Category: Drupal

Drupal is a widely-used Content Management System (CMS) preferred by a large number of business owners and developers. It is frequently being accepted as an easy-to-use, advanced and preferred framework. Drupal provides several functionalities i.e. poll management, graphics modification tool, user management and many more. All these functions make it possible to develop amazing websites, blogs, and social networking pages.

When it comes to adding new features, layout, and design; Drupal is a highly customizable framework. It is a high-class CMS that can easily integrate it with other apps like SAP, phpBB, etc. However, there are a large number of people who still have myths about Drupal development. This article will demystify all these misconceptions and make you aware of the power of Drupal.

Misconception #1: Drupal is Only Used to Create Simple Websites like Blogs

Wrong! Drupal is a framework that has the capability to develop almost everything that you can imagine on the web. Some of the very famous yet high-level websites like the White House, GE and NBC Universal were developed using Drupal. Today, 50% of the top media companies and Universities are using Drupal including Harvard, Stanford, and Princeton. Drupal is easy to install and demands fewer resources that make it ideal for creating small as well as large websites. With thousands of modules, it is easy to enhance the functionality of any website.

Misconception #2: Drupal is not a Secure CMS.

Wrong! Drupal is preferred by more than 130 countries to manage their government websites including the White House and the U.S. Department of Education. The great community of Drupal takes security very seriously. Drupal’s security team is focused on making Drupal as the most secure CMS. Drupal has an outstanding track record regarding security and security advisories are being sent out frequently. However, as any Open-Source software there nothing that guaranties a 100% secure software.

Misconception #3: It is not Suitable for Large Businesses due to Lack of Enterprise Features.

Wrong! It has been assumed that Drupal doesn’t have the advanced features necessary for creating a business website. But, that’s not the case. Drupal is an open-source content management systems that are available to create the powerful yet feature-rich business websites. Grammy.com was developed using Drupal and got 460 million hits on the night of Grammy’s 2014.

Misconception #4: Drupal Provides Limited Designs.

Wrong! Drupal is based on HTML, CSS, and PHP that means it can be designed according to your preferences. It is easy to make your website look like anything you want. Drupal have thousands of free themes available for your use. Themes allow you to change the look and feel of your Drupal site. With the data stored in a Database, separating content and functionality from the design, you can switch easily between different themes.

Misconception #5: Drupal Does Not Provide High SEO Functionality

Wrong! Many site owners think that Drupal doesn’t have great functionality. However, the major reason behind SEO degradation is the wrong implementation of Drupal functionalities. Drupal’s ‘Clean URLs’ feature makes your URLs readable, and precise that can be separated by slashes and hyphens. The Yoast SEO for Drupal module can be easily integrated with Search Engine reporting, analysis, and optimization tools for any kind of Drupal website. There are many Drupal modules that help you optimize your Website for Search Engines.

Misconception #6: Drupal has Inconsistent Upgrades

Wrong! Ok. I admit probably that was the case for Drupal 7 where the release cycle schedule was not strictly followed. However, with the latest major version of Drupal 8, the road map for new upgrades is clearer with a well defined release cycle schedule. Drupal’s community is constantly working on new versions (majors and minors) with a well-defined roadmap. A large number of modules are created by the community every day. Being an open source framework, Drupal provides top-notch technical advances. Keep in mind that Drupal is a free software developed by the community.

Misconception #7: Drupal is Difficult to Develop With

Partially Wrong! Yes, there is a learning curve involved for Drupal development. However, Drupal is so powerful and flexible like NO other CMS (including WordPress). WordPress is much easier to use than Drupal but WordPress is a no match to Drupal flexibility for a framework. Drupal is a fully fledged Content Management Framework (CMF) that comes with many features and functionalities out of the box. Drupal offers a dedicated administration theme which simplifies the management of any website. If you are getting your website developed by a creative developer, then you do not have to worry about the technical knowledge. Once, you master developing with Drupal and learn its power you won’t use any other CMS.

Conclusion

In this post, I discussed the Top 7 Misconceptions with Drupal Development. You might have heard about all the above-mentioned myths associated with Drupal web development. Now, you can spread the facts and help people make the right decision. The bottom line is that Drupal is a powerful, flexible and secure framework that makes it the most preferred choice of developers and business owners for creating amazing websites.

