The context
Skills-based volunteering for Djif Communication, a Togolese journalist's individual business covering local Social and Solidarity Economy news. This project deepened my Next.js knowledge and Sanity CMS integration. The choice of Next.js allows for a planned evolution towards better decoupling of Sanity within the project, a flexibility I wouldn't have with low/no-code solutions. This architectural evolution possibility enables progressive migration to other data sources (API, Airtable, etc.) if needed. Next.js automatically optimizes images and ensures scalability for a growing site, with hosting flexibility (cloud, shared server, Vercel).
What I learn :
- Tech Stack:
- Next.js 14 with App Router for server-side rendering and SEO optimization
- Sanity CMS for article and media management
- Automatic image optimization with next/image
- Vercel hosting with continuous deployment
- Security headers configuration to protect the site
- Sitemap implementation to improve search engine indexing
- What I learned:
- Advanced integration and configuration of Sanity CMS in Next.js
- Decoupled architecture to avoid Sanity vendor lock-in
- SEO optimizations for a multilingual news site
- Hosting and infrastructure flexibility
- Collaboration with non-technical stakeholders
- Consulting and support:
- Recommendation to recruit volunteers skilled in SEO strategy to improve site visibility
- Recommendation to connect with volunteers skilled in legal matters for compliance
- Importance of international compliance depending on data hosting location
- Recommendations on image optimization for site performance and SEO
