Content Management Frequently Asked Questions

What is content management?
Content management is a methodology of breaking down written documents into individual pieces (chunking content) and using these pieces in the assembly of particular deliverables. Having separate portions of content, which can be managed independently, opens many possibilities for technical writers, including:
  • Effective content reuse
  • Flexible customization of content for specific audiences or product versions
  • Fast generation of multiple deliverables from the same set of content chunks
  • Keeping control on multiple documentation projects with shared content
  • Facilitation of a translation process, especially when original content is frequently updated
  • Structural and formatting consistency
What is a content management system?
A content management system (CMS) is software that can automate and facilitate various tasks, including:
  • Access to your content and access permissions management
  • Search
  • Translation management
  • Revision management
  • Version control
  • Content publishing
What is a content management solution?
A content management solution consists of two main components:
  • Content management strategy:  an overall plan that regulates your workflow from the beginning to the end. A strategy addresses all aspects of the documentation flow, including:
  • How your content is organized for better reuse
  • How you handle content variations
  • How you enforce consistency in formatting and structure among multiple documents
  • How you update documentation
  • How you make multiple writers and reviewers work together effectively        
  • Content management tools: software tools that can support the strategy. These tools can focus on specific tasks (for example, authoring and publishing content) or provide solution for every stage of the content life cycle (for example, a content management system).
What is the best tool for content management?
It's like asking "what is the best movie?" In what genre? For whom? Of which director? As there is no best movie for all, there is no a best content management tool for all.

Content management is not about tools. It's about processes and methodologies that can be supported by tools. While the best fit for one documentation team can be a combination of FrameMaker and a free open-source version control system, the best fit for another team can be a sophisticated content management system.

How can we choose a content management tool that fits our methodologies and processes?
Because every vendor tries to prove that their tools can solve your needs in the best way, it can be really hard to make the right decision. Lists of features can look very similar. The approach we use with our clients analyzes the processes in a company and checks how these processes are supported by various tools.

To learn these processes, we write business scenarios that describe the way people work with content. We write these scenarios iteratively, knowing that we will often discover (and uncover) more details with each iteration, and identify specific requirements.    

After several iterations, we get a detailed scenario and expanded requirements that we use as a basis for evaluating tools.

Can DITA be a content management solution?
Yes. There are some situations in which DITA can be beneficial:
  • You extensively reuse content across multiple documents
  • You have multiple content variations
  • You have to customize the look-and-feel of documentation to different OEM partners or customers
  • You need to enforce consistent formatting and structure
  • You produce documentation in multiple formats
  • You have too many different audiences with different needs and want to generate documentation dynamically
Are there any non-DITA solutions?
Yes. There are situations when DITA does not solve your needs or when DITA implementation is too expensive, while payoff is not obvious. WritePoint has been successfully implementing solutions, which are not based on DITA, but still solve the content management needs.

How can I contact you for more information?
To receive professional advice, call us at 02 716668 or send an email to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it to arrange a meeting with a consultant or learn more about the content management courses and seminars we offer.