Top Vendors for Content and Document Management Software

If your business needs content and document management software to keep track of information in your company, honing your content and document management software key terms can help you make the best purchasing decisions. The role of content and document management software is very complex. This software is designed to help you archive, sort, organize, deliver, share, update and store your content and your documents. It is designed to help you improve customer service, productivity and many other business functions. Understanding content and document management software key terms can help you understand what various software vendors are offering with their software, so that you can choose the software that is right for your business.

Document and content management systems

Document and content management systems are systems, or usually software programs, that are designed to help businesses deal with content and documents. These programs track and store files and allow companies to share content and documents with workers around the world through on-line sharing. 

Web-based document and content management systems

Web-based document and content management systems are based entirely online, rather than on specific systems. This allows any worker or client to log into the document and content management system from any location and from any computer -- all that is needed is an Internet connection.

Content repository

A content repository is a content or document management system that offers the capabilities of storing, managing and accessing content. A content repository structures content hierarchically. Most electronic content management software programs and some document management software programs offer some form of content repository implementation.

Customer Relationship Management (CRM)

Customer Relationship Management (CRM) refers to the process of storing and retrieving customer information so that businesses can offer better customer service and personalized content. Many document and content management software programs offer some services or applications related to CRM. Some document and content management programs, for example, allow companies to store customer information and send different content to different groups of customers.

Knowledge management

Many document and content management software programs promise not only content and document management, but knowledge management as well. Knowledge management refers to the process of identifying intellectual benefits and assets in a business and converting them into usable assets for the company. For example, if a company has many unused and unread documents that might be beneficial, document and content management software programs can help with knowledge management.

Integration and systems architecture

Integration and systems architecture allows content and documents to be shared among different servers, websites and repositories automatically, without conversion or other hassles. Integration makes it faster and, therefore, less expensive to deliver and share information.

For more information about content and document management software, check out our business guides, "Content and Document Software Basics" and "How to Select Document Management Software."