How Headless CMS And Serverless Architecture Work Together: Explained

According to WebinarCare, 33%+ percent of the marketing budget is utilized for technology. Innovative technologies improve efficiency, enhance customer experience, increase conversions, and provide many more competitive benefits.

Among the current technological trends gaining attention, there are two buzzwords in the digital landscape: headless CMS and serverless architecture.

These advancements address the essential tasks involved in enhancing a business's digital presence which are:

1. Simplifying content management.
2. Managing underlying server infrastructure.

Although headless CMS and serverless computing are different concepts, they can be used together to supercharge business growth opportunities.

In this blog we will dive into how the conjunction of these two technologies can benefit your business. But before that, you can also explore how to use headless CMS for one site or multisite in our recent blog what is headless CMS?

What is Serverless Architecture?

Did you know? The market size of serverless architecture was worth $12.43 billion in 2022 and by 2035, it is expected to grow with a CAGR of 25.70%.

Serverless architecture, also known as serverless computing, is a cloud computing service where a third party (cloud provider) manages serverless applications and provides on-demand services over the Internet. You can simply offload your tasks to a third-party provider.

Managing servers becomes so easy as serverless architectures takes care of everything from security to maintenance and the tech team. All thanks to Function-as-a-Service (FaaS), as it allows developers to write and deploy individual functions and cloud vendor takes care of the execution.

The execution model of serverless platforms simplifies your tasks by taking care of server management. So, your employees can work without worrying about the underlying infrastructure by offloading server management tasks to external service.

There is a plethora of options available in the market for serverless architecture; some of the popular options are AWS Lambda functions, Google Cloud Functions, and Microsoft Azure.

Now that we know more about headless CMS and serverless architecture, let's explore how the synchronization between both can work together.

Perfect Synchronization of Headless CMS And Serverless Architecture

• Integration of headless CMS with serverless computing enables scaling applications without worrying about server infrastructure management.
• The serverless architecture enables quick content deployment by allowing a way to run code without worrying about the servers.
• Headless CMS and serverless architecture enable fast and flexible content deployment to users.
• With the separated architecture, headless CMS allows greater flexibility for editing content.
• Serverless computing retrieves serverless functions from APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) and helps to deliver that content quickly over the internet. Seamlessly integrating headless CMS and SEO will not only accelerate content delivery but also boost search engine rankings and enhance user experience.
• The conjunction of headless CMS and serverless computing increases developers productivity and the overall growth of the business.

Serverless Computing & Headless CMS Integration: 3 Key Technical Components

The conjunction of headless CMS and serverless architecture involves the step-by-step implementation of the process. The technical components involved are as follows:

1. Processing Data

In CMS, content is created and edited using separated frontend and backend. After that, content is stored in a database.

Finally, serverless architecture writes the functions. Then, process the data and perform operations such as integrating with a third-party application, version control, authentication, and authorization. The cloud infrastructure of the serverless apps enables quick and hassle-free delivery of a large amount of content.

2. Running Applications

The serverless application code contacts CMS to retrieve data, ensuring quick and reliable content delivery over the internet. It offers simplified management of infrastructure and makes content delivery more effective.

3. Networking

Serverless architecture and headless CMS rely on networking, such as APIs, functions, and databases, for seamless integration and easy workflow. These networking functions enable effective distribution of content over the internet.

Benefits of Headless CMS & Serverless Computing for Businesses & Customers

The remarkable thing about the synchronization of headless CMS and serverless approach is that it is beneficial to both companies and customers. Companies can focus on more important tasks without worrying about the underlying server infrastructure. At the same time, customers can get seamless and memorable digital experiences.

Benefits For Companies

• Faster deployment of the content with serverless architecture. 
• By harnessing headless CMS benefits companies can maintain easy workflow and integrate with the latest technologies.
• Headless CMS enables managing content on multiple digital channels with API first approach.
• Utilizing both headless CMS and serverless architecture, also referred to as headless architecture, reduces the team's workload and enhances productivity

Benefits For Customers

• From the customer's perspective, the content personalization enabled by headless CMS builds more robust connections and makes them repeat the purchase.
• The intuitive user interface of headless CMS combined with serverless architecture ensures hassle free content delivery to users.
• While headless CMS enables a personalized approach, advantages of serverless architecture ensure swift content delivery.

Challenges of Using Headless CMS and Serverless Architecture

While headless CMS and serverless architecture offers numerous benefits to customers and businesses, it is crucial to be aware of its challenges and drawbacks too. Understanding the challenges helps to navigate these technologies better.

1. Increased Complexity 

Headless CMS and serverless architecture can increase complexity to some extent in terms of implementation and learning curve. Organizations need to allocate sufficient resources for training and upskilling the employees.

2. Vendor Lock-in

Implementing a specific system can create a vendor lock-in because of which migrating to another system can be challenging and time-consuming. In that case it is essential to evaluate availability of the migration tools.

3. Cost Consideration

The headless CMS has a predefined cost model on a monthly or annual basis. Whereas serverless architecture cost is based on the usage and implementation of their services.

Developers must consider the cost of maintaining, implementing, and scaling the application before making any decision.

Safeguarding The Future of Headless CMS and Serverless Framework

After knowing security considerations, let us explore the best security practices to ensure that the system is safe and good to go!

1. Using Strong Authentication

Strong authentication enables accessing applications only by authorized users. This can include multifactor authentication and strong password recommendations that make it difficult for an unauthorized person to control access.

The role-based access control enabled by headless CMS is a great way of ensuring strong authentication. Ensuring robust authentication future-proofs the business and prevents data breaches.

2. Encrypting Data in Transit

Ensure that data of communication between clients and servers should be encrypted. Exploding Topics says 90% of US users agree that online privacy is important. These days customers are more concerned about their data and privacy. By encrypting data in transit, businesses can prove their commitment to data security and build trust among customers.

3. Reviewing Security Policies

In the last 12 months 54% of the companies have experienced cyber-attack.

Reviewing security policies includes periodic evaluation of policies and updating relevant information. Regularly reviewing and updating security policies ensures everything is risk-free and effective. This is done by implementing security measures, reviewing applications, and checking system’s vulnerability.

Future of Headless CMS and Serverless Architecture

The integration of headless CMS and serverless architecture continues to revolutionize effective content management. Their benefits in the digital landscape promise an exciting future.

Let's see how it opens a world of possibility in the future.

1. Emerging Trends and Developments

The use case of these applications is likely to increase in the future. This is because both are widely popular in the market and highly compatible with the modern digital landscape. Moreover, it holds much importance in a competitive industry like eCommerce.

The popularity is driven by the increasing demand for personalization, quick delivery of content, and seamless integration among customers. However, to fulfil these demands, you will need an appropriate headless CMS for your business.

2. Potential Future Application

Headless CMS and serverless architecture will be widely used in customer-centric businesses such as eCommerce as it provides benefits such as fast deployment of content, maintaining security, personalized approach, and many more.

3. Impact On the Industry

As the eventual outcome of the implication of headless CMS and serverless architecture leads to increased conversion and engagement, it significantly impacts the industry.

These technologies are also adaptable to change, so it goes well with the changing behaviours of the customer.

Wrapping Up

In conclusion, leveraging Experro, a digital experience platform (DXP), alongside headless CMS and serverless architecture can optimize the future by enabling scalability, agility, and flexibility in delivering content and managing server infrastructure.

These trends are likely to continue to shape the industry in the future and leave a better impact. So, don't wait anymore to benefit from the combination of headless CMS and serverless architecture. Book a demo with Experro to adapt headless CMS that can synergize well with the serverless architecture.