Why newsrooms are switching to Labrador CMS
From legacy systems to lightning-fast workflows
Publishing has changed, but your CMS probably hasn’t. The pace of digital newsrooms has accelerated. Think: fast publishing cycles. Multiformat content. Digital media. Revenue from newsletters, events, subscriptions, ads, and branded partnerships.
Audiences expect quality content, fast. Yet many editorial teams are stuck with legacy content management systems built for a different era. That’s why more media brands are moving away from traditional platforms and opting for tools designed to support their workflows.
Why traditional CMS platforms are holding you back
Traditional CMS platforms were often designed with the developer in mind. Editors are faced with clunky interfaces, long publishing pipelines, and confusing workarounds. Here’s what we hear most often when teams make the switch:
Limited editorial control
Most traditional CMS interfaces often need technical workarounds or developer input to get content looking the way editors want. That’s why we built the fastest article editor in the industry, which is so intuitive it needs no training.
With Labrador, what you see is what you get. So journalists can create, shape, and publish content without waiting.
Speed suffers
Legacy systems weren’t built for fast publishing or breaking news. When every second counts, sluggish performance costs clicks.
Labrador is lightning-fast by design. Our editor loads in under a second, and every action is instant, so your team can work at the breaking pace of the story.
Rigid workflows and inflexibility
Newsrooms don’t follow a one-size-fits-all model. Yet most CMS platforms do. Labrador gives you custom workflows, team-based permissions, and the ability to collaborate in real-time with no plugins needed.
Publishing priorities shift fast. With legacy systems, even small changes often need dev time and lengthy testing. Labrador is API-first and headless by design, so it’s easy to adapt, from website redesigns to channel expansion.
Overloaded tech teams
When editorial teams rely on tech support for day-to-day publishing, development backlogs get clogged with content admin instead of strategic work.
With Labrador, tech teams get time back to focus on innovation, not fixing broken templates or managing CMS permissions.
Paying for features not needed
Traditional enterprise CMS contracts often bundle in functionality that modern newsrooms don’t want or need. With Labrador, you get a powerful, modern CMS built for digital publishing with no pointless plugins.
Newsroom success stories: Norway’s newspapers switch to Labrador
In late 2023, eight local newspapers in Norway were told their existing technology partner could no longer support their CMS. With little time to act and high stakes for digital publishing, they needed a modern, reliable, and scalable solution fast. All eight chose Labrador CMS.
Within weeks, titles including Grenda, Vest-Telemark blad, and Os og Fusaposten had migrated to Labrador - live, integrated, and ready to publish. As Jarle Håvik, editor at Grenda, explained, "We are absolutely delighted with the new website we received through Labrador. It has given us many more opportunities to present our issues in a more exciting way."
The following year, media conglomerate Mentor Medier followed suit. They moved five major publications, including Vårt Land, Morgenbladet, Dagsavisen, and Klar Tale, from US-based platform Arc XP. The transition saw 150 journalists move to Labrador’s modern, user-friendly platform.
Mentor Medier's development director, Francis Lundh stated, “This is an exciting shift for our editorial teams, who will receive tools better suited to their daily work. We can focus more internal development on innovation around digital subscriptions and login solutions.”
Know why you’re migrating and what you need next
Most publishers migrate because they’ve outgrown their system. Maybe it’s not scalable. Maybe it relies on outdated plug-ins or custom code that’s become a maintenance headache. Maybe the editorial workflow is slowing down output.
The best migrations start with clarity. What’s not working today, and what must your next CMS support? Mobile-first content? In-built paywall features? Clean integrations? Start there.
Labrador CMS isn’t another publishing platform; it’s a newsroom-optimized, AI-ready, multilingual, full-stack CMS built for the pace and pressure of modern journalism. Interested in how Labrador makes migration painless? Read on.
Built for editors and engineers
One of the most common pain points for newsrooms before switching? Editors rely on developers or CMS specialists to publish or update content. Labrador flips this dynamic. Its intuitive user interface (UI) and powerful automation enable journalists to focus on reporting, not fighting templates.
In fact, one of the biggest benefits clients mention after migration is that their editors can finally manage the site themselves. They don’t need to call someone to change a headline or update a front page.
Labrador helps journalists work smarter with AI-powered features that generate different titles and introduction suggestions for easy editing and selection. It also saves time by suggesting image captions and headings based on article content, with image recognition coming soon. SEO is simplified too, with built-in sitemaps, microformats, and fast image optimization.
Labrador CMS empowers newsrooms to move fast and look good doing it. With features including:
Multilingual publishing tools with AI support for summarizing, translating, and tagging
Drag-and-drop layouts
Media integration (print systems, paywalls, apps)
Making the switch: Six lessons from CMS migrations
A smooth CMS migration matters as much as the new system. From our work with newsrooms across Europe, here are six common pitfalls and how to avoid them.
1. Rushing the planning phase
Every migration is different. Start with a clear audit: content volumes, users, custom setups, and legacy data quirks. Labrador’s team supports you with scoping sessions and a detailed migration plan, so nothing gets missed.
2. Migrating junk data
Old CMS platforms are often full of out-of-date or unused content. Don’t risk carrying over legacy issues into your new system.
3. Overcomplicating the new setup
It’s tempting to recreate every nuance of your old CMS. But migrations work best when you rethink what’s needed and simplify. Labrador’s flexible templates and intuitive editor make it easy to streamline content production.
4. Not engaging editorial users early enough
Editors and journalists are the ones using the CMS daily. Involving them in the migration, from testing to training, helps smooth the switch.
5. Skipping staging and testing
Replatforming is a big move. Test everything in a staging environment before switching over. Labrador supports sandbox testing to make sure everything works as expected.
6. Underestimating change management
Even if the new CMS is a welcome upgrade, change takes adjustment. Clear communications, training, and support help. Labrador includes onboarding, training, and ongoing support from journalists who understand editorial workflows.
Migration doesn’t have to be a migraine
Migrating a CMS can sound like a nightmare. Labrador has streamlined the process with a structured and supportive onboarding model. Each migration includes:
A dedicated team for onboarding and support
Pre-built integration templates for common newsroom tools
Training sessions for editorial staff
Proven in newsrooms, not only in slide decks
The Norwegian migration wasn’t a one-off. Over 150 media clients use Labrador CMS across Europe and beyond, from national titles to local independents. They enjoy:
Shared features and regular updates
Optimization for high-traffic publishing workflows
A company that understands journalism because it works with journalists daily
Ready to rethink your CMS?
If your platform is hindering your newsroom, it could be time for something new.Labrador is a CMS built for digital publishers - fast, flexible, and journalist-first from day one.
Want to see how it works? Book a demo here: https://www.labradorcms.com/contact
