What Is Enterprise Digital Asset Management and How To Improve It
Why do we spend so much time on content?
Larger traction on social media, customer trust and better lead generation are just some of the benefits of content marketing.
For small companies or teams with 1-5 employees and only a 3-page website, managing content may not be that big of a problem.
But once you’re working for a corporation, especially a thriving manufacturer, handling over 30,000 pictures monthly (in all kinds of formats), it's a different story.
The unique demands of industrial-scale production and the diverse array of visual assets create a distinctive content challenge.
And then picture a scenario: Multiple teams within that manufacturing giant commence working on different content, not knowing which version of a logo is the most accurate one.
Safe to say “goodbye” to brand consistency.
So to handle this massive load of 360,000 images annually, you need a robust solution: Enterprise digital asset management.
In this article we’ll take a closer look at enterprise digital asset management: What it is, why enterprises need better digital asset management, 5 benefits of having a robust DAM system for enterprises, and how manufacturers can benefit from a DAM.
Table of contents
What is enterprise digital asset management software?
Why enterprises need better digital asset management
5 benefits of improved enterprise digital asset management
Why manufacturing companies need DAM
What is enterprise digital asset management software?
Digital asset management (DAM) software is a “single source of truth” for all your digital assets, like photos, videos, documents, etc. It’s one place where you store and manage all the content on your website.
You can think of it as one huge shared drive - but DAMs today come with much more robust features to handle the sheer amount of digital assets you create.
Today, enterprise companies use DAM to not only store tons of assets, but to safely share them with external partners and stakeholders.
Nowadays, assets are scattered across Sharepoint, Google Drive, web content systems, and individual computers.
But with a DAM, everything comes together like magic.
Take a manufacturing company for example. They deal with thousands and thousands of products for multiple e-commerce platforms. Enter DAM, which helps them gain control over their content and make sure only the correct versions are distributed all over.
Why enterprises need better digital asset management
Dealing with an ever-growing number of digital assets can present multiple challenges for enterprise companies.
Here are the three biggest reasons as to why enterprises need to invest in digital asset management:
1. Disorganized assets and redundancy
One of the biggest reasons why enterprises should invest in a DAM system is from their lack of organization when it comes to content.
Enterprises create so much content nowadays from different departments and sources over time. Without a centralized solution like DAM, these assets can become scattered across different storage locations.
The result?
Teams start wasting time just looking for content or unknowingly using outdated versions. Which leads to inconsistent communication and branding.
A dynamic and robust DAM system today will support enterprises by consolidating their assets into one single place, which helps get rid of redundancies and enables efficient search and retrieval.
2. Poor collaboration and bottlenecks
When you’re dealing with traditional file-sharing tools like shared network folders or email, bottlenecks, and version control issues are bound to happen.
Plus, when tons of people work on the same content at the same time, having control over different file versions becomes a challenge - which leads to wasted time, effort, and conduction (you get the gist).
Not to mention that collaboration can become slow and cumbersome when tracking changes, getting approvals on content, and receiving timely feedback. Ultimately hindering the progress of your campaigns and content creation.
When you have a lot of people in the loop, it's hard to keep track of who made what changes, when they made them and what exact piece of content is the right one to hit all the channels.
3. Lack of security and access control
Large enterprises deal with highly sensitive data, so security is a major concern. And if they distribute assets through uncontrolled channels or even give the wrong people access, it’s almost like opening the door to data breaches and a risk of damaging their reputation.
Enterprises also have a tough time setting up strong access controls to protect their digital stuff properly. It's almost like trying to lock up a super-secret vault.
To tackle these challenges, it’s time to go for an enterprise DAM system.
It's the solution for managing assets in not only the most streamlined way possible but also the most safe way possible.
5 benefits for enterprise digital asset management
DAM tools offer a range of benefits to enterprises. Here are the five biggest advantages:
Centralized brand asset management
Since enterprises often deal with a huge amount of digital assets (logos, brand guidelines, etc.), a DAM system can step in as the ultimate organizer.
When you consolidate all your assets in the DAM software, both your internal and external teams, your design teams, and your marketing teams can effortlessly access all the relevant and approved versions of media assets they require. It becomes a one-stop hub for finding and utilizing the right resources efficiently.
Which leads to more brand consistency across your communication channels.
Collaborative content creation and approval:
When enterprises create content, they often deal with tons of different teams and stakeholders at once.
So to make that collaboration process smooth, a DAM can help by providing strong version control. Plus, commenting and approval workflows.
