CMS stands for Content Management System. It is an application used for web development that allows creators to produce, edit and publish both copy and images to a website. Examples of this are Wordpress, SquareSpace, Joomla and the list goes on.

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Now a headless CMS is any kind of back-end content management system where this said content is decoupled/separated from the front-end, or you could call it the user interface. The content is then delivered for display on any device through APIs, which stands for Application Programming Interface. Examples of this are Contentful, Sanity, Hygraph and the list goes on.

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The way that the tech world is developing and growing is leading to a lot more companies going the ‘headless’ route. It is the way of the future and so many businesses are jumping on the bandwagon … but why? What is so great about adopting the ‘headless’ CMS approach?

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We’ve listed 5 major beneficial reasons that going ‘headless’ would offer you, so let’s get into them!

With ‘classic’ CMS, you are limited in building the user experience, as you are bound to the capabilities of the CMS you are using. With the headless approach, the possibilities of being creative are almost entirely endless! You can create a website that is entirely your own and that is unique to your brand. This will help you set yourself apart from your competition, and you will be able to design the website from the ground up.

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Oftentimes, the first interaction and impression that a potential client has of your brand will be through your website. Yes, they may have seen you first from social media or been referred by a friend through word of mouth, but the first time they really sit down and get to know you as a brand is on your website.

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We all know that the first impression is key. Building a website from scratch comes with the benefit of being able to stipulate exactly what you want and what you envision for your website. Front-end developers will be able to retrieve data from the CMS and display it any way you want. This allows you to be as creative as you like and represent your brand image as skillfully as possible.

Using headless CMS tools will also give your developers the freedom to use whichever framework they are the most comfortable working with. This is a massive benefit as yes, developers are all amazing and the things they do with tech and coding blows the average Joe’s mind regularly.

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However, within the world of developers, each developer usually has one or two frameworks that just jive better for them. Certain frameworks that they prefer over others and feel more comfortable using. Now, a developer who is confident with the program he/she is using, is a developer who will create tech magic for you. So, this is really something you want to support as a client.

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On top of this, going the headless route will allow the team building your website to work independently of one another, front-end content creators and back-end developers will be able to work on their tasks without having to wait for each other to move on to the next step, which will increase productivity and morale.

The back-end content and database has no dependency on what is happening with the front-end, which means that content can be easily stored as these two worlds are kept separate. Usually updates take a long time with anything that is built custom as each step of the update needs to be manually triggered to a certain extent and with a traditional CMS that joins the back-end and front-end, this can take a long time.

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However, with a headless CMS these two areas are divorced and therefore updates in the front-end can be changed in an instance. A lot of front-end interfaces need to be updated often as designs, styles and ‘what’s in and trendy’ change so fast so front-end developers can stay up to date with the trends and implement quirky and stylish designs, without being buckled down by the heavy back-end server as they run independently of each other.

With a headless CMS, APIs are crucial. APIs govern which content elements are connected with which front-end. They are connectors that will allow your business to automate its online business operations. The API can essentially make this connection with any third-party platform. Third-party integrations allow you to quickly add features and tools to your website that would otherwise take months to develop on your own.

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So for example, if you use Google APIs you will be able to power Google Ads integration with your very own website. Or you can integrate your mobile app which will allow you to display your content on your website and your app, without storing it twice. This is a massive benefit as consumers are becoming more and more mobile prone to do their online shopping, they’re on the go and enjoy using the ease of their phone to do their online searching and purchasing.

You can’t run away from the truth. The reality is, that you will spend a lot of time, energy and investment on creating a website (whether it’s standard or custom) and then times will change.

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Your business will evolve, one of your partners will move on to their next project, new devices will crop up or your business will gain a lot more attention and subsequently your website will have a lot more traffic. You will need to make changes to your website, and you will need both a team and a framework who can implement these changes without halting or suspending your business whilst doing so.

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A headless CMS will allow you to adjust content without creating massive headaches for your developers because the two aren’t locked together. Having a headless CMS will also allow you to take your front-end with you as your needs change, you will not be tied down to frameworks that either become outdated or obsolete, so you will never be in a place of saying ‘Oh no, now I need to re-do the entire website again’ as you will have pieces of the puzzle that you can simply pull out and move on to the next framework with. So as your business grows, your website can grow with you and not against you.