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The CMS you choose for your SMB will impact everything from your site traffic to your stress levels. Use this guide (& help from GPO) to pick the best one.
You’re ready to build a website for your business. Or maybe you already have one but don’t love your current platform. With so many CMS (content management system) options available, how can you possibly know which one is best for your business? Do you choose WordPress or Squarespace — or something else entirely? We’ve put together this guide on how to choose a CMS to help you find the best fit for your business needs.
The CMS you choose impacts everything from your website’s functionality and user experience to scalability and long-term costs. Starting with the wrong fit can lead to several long-term challenges, including migration and downtime costs, poor website performance, problems uploading content, an inability to migrate with important business tools, and scalability limitations. You can avoid all this by carefully researching and selecting the right CMS.
When researching and comparing CMSs, there are several factors you should keep in mind, from your goals to what support the platform offers.
Take time to thoughtfully outline your website’s goals and needs. Consider the type of content you’ll publish, whether it’s primarily blogs, product pages, or a combination of both. If e-commerce is a factor (a.k.a. you’re selling things), platforms like Shopify or WooCommerce may be better suited than traditional content-focused CMSs. Multi-user collaboration capabilities are also crucial if multiple team members will manage content. Additionally, if you need integration with tools like CRM software, email marketing platforms, or analytics tools, you want to ensure the CMS is compatible.
Compile a list of features and capabilities and assign a priority level to each one. This checklist will be invaluable as you look for a CMS that meets most, if not all, of your needs.
Your CMS should match the technical capabilities of the team managing it. A CMS that’s too complex can slow down content workflows and lead to additional training costs. An intuitive interface or drag-and-drop editor can make it easy for even non-technical users to add and update content.
Some platforms, such as Wix and Squarespace, are designed for beginners, while others, like WordPress or Drupal, offer greater flexibility but require a steeper learning curve.
Users can’t find your site if it doesn’t appear in search results, so strong SEO features are necessary. You should be able to easily optimize on-page SEO elements like URLs, titles, meta descriptions, and heading structure. Site speed and mobile responsiveness are also crucial because they directly impact search rankings and user experience. In short, ensure the CMS is SEO-friendly — some come with built-in SEO tools, while others require third-party plugins or manual configurations.
What is the best CMS for SEO? It depends on your specific needs, but many professionals lean toward WordPress because it’s customizable, has a great selection of SEO plugins, and gives you complete control. For e-commerce brands, Shopify is also a top contender.
Don’t just focus on the now. Think about your business’s future and how your CMS might need to grow with you. Your CMS should be able to handle traffic increases, content expansion, and additional functionality without compromising performance. Before committing, check that your CMS has a track record of high performance and reliability to support your growth.
Some platforms, like WordPress, offer extensive plugin ecosystems that allow you to extend functionality over time. Others, such as Wix and Squarespace, have more rigid structures that might not offer enough customization.
When selecting a CMS, you have more than just the initial cost to think about. You also need to factor in hosting, domain registration, plugins, themes, and development services. Consider the total cost of ownership, including setup, ongoing maintenance, upgrades, and any needed add-ons.
Open-source options like WordPress and Joomla offer flexibility with minimal upfront costs but may require paid add-ons for advanced features. Subscription-based platforms such as Shopify, Squarespace, and Wix provide all-in-one solutions at a fixed monthly rate but can become expensive with premium features. Enterprise-level CMS platforms like Sitecore and Adobe Experience Manager are designed for large organizations and come with significantly higher costs.
Website security is critical in CMS selection, especially if you handle customer information or financial transactions. Features like SSL support, regular security updates, backup options, and role-based permissions are essential for safeguarding your content. Some CMS platforms provide automatic updates and built-in security measures, while others require manual patches and updates.
You never know when you might run into problems with your CMS, and having a good support network to fall back on is essential. Is there an active community, documentation, or customer service team to help when you run into issues? Quick, reliable support (either from the vendor or a strong user community) can make a big difference in resolving problems.
Open-source CMSs like WordPress and Drupal have large communities with extensive resources and third-party developer support. Proprietary platforms such as Shopify and Squarespace provide direct customer service but may have limitations on customization.
You can even look at your competitors’ CMS choices and digital strategies to gain valuable insights. By identifying what works well in your industry, you can make a more informed choice. If you find a competitor’s site you really like, you can go for the same CMS. On the flip side, if a competitor has a slow or buggy site, you may want to avoid their CMS.