You have a lot of options when it comes to selecting an ecommerce platform. So why choose Drupal Commerce?

PRO #1: Drupal is Open Source.

Open source means you have access to the code. You (well, maybe not YOU, but your technical staff) can change and adapt it to suit your needs. If something is not open source (think Magento and Shopify), you can only change it within the parameters of the platform. If it doesn’t have the functionality you want, you are out of luck.

PRO #2: Drupal is Incredibly Flexible.

Because Drupal is open source, anyone can adapt the code – which also means anyone can develop new modules. There is an entire community of developers building new functionality for the platform.

If you are going with a proprietary system, it better have every feature you’re ever going to need. And you probably don’t even know what features you will need a year from now or two years from now. If you think your business model is ever going to grow and change, go with something that’s open source that you can control.

PRO #3: Drupal Does Not Tie You Down.

You risk being stuck in licensing agreements when you use proprietary systems. It is totally possible that the company could turn around and say, “Hey, it used to be $100 a month, but now it is $200,”and you have no say in that. They are in control.

Drupal puts you in the driver’s seat. Power is in your hands.

PRO #4: Drupal Can Handle Complex Customizations.

Drupal works for even the most complex checkout systems. Take ordering phone plans. Buying a phone service is not like buying a regular commodity. You have to choose a plan, there are monthly costs, there are different choices per plan, and as you buy certain things you get access to more choices… This kind of complexity would be nearly impossible to do in another framework.

So what’s the catch?

CON #1: Drupal Requires Some Tech Savvy.

Drupal is not a do-it-yourself project unless you have some technical expertise. It requires a lot of configuration out of the box and getting it set up properly can be challenging. If you want something built quickly, and you want to do it without a web developer’s help, Drupal is not the way to go.

CON #2: Drupal’s third-party Support Isn’t the Best.

Drupal is modular and open source, and if you need lots of integrations with other systems, you can always build them. But if you want to drop in a module that just works, you might not find what you are looking for. The major stuff you would want is there, but second tier-type modules probably aren’t. This is getting better all the time, but it is still a weakness.

The Bottom Line — Drupal Commerce Versus Other Ecommerce Platforms

At the end of the day choosing the right platform is always going to depend on your goals and what you want to accomplish with your website. If you just started selling products online you probably don’t need anything custom done on your website and would be better off using a simple platform like Shopify, Magento, or Woocommerce. All these platforms have basic ecommerce functionality out of the box that will get you up and running in no time.

On the other hand, if you have a growing business that requires a lot of custom functionality, then Drupal Commerce will probably be your best option. Even if you are just starting out you need to consider using the platform that can grow with your business, not hold it back. The last thing you want to do is start with a basic commerce platform and then realize down the road it doesn’t have the functionality that you need in order to grow your business.

The Power of Drupal Commerce

Here are some examples where Drupal Commerce can Excel over other basic commerce platforms:

1. Unique Product Types: If you sell unique products like donation, licensing and custom built products most commerce platforms like Shopify and Magento won’t have the functionality you will need to sell these types of products. Drupal Commerce is going to be your best bet without overcomplicating things and trying to reinvent the wheel with other platforms.
2. Product Pages: Most commerce platforms like Shopify and Magento have standard products pages and category pages that have very little customization options. Drupal Commerce on the other hand, because it is open source has the ability to customize the product and category pages to your heart’s desire!
3. Integrations: Most platforms like Shopify, Magento, and WordPress already have plugins that integrate with a lot of 3rd party software and services, but if there is a service or software that you want your website to integrate with and they don’t have the plugin to do so, you are out of luck. On the flip side with Drupal Commerce you have the ability to easily customize existing modules or even build custom modules that can integrate with your website.

Choosing the right eCommerce platform for you always depends on what your goals are.

So What Commerce Platform Should I Choose?

Figure out what your short and long term website goals are. Now look at your goals and read the points above and ask yourself the question “Which platform is going to provide the functionality and customizations I need now and in the future?”

To learn more, check out our High Five episode: “The Pros and Cons of Drupal Commerce.”