Templates and generators for bulk site creation
Templates and generators are the engineering base of bulk site creation: a static site generator or a CMS installation produced from a config, plus several visual templates and page structures. Best Boost Partners builds this base for teams that need many sites which do not look alike. Each site is described by one data file. You receive the generator, the templates and the configs together with documentation.
What exactly do we build in templates and generators?
Generator
We set up a static site generator or a script that produces CMS installations from a config. The choice depends on whether the sites need an admin panel.
Visual templates
We prepare several templates with different layouts, typography and colour schemes. Sites on the same template also differ in settings, so that neighbours in a network do not look the same.
Page structures
Each structure defines its own set of page types, sections and internal links. A structure is assigned to a site independently of the visual template.
Variable blocks and menus
The header, footer, sidebar, menu and content blocks exist in several variants. The data file states which variant a site uses and in which order the blocks appear.
URL schemes
We define several URL schemes: with and without category folders, with different slugs and address endings. The scheme is fixed in the config before launch and does not change after it.
Data file per site
Every site is described by one file: domain, language, template, structure, menu, URL scheme, contacts and list of pages. A new site begins with a new file.
What do you get from templates and generators?
- The generator in a version control repository, with a description of how to run it.
- A set of visual templates and page structures that can be combined with each other.
- A config and a data file for every site in the batch.
- A footprint check report: what the generated sites have in common and where they differ.
- Documentation on how to add a template, a block variant or a new site.
When are templates and generators needed?
- You plan more sites than it is reasonable to build and maintain by hand.
- The sites of your network were made on one template and resemble each other.
- A block, a script or a legal page has to be changed on all sites at once.
- Different people build your sites, and each site has its own setup that nobody can repeat.
Frequently asked questions
Will sites from one generator look the same to a search engine?
Sites from one generator do not have to be the same. We vary the template, the page structure, the menu, the URL scheme and the code of the blocks, and check the result for shared footprints. Design covers only part of the difference: each site also needs content of its own.
Can an existing site be used as the basis for a template?
Yes, if the design belongs to you or you have the right to use it. We break the site into blocks, move the variable parts into the data file and add variants so that the copies differ from the original.
Which is better for sites built in bulk: a static generator or a CMS?
A static generator suits most networks: pages are served quickly, and such sites have no database or admin panel that needs maintenance. If editors need an admin panel, we produce WordPress installations from a config. The platform is chosen at the brief stage.
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