin Cutroni, Stephane Hamel, Kurt Krake, and Robbin Steif.

My goal is to help you succeed. Any questions or issues you have? Thoughts on specific vendors? By all means, drop me a line.

Submitted by Phil Kemelor, Contributing Analyst

All Analytics Channel Trends

Your iPod, or your business? Taxonomies in-depth...

26-Apr-2007 [Permalink]

A couple of months ago, I got many reponses from fellow frustrated iPod owners to my post about how bad metadata in iPods makes for a bad user experience. The same was true last week at the AIIM Expo, when during my taxonomy tutorial, the audience was quick to point out the problems they endured transfering bad metadata from CDs to their online jukebox. Interestingly, most of them had previously not made the connection with bad metadata in their content management systems. The more complex the technology, the more challenging it can be to pinpoint metadata and classification problems.

FYI, in early June, I'll be presenting the same in-depth tutorial on taxonomies at the Gilbane Conference on Content Management in Washington, DC; the tutorial will include case studies and interactive exercises to help you build a better (or first) taxonomy for your business. Later that week, I'll also be talking tagging with Thomas Vander Wal, the crafty IA guru who coined the term "folksonomy." Do join us, and e-mail me with your latest taxonomy and tagging challenges beforehand.

Submitted by Theresa Regli, Analyst

All Portal Channel Trends

RedDot's Purple Monkey and the ECM/WCM divide

26-Apr-2007 [Permalink]

Open Text's Web CMS subsidiary RedDot has just chosen Chicago-based interactive agency Purple Monkey Studios, Inc. as their "Partner of the Year." Purple Monkey can certainly boast a decent client list and the obligatory cool home page. To me, this news more than perhaps anything else exemplifies the gulf between enterprise content management (ECM) and web content management (WCM). Could you imagine Open Text (or any other large ECM vendor) citing a firm called Purple Monkey as their ECM partner of the year? More typically, they will laud more prosaic resellers -- like this IT firm that resells Open Text's e-mail management tools.

We'll argue til we're blue in the face that the management of enterprise documents versus the management of website pages beget very many similar challenges. But you the buyer should recognize the big differences between processing corporate files and overseeing an interactive web experience. And partly that difference is cultural. Does your WCM vendor truly grasp the depth of your required enterprise controls? Does your ECM vendor really understand the adaptive communications needs of your web publishing team? Today, closing that gap will mostly fall to you.

Submitted by Tony Byrne, Analyst

All CMS Channel Trends

SharePoint and your public website

25-Apr-2007 [Permalink]

Today we announced research that finds Microsoft Office SharePoint Server ("MOSS") 2007 coming up a bit short when it comes to traditional web content management. MOSS continues to offer a very promising document collaboration platform. But when you try to smoosh a web publishing process through a tool designed to list out documents in portal fashion, it can lead to some unexpected results. Read our press release about it here.

Submitted by Tony Byrne, Analyst

All CMS Channel Trends

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