New 5.1 Release of FirstSpirit CMS Ensures a Faster Time to Market and Optimized User Experience

BOSTON - May 14, 2014 - PRLog -- CMS manufacturer e-Spirit has announced the release ofits latest version of its FirstSpirit content management system. FirstSpirit 5.1 has many new features that will enable companies to significantly boost their online time to market. These new features are intended to enhance the user experience along the entire web experience supply chain. Marketing managers will now be able to target their website visitors with personalized online experiences and software developers and integrators will appreciate how easy it is to use.

“With our new 5.1 version of the FirstSpirit CMS, we are reinforcing our concept of the ‘Global User Experience,’ which means providing optimal usability for everyone along the entire online supply chain,” said Jörn Bodemann, chairman and CEO of e-Spirit. “In today’s market every company wants to offer its website visitors an attractive, personalized customer experience to ensure repeat visits and improved sales. This is best achieved if the editors, marketing managers, software developers and system integrators also benefit from an outstanding user experience.”

There are two key areas that are highlighted in the enhanced FirstSpirit 5.1 release. FirstSpirit's browser-based, central editorial environment, “ContentCreator” was completely overhauled in order to make it easier for marketing managers and editors to create and publish personalized and dynamic content for any digital marketing campaign, target group, output channel and end device. The second key area was to improve the developer experience. The 5.1 version now offers many new features designed specifically for software architects, developers and integrators to ensure more convenient and efficient project implementation. These two enhancements enable companies to launch new online services, functionalities or an entire website faster than before.

A brief glance at the FirstSpirit 5.1 highlights:

FirstSpirit Content Creator Experience

·         Multi-perspective Preview: Content in every dimension

The new Multi-perspective Preview allows online editors to view content pages in FirstSpirit through the eyes of their respective visitors. It takes just one click to review exactly what content is being displayed to which target group at what time and how the pages look in different display sizes. The content and its display can be optimized directly in Multi-perspective Preview and editors can also conveniently manage marketing campaigns and content for different devices or individually defined personas. This considerably reduces the time and expense for developing responsive layout and makes maintaining websites in responsive design considerably easier.

·         Seamlessly use Web applications: A central user interface for all editorial tasks

The FirstSpirit ContentCreator is the central, Web-based cockpit for all content-related activities. Editors edit the website directly in the browser, from the website's preview page, which they can navigate just like on the productive page. Operating elements remain hidden until the editor moves the mouse over an area that they have editing rights to. This approach allows editors to intuitively move in the ContentCreator and immediately see how the website changes look without interference from the operating elements. In version 5.1, the editorial environment was further developed so that third-party Web applications can also be used directly in the ContentCreator preview (AppCenter functionality).

·         Enhanced Drag&Drop support: Speeds up editorial work

The already comprehensive Drag&Drop options in the ContentCreator were further improved with editorial activities now able to be completed more intuitively, thus saving time. For example, links can be created using Drag&Drop. Also images, videos or other data from different sources, like the desktop, Web application or the internal FirstSpirit media management, can be dragged to the necessary area directly in preview.

FirstSpirit Developer Experience

·         Template Inspector and Debugger: Improved templates facilitate and accelerate development

Instead of spending time looking in HTML code for certain areas that have to be changed, developers can use FirstSpirit's new highlighting feature in Template Inspector to easily find the right spot in the code in page preview mode. The visual Template Debugger now additionally supports software-based bug searches in the HTML code and helps developers to program templates faster and bug-free.

·         FirstSpirit Content Transport: Simple reuse gets you to market faster

FirstSpirit 5.1 makes reusing project solutions easier than ever before. IT teams can now transfer complete project sections, such as from a test environment to the live server using external storage media and also across servers using cloud services such as Dropbox.

·         Collaboration Support: Work more efficiently in remote teams

FirstSpirit 5.1 improves cooperation in local and remote development teams. Thanks to the new features that support an open development process, companies are benefiting optimally from the expertise and skills of the entire team. Embedding in continuous delivery and continuous integration processes was optimized so that the CMS provides even greater support for repeated and agile project implementation.

·         Supports the preferred tool chain: You know what you like

Developers work faster and more reliably with tools they know and trust. That's why they can also use their preferred development tools (IDE, SVN/GIT, etc.) with FirstSpirit.

For more information FirstSpirit CMS, please visit www.e-Spirit.com.

About e-Spirit

e-Spirit is the manufacturer of the FirstSpirit™ content management system. Companies in all areas of business rely on FirstSpirit to help them deliver a powerful online presence that leads to a healthy bottom line. User-friendly and intuitive to use, FirstSpirit provides solutions for creating, managing and publishing content, regardless of where it resides—on corporate websites, online stores, enterprise portals, intranets or extranets. Founded in 1999, e-Spirit operates in 13 locations in the United States and Europe. Clients include Speedo, BARBRI, Airbus, BASF, Bosch, Commerzbank, KLM, Olympus, Berghaus and MAN.

Corporate press contact

Karena Friedrich / Sandra Högemann

e-Spirit AG

Barcelonaweg 14, 44269 Dortmund

+49 (0)231 47777-186 / -199

PR@e-Spirit.com (mailto:PR@e-Spirit.com%20%0d)

www.e-Spirit.com

North America press contact

Rob Goodman

McKenzie Worldwide

+1 (503) 380-2441

robg@mckenzieworldwide.com