I love learning something new and lately I have been really pushing the boundary with some products (yes that means more blogs coming) to see how you can really solve problems.

A lot of what I’m trying at the moment is to see possibilities in products and how to do more.

Contentful is a headless CMS that has been around for a while now and definitely a leader in the CMS space. It’s pure omni channel content delivery wrapped in a clean and clear UI.

I’m working with a customer that absolutely love the product and know this is the platform for them. They have a lot of business problems to solve and want to go from many distributed platforms to best in class SaaS solutions. One of their problems is extremely complicated and I had a genuine worry that we may encounter problems.

This is where App Framework came into save the day.

What is App Framework?

App Framework enables developers to extend and customize the Contentful platform by building apps that integrate directly into its UI and workflows.

It provides tools, APIs, and libraries to create apps that can enhance content editing, integrate third-party services, or add custom functionalities tailored to specific use cases.

Couple this with Forma 36 – the Contentful Design Framework – all apps look native inside the platform.

How does it solve the issue?

This actually gives endless possibilities for customers and problems. As it enables a wide range of customizations and integrations to tailor the Contentful web app for specific needs. Here are some examples what it can do:

1. Custom Field Editors: Replace or enhance default field editors with tailored interfaces that improve the content editing experience.
2. Content Versioning & Personalization: Implement tools to manage content versions, support A/B testing, and integrate personalization workflows.
3. Third-Party System Actions: Trigger external actions, such as CI/CD builds or notifications, directly from Contentful workflows.
4. Entry Editor Customization: Modify or extend the entry editor to better align with specific business requirements and processes.
5. Full-Page Applications: Build deeply integrated apps that function as full-page views within Contentful, allowing for advanced features or workflows.
6. Marketplace Integrations: Create reusable apps that can be shared across teams or made publicly available in the Contentful Marketplace.

Whatever you want to do it’s probably possible and will give you native feeling interfaces inside the platform.

So how do you get started

Its actually really simple and Contentful give you all the tools and documentation to get started and I have some links here:

• https://www.contentful.com/developers/docs/extensibility/app-framework/
• https://www.contentful.com/developers/docs/extensibility/app-framework/tutorial/
• https://www.contentful.com/developers/videos/app-framework-course/

The above will enable you to build your own apps and run them locally inside your Contentful instance, allowing for a more seamless integration of custom functionalities tailored specifically to your needs.

This capability not only enhances the flexibility of your development process but also ensures that you can test and iterate on your ideas in a controlled environment, providing a foundation for building robust applications that take full advantage of Contentful’s powerful features.

Furthermore, by developing locally, you can quickly debug any issues that arise and optimize your workflow before deploying to a live environment.

Last Thoughts

App Framework gives you a robust and scaleable way to build your own applications inside the solution. Go and try it out to see what possible.

There will be future posts that will expand on what I have been building using Contentful’s App Framework, diving deeper into the intricacies of the development process, showcasing various features, and sharing insights on how to effectively utilize this powerful tool to create seamless and dynamic applications that can enhance user experiences.

Moreover, I will cover best practices, potential challenges, and innovative solutions discovered along the way, ensuring that readers not only grasp the technical aspects but also find inspiration to undertake their own projects.