Here’s how to tell what CMS a website uses by viewing the source code:
You can also find several free online tools that can scan a website and identify the CMS and other technologies it uses.
Now that you know what to look for in a CMS, let’s examine and compare some of the most popular options to find the right fit for your business.
While it originated as a blogging platform, WordPress has become a world-leading CMS, powering 43.5% of all websites. It’s known for its flexibility and massive ecosystem of plugins and themes. It’s used for everything from personal blogs to e-commerce sites. However, it can be complex for beginners.
Shopify is an e-commerce CMS that allows you to easily build an online store. It includes built-in payment processing, inventory management, and a range of store templates. Shopify is great if you’re mainly focused on selling products, but it has limited flexibility outside of that.
Squarespace is a user-friendly website builder that emphasizes design and simplicity. It has tons of templates with drag-and-drop interfaces, making it great for small businesses or creative portfolios. Because it is so simplified, it offers less customization than other CMS options.
Wix is a beginner-friendly website builder known for its simple drag-and-drop editor. You can create a functional website quickly with a variety of templates available. It’s well-suited for very small businesses, personal websites, or those just starting out, though it’s less scalable and has limited SEO control.
Part of HubSpot’s all-in-one marketing platform, HubSpot CMS Hub is a hosted CMS that integrates natively with HubSpot’s CRM, email marketing, and automation tools. It’s designed for businesses looking to turn their website into a marketing and lead-generation machine, with personalization and analytics built in — but it comes with a higher price point than many other CMS platforms.
For enterprise-level brands, Drupal, Magneto, and Joomla are popular choices. They are frequently known for their scalability, security, and flexibility. However, they are designed for larger businesses and often require technical expertise to optimize fully.
| CMS Platform | Best For (Use Case) | Pros | Cons |
| WordPress | – All sizes (especially content-heavy sites and those needing flexibility) – Wide industry use (blogs, business sites, e-commerce via plugins) | – Highly flexible & customizable with thousands of plugins/themes – Large community & support; you own your site’s data | – Requires regular updates & maintenance – Steeper learning curve for non-tech users; no official support line |
| Shopify | – E-commerce businesses (online stores from small to mid-sized) – Retailers focusing on product sales (including multi-channel selling) | – All-in-one e-commerce solution (built-in cart, payments, etc.) – Easy to set up and very secure, with 24/7 support available | – Monthly fees + transaction costs – Not ideal for non-commerce content; limited customization outside of Shopify’s framework |
| Squarespace | – Small businesses, creatives & professionals – Those needing a quick, elegant website without coding (portfolios, restaurants, studios) | – Extremely easy drag-and-drop design; very user-friendly – Beautiful, professional templates by default | – Limited flexibility/integrations (no custom plugins or advanced code) – Some SEO and performance limitations (less control over on-page tech factors) |
| Hubspot CMS | – Marketing-focused businesses (lead generation sites, corporate blogs with CRM integration) – Organizations using HubSpot tools for inbound marketing/CRM | – Native integration with CRM & marketing automation (great for personalized content and tracking) – Robust built-in SEO, analytics, and security; fully managed solution | – High cost for advanced features (Starter can be affordable, but Pro is $$$) – Less design freedom than open-source CMS; requires HubSpot familiarity |
| Wix | – Very small businesses, hobbyists, or individuals – Those who need a simple website quickly and/or for free (and not expecting huge scalability) | – Extremely easy to use (intuitive drag-and-drop editor) – Free plan available; quick to launch without any coding | – Lacks advanced features & flexibility (tough to integrate custom tools) – Basic SEO capabilities; can struggle with large or complex sites (limited scalability) |
By this point, you should know your needs and which boxes each CMS ticks. The end decision is ultimately up to you, but here are some general guidelines that may help you decide where to start:
Stumped on what words to use to fill your website and bring in the traffic? GPO’s content services are designed to excel across any CMS, ensuring your content is optimized, engaging, and effective, regardless of your chosen platform. Contact us today for expert content strategies that adapt to your CMS and elevate your website’s SEO and user experience. (And hey, if you’re just downright confuzzled over which CMS to choose and how to build your site, we can help there, too. 😉)
AI is changing how people search. Are you keeping up? Discover how to combine SEO and GEO to get your content ranked on Google and cited by AI platforms.
The CMS you choose for your SMB will impact everything from your site traffic to your stress levels. Use this guide (& help from GPO) to pick the best one.
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