Whether you like it or not, all websites require ongoing maintenance. Some website owners know their way around the technology and others don’t. Because you may find yourself in a position where you need the ongoing support of your web developer, it pays to know which types of websites cost less to maintain. Is it a CMS, or will you do better with your own custom framework?

There’s been a recent surge of interest in CMS-based websites. Many clients have been requesting them because they are the simplest websites to get up and running in a short period of time. To get a WordPress website going, you simply need to change the theme and add whichever modules you like most. A custom framework takes a lot more time upfront. To build one, you need to create everything from the database to the design, and then some.

The game of whack-a-mole that’s not so fun to play.

With CMS-based websites, you get a short term gain but you pay with longterm costs. CMS-based websites are easy to setup. However, because the technology is constantly changing, modules you’ve installed on your website can suddenly stop working. It’s like a game of whack-a-mole where you’re calling your web developer more often than you’d like, just to handle all the little issues that pop up.

When you use a custom framework, problems never appear out of the blue. It might take longer to test and debug a custom framework website, but once you’ve solved the errors, they’re usually gone for good. That’s because updates are a more controlled process. Only your developer can do them.

CMS frameworks, on the other hand, are always getting updated. Many of the updates can make your modules and themes act strangely.

Even so, things aren’t always as they seem.

There are times when a custom framework wins in the short run and in the long run. This can often happen when clients want to use a large number of modules for their website. In fact, it’s not uncommon for clients to want as much as 50 or more modules, many of which don’t even work.

The problem with CMS-based modules is that they don’t always play nice with one another. Nearly all of them were built by different developers at different times. The conflict between the modules usually results in broken functionality and websites that just plain look wrong. If a client wants to install 50 or more of these modules at once, it turns into a debugging nightmare. In that case, it’s actually easier to go with a custom framework.

Custom frameworks are usually built by the same person or team of people. That’s why they play nicely with another. Many developers have stories of working on WordPress and Joomla! projects that take forever, only for them to find out the same project could be done in much less time with a custom framework they developed on their own. It just goes to show that convenience isn’t always what it seems to be.

Don’t fall in love. Pick what’s best for you.

A lot of website owners fall in love with one framework because they know their way around it. They’ll go out and find a person who specializes in Joomla! or WordPress, thinking that’s the right decision. Oftentimes, they’ll do this without considering the increased maintenance and support required.

Instead of looking for an expert, you should look for someone who functions more like a project manager. Project managers know no love. They are impartial and therefore the best at suggesting which platform is right for you.

At the end of the day, it’s not such a good idea to pick a platform you’ve fallen in love with. They all have their costs, either in the beginning or throughout the life of your website. Instead of going it alone, align yourself with a project manager who knows all of the different platforms, someone who carries no bias. They’re your best ally.