How To Choose A Digital Asset Management System: Key Criteria
Boost Productivity with DAM: DAM systems help efficiently store and manage critical digital assets, and make sure the team has easy access to the right resources to do their jobs well.
Key DAM Selection Criteria: When choosing a DAM tool, keep these key requirements in mind: integrations with your existing tools, strong security, storage capacity, user seats, and customer support.
Leadership Buy-in is Crucial: Once you've shortlisted your top picks, get buy-in from leadership and make sure they recognize the system's value. This will ensure it's used throughout your org from the top down.
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Digital asset management (DAM) systems are effective for managing processes and information. They help you store, organize, and prioritize important digital assets, so you and your team can focus on delivering results and elevating performance.
Without a DAM that fits your business needs, your team will spend extra time looking for assets and perhaps using outdated or incorrect ones. Let me walk you through selecting the right digital asset management system for your business.
Why You Need A Digital Asset Management System
Digital asset management is your ticket to improving efficiency and maintaining brand integrity. With a digital asset management solution in place, teams can effectively and efficiently produce, organize, and manage digital content.
The right people will be able to securely access your assets and find what they need quickly, saving them time.
- Time and money savings: With a centralized digital asset management system in place, teams spend less time finding what they need and more time delivering project value. The money-saving part comes from the time reduction in finding assets, and you can even find open-source digital asset management software to help reduce spending.
- Brand authority: Team members have access to the latest versions of digital assets consistently and quickly, so they can keep the brand intact.
- Happier, more productive people: A DAM will help streamline the workflow, reframe the pace of collaboration, and speed up the content creation process.
- Optimization through automation: Various search features like metadata tagging and even facial recognition based searches can simplify access to assets.
- Security: The risk of loss and misuse is significantly reduced with the use of file and user permissions features.
Use Cases For DAM Systems
Digital asset management tools can support organizational goals of achieving greater efficiency and effectiveness. Here are a few use cases exploring how DAM systems enable teams to drive real business value.
- Sales and client experience: When the DAM system works in conjunction with the sales collaboration software the team is using, sales teams are better equipped to guide clients through the pipeline and have the right assets at their fingertips to support client decision-making.
- Streamlined workflows: With a central repository for all digital assets, team members can easily manage and retrieve digital files. This reduces time spent on version control and searching for assets.
- Collaboration: Teams that travel or work remotely can access the same assets in real time, simplifying collaboration.
- Brand management: DAMs enable creative teams and marketing teams to support brand authority by using the most recent and accurate brand assets, such as logos and iconography. You as the admin can set access controls to make sure the right assets are being used in the right places.
Need expert help selecting the right tool?
With one-on-one help, we guide you to your top software options. Narrow down your software search & make a confident choice.
Criteria For Evaluating DAM Systems
The right DAM software has the features and functionalities that support your process and business needs. It should support productivity and help you maintain brand consistency. Here are the essential criteria to consider when evaluating prospective DAM providers:
- Organizational needs: What are your business’s needs? What value does a DAM system create for your organization? For example, small businesses may benefit from low-cost, easy-to-use platforms that can offer flexibility and scalability as their teams grow.
- User interface and learning curve: Consider involving your team members in the DAM system selection process, especially when you’re testing demos. Their input on ease of use, the user experience, and usability will be valuable, as they will be the main users of the system.
- Tool integration: What tools does your organization use, and what DAM integrations are necessary? Does the tool you’re considering offer integration capabilities with the other tools in your tech stack?
- Security: What are the internal and external security considerations regarding your firm's digital assets? Do you require on-premise software, or can you choose a cloud-based option?
- Search functionality: What search capabilities does your team need to locate assets efficiently (e.g. searching by metadata tags)?
- Storage capacity: What is the size and complexity of your digital asset library? What does your digital asset lifecycle look like?
- Customer support: What does accessing support look like, and is the DAM system provider known for client service?
- Pricing: What is your budget? When it comes to digital asset management pricing, you need to consider initial set-up fees, monthly recurring license fees, fee structure options, and price per seat. Although free digital asset management software is available, the steps below will help you understand when to consider it.
- System compatibility: Ensure the DAM software is compatible with your team’s operating systems and devices. Whether your team uses macOS, Windows, or a mix of both, the platform should offer a smooth and reliable user experience.
Need expert help selecting the right tool?
With one-on-one help, we guide you to your top software options. Narrow down your software search & make a confident choice.
How To Choose A DAM System
Once you have a business case for a DAM system, it is time to place your criteria into a decision framework.
1. Assess Your Needs
Complete a needs assessment—ask yourself these pertinent questions:
- How many users are needed, and who will they be?
- What types of permissions will different users require?
- Are their compliance and governance considerations?
- What types of digital assets are involved, and in what volume (e.g. file types like audio files, video files, photos, etc.)?
- What are the unique issues that a DAM platform needs to solve for your organization?
2. Shortlist DAM System Options
There are plenty of DAM vendors available. How can you find the one that is best suited for your purposes? Protect yourself from overwhelm and create a shortlist of 3 to 5 that you will deeply explore.
If you are considering the enterprise version of one of these systems, consider the following advice from a DAM Manager.
Ask during demos what’s included in the enterprise version and what’s an add-on—those add-ons will get you in the end with recurring yearly licenses.
Therefore, give yourself a reasonable time frame as this will involve multiple conversations with decision makers, as well as scheduling and going through several digital asset management software demos.
3. Evaluate Your Shortlist According To Your Criteria
Compare your organization's needs and evaluation criteria to the features and functionalities offered by each of the providers on your shortlist. Carefully explore reviews, and sign up for free trials and demos.
Enlist a test group of users for the DAM solutions on your shortlist and get their feedback prior to selection.
4. Get Buy-In From Team & Management
Develop a compelling business case that highlights the benefits of your preferred digital asset management system. Communicate how it will support organizational strategic objectives—driving efficiency, effectiveness, and the bottom line along the way.
What's Next:
If you're in the process of researching digital asset management systems, connect with a SoftwareSelect advisor for free recommendations.
You fill out a form and have a quick chat where they get into the specifics of your needs. Then you'll get a shortlist of software to review. They'll even support you through the entire buying process, including price negotiations.