Do you need a CMS for a video site?

Before we can create a video site we will need to decide whether you need a publishing system or not. This page will help you make this decision by pointing out the pros and cons of both methods.

WordPress as a video CMS

WordPress is a very versatile content management system that can be used for pretty much any kind of website. If you’re going to be publishing a lot of videos on a regular basis then this would be the way to go.

If you decide you don’t need a publishing system you open yourself up to the possibility of creating a flash site. The benefits of having a site made all in flash are that the transitions between videos are more fluid and customizable. An example of a site we’ve made without a publishing system is moyercine.com.

Here more comparison between the two systems, let us know which you think will work best for you.

advantages of using a CMS

• You would have a web based CMS (content management system) to upload and update your own content. To update the content on a site we make in flash, you would either have to send us video files to put on the site (which we charge for by the hour) or if you have a tech savy person on your staff who would like to handle the updating of content we could talk them through the process which isn’t very complicated.
• With wordpress, instead of uploading your videos through the wordpress system you could also embed them from YouTube which would allow your videos to get more exposure.
• If you’re going to have a site with a ton of videos you might need a Search feature: since you’ll be titling and adding descriptions through WordPress we could also program a search.
• Each video would have a unique URL so you could email urls for your videos.
• Makes it easier to integrate advertising

advantages of not using a CMS

• It is easier to program the functionality and customize the look of a site that does not include a publishing system.
• If we’re not going to be integrating a CMS we would be making the entire site in Flash which adds much more interactive feel

Either system would allow us to make a great website, the question is whether you need the CMS features or not. We’ve found that the WordPress system is best if you have a large amount of content you want to offer and you will be adding new content regularly, otherwise the costs could outweigh the benefits of the system.