Why Neos is so Convincing

When you decide to implement a web presence with us, we first ask whether you want to edit texts and other content yourself. If the answer is yes, a CMS (Content Management System) is used. However, choosing the right one from the CMS jungle can be a small challenge. This jungle contains 93 Content Management Systems with a market share of over 0.1%, and many more below that. In addition to the overwhelming number, customer requirements and needs must naturally be covered, as not all systems offer all desired features.

Over the past 18 years, Comvation has examined many of these systems, successfully using some of them for several years, testing them, and sometimes discarding them. One CMS has stood out recently: Neos.

Why Neos is so convincing

The passionate Neos team offers sustainable and user-friendly software for editors and developers. Additionally, Neos is a long-standing open-source project and therefore completely free of license costs! Neos was created in 2006. At that time, the team was working on the CMS Typo3, one of the most well-known systems. The new version of Typo3 (at that time 5.0) was supposed to be completely rethought and modernized. This project became so extensive that instead, a completely new system was developed, and Neos came into being.

Customizing content is a breeze

The fast and easy management and creation of web content is crucial in the fast-paced online world. The user-friendly Neos CMS allows you to edit your own website directly, without having to switch between preview and editing modes:

Whether it’s text blocks, images, SEO optimizations, or media management, all content can be easily clicked on and adjusted. The above interface is the only view needed, with all options and features visible at a glance. Using the document tree, individual pages can be moved, created, or deleted. The addition to this is the content tree, which allows content on a page to be edited in exactly the same way:

When inserting content, the user also sees only what can actually be inserted on the page. So in a series of images, only images can be inserted, or in a collection of buttons, only buttons can be inserted:

The simple and fast editing had convinced us some years ago to include Neos as a possible CMS in our portfolio. But that’s not all Neos has to offer!

What we as developers love about it

Just as intuitive as content editing is the upstream programming of websites. The flexible Neos allows us to provide website editors exactly what they need. Users are not overwhelmed by too many options and can fully focus on content creation. At the same time, we can seamlessly add new features and requests, such as automatically listed news articles, team member management, and customized management interfaces for more complex content.

From a cost perspective, annoying license costs or expenses for third-party plugins are eliminated. Maintenance is also uncomplicated. Because Neos offers so-called “Long-Time-Support” versions in the spirit of sustainability, which do not require constant updates.

Furthermore, Neos has its own package directory through which extensions and widgets from the community can be integrated. Due to the flexibility of Neos, these extensions and other systems can also be integrated directly. This prevents dependence on third parties.

The small downside of Neos

Of course, we must not neglect the disadvantages. Working with Neos is fun but requires a rethink and familiarization from developers. The official documentation helps with this, albeit only to a limited extent. In addition, complex modules and nested content structures quickly become confusing and should therefore be avoided.

The highlight: The community

My personal surprise hit while working with Neos is clearly the community. Here you can feel the heart of it all and see how many passionate people help to improve Neos daily.

So, for your new Neos website, all you really need is an idea or vision and a phone. With the latter, you can reach us at any time for a non-binding consultation!

In Switzerland, we are one of the few agencies that offer Neos: