How a DAM Can Define Your Content Strategy

People have woken up to the realization that content is the fuel which runs a company. They’ve also woken up to the fact that managing content is easier said than done, which is why digital asset management (DAM) is among hottest marketing technologies there is right now. But while digital asset management might be the engine that runs content, to paraphrase DAM expert, former Principal Consultant at KlarisIP, Theresa Regli, it’s only where the assets are firing from, you also have to be able to fire them out.

Nick Barber of Forrester Research agrees when he states that “…the power of the DAM is integrating with delivery channels so that you can have large volumes of content, in effect a scalable library, that you can deliver to email, or WCM (Web Content Management), or PIM (Product Information Management), or CXM (Customer Experience Management), or even videos to social channels.”

To compete and succeed, it’s vital that your strategy is not just running smoothly but is connected, unified and innovative. 50% of organizations operate with at least twelve distinct consumer touchpoints. Those using a single platform, where data from several systems, beginning with your content manager, works as one will be able to better utilize data and more efficient internal and external communications methods.

Innovation opportunity

DAM is no longer meant to be a standalone system used to upload an asset, add metadata and taxonomy, and download it again every time you want to use or change it. The requirements have changed. It’s meant to form the core of a broader technology stack which facilitates various processes and systems to do much more. Bringing together systems in this way isn't just possible, it’s easy—and can be done in a way that suits your structure and budget restrictions.

In the past, a digital asset management system just had to store, secure, monitor, update and distribute assets. Today, the requirements of a DAM are a bit more robust. If the functionality is not capable of managing product information (PIM), marketing resources (MRM), or allow you to update your website in real time , there will be a disconnect between your content and the data you need in order to fully use it. Because a DAM’s purpose of storing and managing digital assets is still primary, ensuring that the technology can support a strategic omnichannel approach will push a system beyond what used to be considered a DAM.

Organizational benefits

How will a DAM impact your organization in practical terms?

Efficiency. Save time by building in basic publishing tools. Embedded links and CMS connectors cut out the download/upload process and integrate assets directly into blogs, websites or social media. RSS feeds let managers monitor changes without the need for lengthy meetings and reports. And the list goes on…
Brand consistency. Your DAM can be customized so that colleagues, clients and franchisees access your system without noticing that they’ve left your website. And with all the relevant metadata, there’s less risk of users picking up incorrect or outdated assets.
Innovation. A DAM can allow users to engage with other departments, checking they have the latest asset or feeding back ideas for improvements. With project management or creative suites built in to your platform, and your talkative teams can make changes as they discuss them—directly in your DAM.
Consolidation. Quite simply, a DAM is more than just a single point of truth. Today it should be a consolidated platform that begins with content and ends with data.

The DAM Selection

By keeping in mind that a DAM should be the central portion of your content management strategy and seeking software accordingly, you will ensure that your content is truly able to fuel your company while your DAM is the engine that’s burning it. Choosing the options that best suits your business, however, can be a long process. If you’re at the beginning of your DAM search, or looking for new clues as you close in on a vendor, download our HOT DAM 10: Choosing Your DAM Solution whitepaper below for some tips on conducting your search.