Two thirds of agencies tasked with developing websites and other digital content platforms use headless content management systems (CMS). Nearly half (48%) seeing an increase in client projects that benefited from headless CMS in 2020. A survey of European and US agencies by Umbraco shows that a majority of agencies chose a headless CMS to serve content across multiple channels.
Supporters of headless CMS suggest it provides more control over content. In addition to faster time to market, and the ability to swiftly respond to emerging opportunities. Headless CMS makes it easier to consolidate content into one platform including websites, mobile apps, digital screens, and chatbots.
What is headless?
A headless CMS separates content from the presentation layer, providing the freedom and flexibility to use content on any platform. Developers can create agile platforms with automated updates, use APIs to send and retrieve content, localise content with multi-language support. Content managers and marketers can publish personalised omnichannel digital content more easily and across multiple platforms. This can be achieved without the developers’ help once the system is deployed.
“More digital channels are targeting a client’s many audiences. Getting content deployed efficiently to all, is an increasingly complex task for agencies,” said Kim Sneum Madsen, CEO, Umbraco. “As the survey shows, headless CMS lets agencies future proof their customers’ content management. This enables them to publish content on any end platform or destination. This is a win for developers, content managers and the client’s overall business. A relevant, agile, flexible and scalable multichannel market strategy enables business opportunities that help companies thrive in today’s competitive market.”
eCommerce and Retail Top Markets for Headless CMS
According to the survey, the industries that use headless CMS the most are eCommerce and retail, The public sector and financial industries following. An agency can use a headless CMS to create:
- A retail catalogue that feeds products and specifications to multiple digital channels.
- An eCommerce or banking site that offers a variety of ways to engage with customers. This may include a chatbot, a web app, text messages, a voice assistant skill, and even an augmented reality experience.
- A citizen-friendly, device-agnostic, multilingual portal and text messaging system to deliver city government services that engage residents.
“Headless CMS is truly an enabler,” Madsen concludes. “Companies with a fast go-to-market strategy cannot afford to spend too much time creating solutions. They need a CMS that is designed to be scalable and agile from the start. This is why we’re seeing the headless CMS market flourish in many industries.”
Umbraco is an open source CMS built on the Microsoft .NET platform. Last year, the company launched Umbraco Heartcore, a software-as-a-service (SaaS) “headless” content management system (CMS). The platform supports the structuring and sharing content across multiple platforms, devices and channels. The company’s software development kit supports configurable content management infrastructure for any website, smartphone, smartwatch or other smart (Internet of Things—IoT) device. According to Umbraco, its headless CMS platform is built on the flexible, friendly and full-featured open source Umbraco CMS. The company says it inherits its mature capabilities to intuitively organise large volumes of content.
Enterprise Times: What this means for business?
Headless is the way to go for any organisation with multiple devices disseminating company information. Umbraco’s report indicates digital agencies are experiencing higher demand for headless CMS from their clients. Brands increasingly have a multiple channels across web, social and mobile and the headache of managing them. As a result, they are becoming fully aware of the challenge of facilitating omnichannel distribution of content. Anything that makes businesses more relevant, agile, flexible and scalable is therefore welcomed. Hence the embracing of headless!
