Webvanta CMS Platform Adds Web App Capabilities

We've recently added a series of advanced capabilities to the Webvanta hosted CMS, to enable features that are more in the web-app domain—well beyond what you'd expect a CMS to provide.

Dynamic PDF Generation

PDF files are common on websites, because they provide the easiest way to deliver formatted-for-print electronic documents. Usually, they're created from Word, Excel, PowerPoint, or other desktop applications.

We've now added the capability for sites built on the Webvanta hosted CMS to create PDFs dynamically, like web pages, from database content.

JavaScript API for Database Access

The Webvanta CMS now has a powerful API for reading, writing, and modifying a site's database from JavaScript code. This makes it possible to build web pages that not only display information from the database, but can add to or modify information.

Modifications to the database via JavaScript are tightly restricted to keep sites secure. Visitors with user accounts (site members) can modify only database items to which they are connected.

Email and Ecommerce Integrations

We've also developed tight integrations with Foxycart, MailChimp, and Mandrill, so sites on the Webvanta CMS can provide ecommerce, email marketing, lead capture, and even generate transactional emails.

These include:

• Tight integration with Foxycart for ecommerce, including single sign-on and transfer of purchase confirmation information to the Webvanta database.
• Integration with MailChimp, so you can synchronize information (including opt-in confirmation) between a member database on a Webvanta site and a mailing database at MailChimp.
• Ability to trigger sending of emails on a time (e.g., daily) or transactional basis, using the Mandrill service.

Automatic Background Processes

Most of the action on a website happens in direct response to visitor actions. But sometimes you need to have something happen automatically, such as sending your members a weekly email of new content on the site.

We can now set up processes to run every day, or other period, which use standard CMS pages to create database-driven content that can be automatically emailed.

Using These Advanced Features

These features require some setup by the Webvanta team, so they are not offered as self-service features. The Webvanta services team will do the setup for you, at a modest cost.

With these new features, you can use the Webvanta platform for sites that are really web apps, rather than just content presentation sites.

To inquire about these features, please schedule a free consultation. We'd love to learn more about what your business needs.