Today the standard for corporate websites is the use of a Content Management System, or CMS. This is true even for the small business - the days of the static HTML pages are long gone. Likewise, because of the prevelance of mobile devices and their smaller screen size, the standard for corporate websites is that they be easily viewable on mobile devices. For a small business the economical solution is a single website that is responsive. Best-in-class small business websites also now incorporate additional functionality to support sales and marketing efforts as well as customer/prospect self-service functionality.

Ascend is able to team with your graphic designer, or provide one if needed, in order to generarte a custom template for a CMS based website. We support both Wordpress and Joomla open source CMS software. Our developers will take a PSD file generated by the graphic designer to generate the custom Wordpress or Joomla template.

Open Source CMS vs. Proprietary CMS

The computing industry as a whole long ago recognized the advantages of open standards versus closed, proprietary standards. Open standards meant vendor choice and flexibility. Closed proprietary standards meant vendor lockin, less flexibility, and almost always increased cost. As a rule, this is also generally true for Content Management Systems as well. Many web firms are now locking their customers in with a proprietarty CMS system - which is good for them but generally bad for your company. If this is the case and you're ready to un-chain yourself, give us a call as we can help you move forward.

Wordpress vs. Joomla vs. Drupal

The three best supported and popular open source CMS systems are Wordpress, Joomla, and Drupal. Which is best for your company depends on a number of factors. The level of flexibility offered varies between these three with Wordpress offering the least flexbility and Drupal the greatest overall flexibility. Conversely, Wordpress is the easiest to use while Drupal is the hardest.  As a general rule, micro-companies are happiest with Wordpress and large enterprises are happiest with Drupal. For the small companies in our target market, we generally find that they are happiest with Joomla, with Wordpress running a close second.

Custom SW Development

Ascend is able to make custom modifications to existing third-party plugins and modules or develop completely custom plug-ins or modules to add unique capabilities or functions to your website.

Contact us now to schedule a free consultation from Ascend IT Solutions. Let's advance your business.