An honest review of ExpressionEngine
Software Version
2.8.1
Modules Used
- Structure, Reelocate, GW Categories, Low Search, Minimee, Snippetsync
Overall Satisfaction with ExpressionEngine
I use ExpressionEngine for several websites that I have developed for clients and I have taken a couple of projects for existing EE driven websites that needed a front-end design refresh.
Pros
- It has an extremely flexible front-end templating system, unlike most of the other CMSs that I have used.
- The community is very helpful and supportive. You can almost always get an answer through the Stack Exchange or Ellislab discussion forums.
- The third party add-on developer are very talented and you can find an add-on for just about anything you would need.
- Since it is a licensed product and not open source, it is not as widely used as other CMSs. I believe this is a benefit because it creates a niche for the developer.
- It's also more secure because it's not targeted by hackers and malicious scripts as much as the more popular CMSs.
Cons
- Pricing - At $300 per site, I feel like EE should come with a certain level of built in support from Ellislab. They just recently made support tickets a separate membership cost ranging from $50 to $2000 per month, it simply not an option for me. I've had to seek support from the Stack Exchange community instead.
- There are some built in features that and enhancements that I feel are missing in EE. I almost always have to install a third party add-on like Structure to help with building and maintaining pages and navigation throughout the site. This should be a core feature of any CMS.
- The built in search function is not very robust. I usually have to buy a third party add-on to enhance this function.
- The pagination function needs improvement. It just doesn't work well and it's very limited in the options and styles that can be applied.
- A responsive back-end would be helpful. Many other CMSs have adopted this approach in the last few years.
- It's really difficult to update the core system and plugins with ExpressionEngine. There are third party plugins that make this process easier like DevDemon's Updater, but I feel like EE could follow the lead from Wordpress and make updates and installs a built-in system feature.
- I can charge more for EE development because it is more of a niche market. There are only a handful of EE developers in the area that I live.
- It takes longer to build an EE site than with some other CMSs.
- I believe using EE has made me a better web developer. I have to take a different approach to content strategy and information architecture when building an EE site. A well thought out site structure one of the biggest factors in creating a positive user experience, in my opinion.
Most of the other CMSs that I have used have been open-source products. This means the developer community is much larger and the products seem to evolve faster. I like the smaller, tight-knit community that surrounds EE. There almost always someone willing to spend a few minutes on Twitter or Stack Exchange to help you work through a problem. I have not had this same experience with other CMSs.
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