What is an editing system?

The goals of an editorial system

An online editorial system supports the efficiency of integrated communication and contemporary multichannel publishing. It is becoming a key factor in meeting the increasing demands of corporate communication and marketing.

An editorial system can meet these challenges:

• Media production today is cross-media publishing: more and more channels need to be served.
• Content is king: The amount of topics and content is also constantly growing.
• Target groups want to be addressed as individually as possible.
• The effort required for conception and planning is increasing - and with it the need for efficient operational implementation.
• The increasing cost and time pressure in companies is exacerbating this development.

This increasing complexity in publishing can only be mastered with innovative publishing software: an editorial system.

What is an editorial system?

The following definition can be found on Wikipedia:

Editorial systems are software systems for managing journalistic content, in particular newspapers, magazines and websites. An essential feature is the separation of content, data structure and design (layout) as well as the possibility of access and workflow control. In connection with websites, editorial systems are also referred to as content management systems.

An editorial system is therefore digital publishing software for the collaborative and optimised creation of media, as it maps the complete workflow in multichannel publishing - from planning, editing and administration through to production. Even though most editing tools today work on the basis of web technologies, they differ from so-called content management systems. While the latter focus on the publication and structuring of websites, an editorial system is designed as multichannel publishing software that can serve all channels - from print to mobile.

How does an editorial system work?
Six features of an online editorial system

1. Media neutrality: The content is stored in the content management system independently of the output channel and can therefore be efficiently reused multiple times.
   
   
2. Separation of content and layout: Editorial systems separate the layout information from the actual content. This is the basis for single-source publishing, i.e. for the arbitrary compilation of content for different formats and media. The workflow of many editing tools is based on the standard programmes Adobe InDesign and InCopy and are editing systems for Indesign.
   
   
3. Structuring data: To create standardised content and documents, an online editing system uses a so-called document type definition - also known as DTD. This defines the structure of a document. This is a major advantage when extensive and highly complex documentation is used with an editing system.
   
   
4. Meta information: Editorial systems make it possible to create descriptive information about the content so that it can be found and used efficiently at any time.
   
   
5. Process support: Editorial systems increase the efficiency and security of cross-media publishing processes by optimising workflows. They simplify collaboration between all those involved, reduce coordination and correction loops and avoid errors. In other words, the editorial system is the modern publishing software for time and cost-optimised media production.
   
   
6. Planning and production control: An editorial system maps the end-to-end production process from planning to production and provides an overview of the current production status at all times. An editorial system is therefore a digital publishing software for software-supported production control, project monitoring and deadline assurance for high project transparency.

Advantages and benefits of an editorial system:
of M-E-I-S-T-E-R

M - Multiple utilisation: The media-neutral data storage in the online editorial system enables the multiple utilisation of data, as it manages content in such a way that it can be processed by different software solutions and via possible interfaces. This is not only relevant for efficient multichannel publishing, but also for updates and follow-up publications within a channel. Thanks to media-neutral data management in the editorial system, corrections and data maintenance are no longer media-specific, but are centralised for all output forms.

E - Efficiency: Modern cross-media publishing today usually takes place with a very short time-to-market. New media and means of communication must be developed and published quickly in order to fulfil the demand for topicality. An editorial system raises multichannel publishing to a new level of efficiency by optimising processes for everyone involved.

I - Integration: Corporate communication today is multichannel publishing - and requires centralised publishing software that ensures the best possible coordination of communication across all channels in terms of timing and content. An editorial system draws content for print, online, mobile and social media from an integrated data source. Once content has been created, it can be used across all media and output simultaneously. However, integration also means optimised workflows for the collaboration of all parties involved. For example, an editorial system allows several colleagues and external partners to work on the data without any version conflicts.

S - Security: An editorial system ensures production security in the creation of communication materials and the implementation of communication measures. It also creates future security by storing relevant data and media assets for later use.

T - Transparency: An editorial system ensures transparency regarding the planning and production status. It provides project managers and participants with an up-to-date overview of which content elements are available and published in which channel at any given time. An editorial system also sets new standards in terms of the traceability of communication workflows.

E - Simple media creation: Thanks to an editorial system, new media and communication tools can be developed and published more quickly and easily. By promoting collaborative creation and distributed co-operation, the system reduces the number of coordination and correction rounds.

R - ROI: An editorial system pays for itself. By increasing the efficiency of cross-media production, it ensures greater profitability in the long term. Especially in project management, translation management and quality assurance, the introduction of an online editing system can reduce costs.