Content Management System (CMS) and SEO

In today's digital space, SEO optimization results significantly contribute to a successful online image. SEO – It is a process during which a website and its content are optimized according to Google's algorithms. The goal of SEO optimization is to improve the visibility of a website in search results.

The successful visibility of a website in search engines is primarily determined by the choice of the appropriate Content Management System (CMS). In this article, we will discuss what to pay attention to when selecting a CMS and review the CMS options we offer.

User habits

Before we begin, let's review the research results that summarize the relevance and importance of SEO for today's business.

After conducting the research, it was found that 65% of the "Google" users click on one of the top 10 organic search results.
Only 19% of users choose to click on paid (sponsored) advertisements in search results.
About 44% of users navigate to the second and following pages of "Google" search results.

Why CMS is important for SEO?

Although no Content Management System (CMS) can create high-quality content on its own (which is particularly important for achieving good SEO results), a properly chosen CMS can provide a solid technical foundation that allows content creators to perform SEO tasks more effectively. The content management system can influence key SEO aspects such as:

Content structure: It allows search engine bots to navigate and index the website more easily.
Website speed and performance.
Content creation and editing/updating of meta data.
Link building.

Important Aspects to Consider When Choosing a CMS

On-page SEO. Page titles, headings, meta descriptions/titles, images, and alternative attributes for images – a good content management system allows for the optimization of all these elements so that search engines, such as "Google," can easily determine the purpose of the website's theme. Title tags and meta descriptions should be of a certain length according to SEO recommendations. A good CMS will alert you if you exceed the recommended character limit and will suggest ways to improve the text to enhance visibility.
URL optimization. The URL slug is one of the first places that search engines read to determine the context of a page. Long or confusing URLs can lead to poor page performance in search engines. Your content management system (CMS) should help you optimize your URLs for search engines (SEO). Keep URLs short and include only one target keyword..
For example:

Good URL: https://www.example.com/cms-and-seo

Bad URL: https://www.example.com/cms-and-seo-44569884kjmdsdx

Structured data tools. As search engine bots crawl your pages, they often look for structured data. This data helps search engines better understand the structure and theme of the page.
Page speed. A good content management system (CMS) not only manages content but also actively contributes to optimizing the website's loading speed. The system ensures professional management of images and videos, including automatic image optimization and appropriate format selection. Additionally, the system integrates with content delivery networks (CDNs), which ensure fast content delivery worldwide, reduce server load, and improve website accessibility.
Responsive design. "Google" bots primarily crawl the mobile version of a website. Therefore, check if the CMS offers mobile-optimized templates, as this is one of the most important aspects for your website to be indexed. Also, note that responsive design not only improves the website's visibility in search engines but also ensures a better user experience across different screen sizes, whether the user is browsing from a mobile phone or a computer.
Technical aspects To optimize a website, it is essential that the CMS provides the ability to generate/manage Sitemap.xml and Robots.txt files. These files allow you to specify which pages of your website you want search engines to index and which ones you do not. The Sitemap.xml file also helps search engine bots crawl the website more quickly and efficiently, as it provides a structured list of all important pages on the site.

Our Recommended CMS

Wordpress

Page titles and tags. As mentioned earlier, one of the most important SEO components is title tags (which appear in search results) and headings (which appear on your page). "Google" uses these elements to determine the relevance of your website in search results. With WordPress, you can create optimized title tags and headings that utilize your primary keywords. WordPress allows you to set optimized title tags and headings without any programming knowledge.
HTML. WordPress allows you to create HTML pages that are easily understood by search engines. The structure of your page includes paragraphs of text, links to content and headings. With HTML markup, you simplify the structure of your site so that both users and search engine robots can easily understand it.
URL structure. WordPress allows you to create custom URLs, or permalinks, for your website that include your keywords. As we discussed before, this customisation feature makes it easy to write URLs that match the content of your page and your target keyword.

