What is better SAAS or custom CMS for a large commercial site?

Question

CMS

1. What is better SAAS or custom CMS for a large commercial site? We are faced with a choice - to write our own CMS and recruit developers for the staff, or to buy some kind of Bitrix and finish it for ourselves with the help of 1 full-time developer and outsourcing?
2. Am I right, proving to the authorities that it is risky to write a self-written system, having 1-2 developers in the state? In the event of the departure / illness / death of one of them, the company will be left with a pile of code (often even documentation does not save)

Answer 1

In any case, you will get a custom, which will then be extremely difficult to maintain without a developer.
But the option of adding to the existing CMS looks more reasonable, at least in terms of timing. It will start on the base and add functions as needed, it’s not at all the same as writing from 0, then catching bugs, then launching.
Well and in any case - "document it".
yes, it would be good to attach an experienced administrator to the development for a "large commercial site". Or take SaaS right away - there is an admin out of the box. But, of course, it has its own limitations.

Answer 2

It all depends on the product development strategy, if you have chosen a startup scheme, then it would be appropriate to implement quickly, with minimal investment, the main features of the project. At this stage, you can not bother with the engines, choose at your discretion. Subsequently, if the project starts, rewrite it depending on the needs.
If you choose a scheme for a finished product with all the features, performance, etc., then Bitrix is ​​unlikely to be suitable because you run into performance, choose the best framework, create your own application skeleton, determine the rules for writing code, arrange regular code reviews, create good documentation.

Answer 3

First, SAAS is a bit different. SAAS is when you do not buy a CMS, but rent an already installed one. Moreover, not all SAAS can be bought and installed at home, and vice versa - not all CMS have SAAS.
Secondly, it all depends on your requirements. If there is a solution that solves your problems 100%, then it is almost always cheaper to buy than to write from scratch.
Thirdly, if you choose a ready-made solution, then it must be something known. Maybe even open-source. Look at the labor market - vacancies, specialists. You must know for sure that you can always hire someone to fix something.
Fourthly, if you write from scratch, then choose an enterprise platform (.NET or Java, maybe also Python, but I'm not in the subject here). Not because they are actually better or worse than PHP/Ruby, but because these platforms are designed for custom solutions (which is why there are no good CMS/forums, etc., while there are a million of them in PHP), and therefore most specialists are ready for custom solutions => it will be easier to find people.

Answer 4

Write your core, foundation. And fasten everything around it like a CMS - by the type of modules.
-> You own your system, build it in such a way that you can add modules that do not affect the entire site, if suddenly one of the programmers clicks "flippers", then this will not affect you in any way. Deleted/disabled/rewrote the module of this programmer = profit.

Answer 5

IMHO, you should first make a list of requirements, and then ask the developers (whom you are potentially going to contact) what is best for your situation. Here, for example, specialists in Bitrix will answer you, then you will go looking for developers, and they write well in the symphony, but disdain to climb into Bitrix. Or vice versa.
Saas (as you have already been told Bitrix is ​​not Saas, Saas is insales or shopify) make simple sites, as a rule, it is usually simply impossible to screw complex functionality into them - there is no access to the code.
Such giants as Eldorado and Svyazny work on Bitrix - God knows what they have inside and how analytics and statistics work, but I think since the engine has not yet been changed - there is enough functionality.
If you write custom - negotiate with developers to document, use a modern framework, pay more and get ready for longer periods - then you will get a more intelligible system. In fact, developers who know frameworks now are no less than bitrixoids, and the big question is whose code is easier to maintain. Although the new developer will delve into custom completely for longer, at the same time you benefit from the fact that the solution will be tailored specifically to your needs and will solve them effectively, and not like Bitrix - through indistinct crutches. About crutches - this applies to any cms, not just Bitrix. I don’t want to holivar, I worked on Bitrix for the last time more than a year ago and didn’t dive deep into it, perhaps their framework now allows you to solve problems as efficiently as laravel does with eloquent or doctrine, but I highly doubt it. If there are Bitrix experts in the thread, let them correct me.