When selecting a CMS package, look for a vibrant local User Group. An active UG can help you quickly decode the inevitable mysteries in any software that the vendor can't or won't explain. And many times developers will say things in person that they would not commit to writing in a listserv. Measures of vibrancy include frequency of meetings, customer-driven seminar topics, and lots of time for open-ended Q & A. Plus one more thing: we like UGs that are open to all comers -- as opposed to limiting attendance to official, licensed customers. Yes, the riff-raff can be a distraction, but it's also a sign of a confident vendor and user community that is unafraid to expose inner secrets and received wisdom to prospects still on the fence...
A New MS CMS User Group is forming in the UK