For example, if you write a blog post about technical SEO, you can create a URL such as "www.website.com/tinklaraštis/techninio-SEO-patarimai". This URL shows readers and search engines that your page is related to the keyword "technical SEO". WordPress allows you to create the URL you want. By customising your URL, you'll help your website rank better in relevant search results.

SEO inserts. SEO plugins play a critical role in creating an SEO-optimised website. WordPress offers a wide range of plugins to help you create a functional website that best suits your business needs.

To get the most out of WordPress SEO, it is essential to install the SEO plugin of your choice on your website (although there are many choices of SEO plugins available, it is important not to overdo it and to use only one to avoid potential website performance issues).

October CMS

Easy Management. One of the main advantages of the October CMS is the ease of administration. With the 'drag & drop' function, you can easily add, edit and manage your website content. In addition, the management functions are fully customisable, so you can configure it to suit your needs.
Page speed. Another advantage of the October CMS is its high performance. The platform is built on the 'Laravel' framework, which is known for its speed and efficiency. This means that websites built with October CMS have fast loading speeds, even when they contain a lot of content.
SEO opportunities. October CMS is designed with SEO needs in mind. The platform has SEO features that allow you to optimise your websites for search engines. This includes features such as customisable URL links, meta descriptions and page titles. With these features, you can improve your website's position in search engine results.
Responsive design. Today, it is more important than ever for websites to have an adaptive design. October CMS makes it easy to create pages that adapt to different screen types.
Functionality. With October CMS, developers can easily extend its functionality by adding additional integrations and modules. This makes it easy to add new functionality to your website without having to write code from scratch. In addition, the platform has a large community of developers who create and share integrations.
Security. Security is a priority for websites. October CMS is designed with security in mind. The platform has security features in place to protect your website from attacks and hacking.

PrestaShop

Meta data. Managing metadata in PrestaShop is extremely flexible and intuitive. The platform makes it easy to edit meta titles, descriptions and keywords for each product, category or content page. These elements are important for search engines to understand the content and context of a website. In addition, the system automatically warns you if meta descriptions are too long or too short, helping you to maintain an optimal number of characters.
URL. The URL structure of the platform is conducive to SEO results. The system also automatically handles 301 redirects, which pass on the SEO value to the next URL.
Sitemap.xml. The generation of Sitemap.xml is fully automated, which helps search engine robots to efficiently index the entire content of your website. The XML sitemap file is automatically updated when new content, categories or products are added.
Responsive design. Mobile optimisation is built into the platform. PrestaShop automatically generates a mobile-friendly design.
Page speed. PrestaShop CMS is also characterised by fast page loading. The platform offers a range of plugins and features, including image optimisation, JavaScript/CSS file compression and more.

Shopify

SSL ir HTTPS. Any purchases made online must be secure. It is no coincidence that Google has included e-commerce in the YMYL category. Shopify's secure hosting includes a free SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) certificate that enables HTTPS encryption for all hosted websites. This HTTPS protocol signals to search engines that a website is secure.
Sitemap.xml. Creating an XML sitemap manually can be a challenge if you are new to SEO. With Shopify, meanwhile, your ecommerce sitemap is generated automatically.
Canonical tags. Canonical tags help search engines understand the main version of a page when there are multiple pages with similar content. Canonical tags are particularly important for e-commerce sites that have product categories, filters, different product pages. With automatically generated canonical tags, the number of errors is avoided.
Responsive design. 81% of Shopify traffic comes from mobile devices. For this reason, Shopify is optimised for mobile users, ensuring a seamless user experience and fast loading times.

Conclusion

Good content menagement system choice is an investment in the basics of technical SEO. When choosing a CMS, it is also important to consider other aspects such as: ease of content administration, website speed and performance, mobile-friendliness, security features.

The right CMS will not only make the day-to-day administration of your website easier, it will also provide a solid foundation for SEO optimisation. In today's digital world, this is especially important as good SEO results directly contribute to business growth and online visibility.