The result is that teams can work much more efficiently together on assets (at the same time) and review other’s work by getting feedback in real time.
In other words, it reduces the need for endless email exchanges and it ensures that assets are actually approved for use each time.
Take Digizuite DAM for instance. Digizuite's DAM software offers 34 workflows, including asset approval, publishing, usage approval, and end-of-life. You can easily change them to fit your organization and get automatic task notifications.
Secure file sharing and access controls
Security is a top priority for enterprises - especially when it comes to their digital assets. DAM tools today will offer strong access control mechanisms - which allow certain admins to define user permissions based on roles.
The result?
Making sure that sensitive assets (like intellectual property or financial documents) are only accessible to authorized users. All while upholding a secure and smooth file-sharing environment.
Digizuite's DAM ensures top-notch access control through simple permission settings, restricting user access to specific assets, and setting expiration dates. This comprehensive approach effectively prevents any kind of unauthorized entry.
Efficient metadata management and search
Without proper navigation and organization, finding that one piece of content (in the large amount of digital assets enterprises pump out) becomes challenging.
Enter DAM, which enables efficient metadata management. Users can tag assets (either manually or automatically) with relevant descriptions, keywords, and custom attributes.
This then boosts your advanced search functionalities, and you’re on the fast track for easy retrieval and distribution of content within projects and on all your channels.
Digizuite DAM's AI-driven search lets you quickly find content for campaigns and websites. You can start with text or criteria and refine with filters and save your most frequent searches for ongoing use.
Integration with existing applications and workflows
Large enterprises often use tons of tools and applications in their day-to-day operations. That’s why it's critical to use a DAM that integrates with your existing software like your CMS, your PIM, and your creative tools like Adobe Creative Cloud.
The result of this kind of integration is a boost in overall efficiency of asset distribution, data exchange, and your overall marketing strategy.
With Digizuite, you can easily adapt to current and future business demands with our built-in UI, flexible automation engine, and open API’s and SDK’s and seamlessly integrate with any third-party system.
Why manufacturers need DAM: A day-to-day example
A lot of big enterprises today are found within the manufacturing industry.
How do they deal with the increasing amount of digital assets (product images, assembly instructions, marketing materials) they produce?
Let’s take a look at how manufacturers deal with their content workflows without and with DAM:
Day-to-Day example without DAM:
Product development: With the team producing several versions of CAD drawings, design mock-ups, and product images - these assets are scattered across different folders on team member’s computers.
Marketing material: In order to do their job, the marketing department needs the most relevant product images to create material for the upcoming trade show. Time is significantly wasted as they sift through lengthy email chains and shared drives to find the files they need.
Collaboration issues: The design team is spread out all over the world, and they need to work together on changing the product assembly instructions. Emails are sent back and forth stuffed with large files that take too long to load - which leads to version control issues and more delays.
Old, irrelevant material: The sales team (accidentally) provides a new client with old marketing brochures filled with outdated product specifications and images - which leads to not only unprofessionalism but also confusion.
Data security challenges: With content “all over the place” (on different devices and drives) - the enterprise stands face to face with potential security risks and unrestricted access to sensitive design files.
But when equipped with a robust DAM system, let’s see how their day-to-day content operations change.
Day-to-Day example with DAM
Digital assets in one place: The DAM serves as a “single source of truth” - being a central repository for all digital assets. Product development teams can easily search, find, and tag assets to make them easily accessible to all relevant stakeholders.
Search and retrieve assets efficiently: The marketing department can easily search for and find the most relevant product images and videos from one centralized library, which as a result streamlines their entire creative process from start to finish.
Improved collaboration: With DAM, the design team can easily collaborate across borders within the DAM system. Real-time modifications to the assembly instructions are easily made, which helps avoid version control issues.
Automated versioning: The DAM can automatically update assets and present only the newest version so that marketing brochures and materials always include the most current product information.
Increased security: Thanks to DAMs role-based access controls, only those with authorized access can get their hands on sensitive design files. The result? Reducing security risks and making sure data remains confidential.
Conclusion
Overall, a digital asset management tool helps enterprises:
> Centralize their digital assets
> Collaborate more efficiently
> Share their files safely
> Manage their metadata efficiently
> Integrate with their existing tools and technology.
As a result, enterprises are able to improve internal and external collaboration, reduce inefficiencies, maintain brand consistency, and strengthen security when handling their digital assets throughout the organization.
Ready to learn more about how your enterprise can benefit from a digital asset management tool?
