When do we rely on TYPO3 and when on WordPress?
The web presence of a company is of great importance for internal and external communication: In order to be able to manage and provide the content, it needs a high-performance content management system, in short CMS. In our agency, we rely on TYPO3 or WordPress. Both systems show their strengths in different areas and are therefore both used by us - in this article we explain when and why we use which system.
WordPress: The content management system for smaller websites & blogs
WordPress is currently the most used content management system in the world. A large number of websites that use a CMS are based on it. But why do so many people (and companies) rely on this CMS?
WordPress became big as a blog CMS.
Why? Because it is easy to install, the operator does not need to have any programming skills and because there is a large selection of free, modern templates that conjure up a nice-looking website in no time. The pages and blog articles are created and managed in the backend, which can be operated intuitively after just a few clicks. Each article can be assigned to individually created categories or provided with keywords, which in turn can be easily displayed on the website using the "Keyword Cloud" widget, for example.
This brings us directly to the next topic: WordPress installations can be easily extended by various plugins. For almost every functionality there is a free plugin that can be easily installed from a similar kind of app store. From SEO tools like Yoast-SEO, for example, which support SEO-based optimization of texts, to online store extensions like WooCommerce, which enable the sale of products on one's own website, pretty much everything is available.
In addition, with the help of widgets, operators can integrate various functions such as a search, their own Instagram feed or an event calendar into the website. Moreover, you don't need your own web space to open a WordPress blog - the blog can simply be launched via desiredname.wordpress.com.
What are the limitations of WordPress?
As you can already see from the heading above: WordPress is best suited for smaller websites (maybe even for small webshops) and as a blog CMS - there must be a reason why our company blog is also running on WordPress 😉
However, as soon as you want to create a more complex or even multilingual website, WordPress is rather unsuitable and would quickly reach its limits.
TYPO3: The CMS for complex, multilingual websites
It's no secret that TYPO3 is our CMS of choice. We have been actively involved in the further development of the CMS since 2002 and support the TYPO3 Association as a Business Partner and Gold Member.
TYPO3 is often used in our client projects simply because it perfectly meets the needs of our clients: it is scalable, can be individually extended with the help of extensions and enables multilingualism of the respective website.
For the initial setup as well as the technical maintenance of a TYPO3 installation, programming skills are required. For the mere editorial maintenance not - However, it should be noted that the acquaintance with the TYPO3 backend takes a little more time, because it is not as intuitive to use as the WordPress backend. But once you have familiarized yourself with it, you have endless options for content creation at your disposal.
TYPO3 convinces in the area of performance with its clean code base and its outstanding system structure, which is able to cope with even the most demanding requirements and ensures a flawless performance of websites.
The subject of security is extremely important to TYPO3: Behind TYPO3 stands a huge community of developers who constantly work on the further development of TYPO3, thus enabling a high level of security and stability. A new Long-Term-Support (LTS) version is released on a regular basis, which - as the name implies - is provided with security and maintenance updates from the official side for 3 years.
A short note on the subject of "extensibility": In the public extension repository (TER), there are more than 1,500 free extensions that can be used to add various functions to the TYPO3 core. From the cookie content layer (currently very popular due to GDPR) to various integrations of different Google services, just about everything is available here. A newly set up TYPO3 can thus be adapted exactly to the client's needs in just a few steps with either publicly available or individually developed extensions.
What are the limitations of TYPO3?
In terms of size and scope of an installation, TYPO3 is almost endlessly scalable. However, when it comes to setting up a complex online store system, TYPO3 also reaches its limits: There are extensions available that have been developed specifically for this purpose, but they are only suitable for a content-based store with a small to medium product range.
When do we rely on which system?
A brief summary of our conclusions: Both content management systems have their advantages and disadvantages. In general, it is advisable to evaluate individually which system is better suited to one's own requirements - there is no one-size-fits-all solution for all clients 😉 .
That being said, we currently rely on WordPress primarily for company blogs and TYPO3 for large, multilingual corporate websites.
If you need support with setting up a TYPO3 website, with website hosting or creating a blog with WordPress, feel free to contact us - as a full service web agency, we will be happy to advise you on the next steps in your online project. Just write us an email or use our contact form.
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