The Future of DAM

In our previous post, we dealt with why digital asset managers (DAMs) are so important, considering that digital marketing is becoming increasingly complex and more competitive.

 

So, we argued that it's crucial that all your marketing processes be as efficient as possible. Now, when you consider how digital asset managers are changing, it turns out we could be right. This is simply because, nowadays, many DAMs have features that all aim to make asset management simpler, the platforms easier to use, and the entire process of digital asset management more intuitive.

But is this enough? Considering the increased demands on marketers, DAMs now need to be bigger and better than ever before. As a result, they should come with all the tools and features that give users everything they need to efficiently download the digital assets they want quickly, efficiently, and within the parameters set by the administrator.

From an administrator's perspective, DAMs should allow them to have centralised control over their digital assets which, in turn, ensures they can distribute digital assets anywhere in the world while knowing that their data, and brand, is protected.

It's precisely for this reason we mentioned that we'll look at the future of digital asset management and how the features of our platform brings the future closer. So, apart from the features mentioned in our first post, we'll now look at these additional features in more detail.

 

Metadata

 Metadata is the data points that contain all the details about a digital asset, describes it, and makes it easier to find. One of the main benefits of metadata is that it gives you more information about a digital asset than just face value.

 So, basically, it allows you to know everything you need to know about it. This includes everything from the uploader's details, size of the asset, dimensions, the date when it was uploaded, and more. In Simple Asset Manager, you're also able to set file expiry dates, which makes it the ideal solution for sensitive campaigns, to ensure exclusivity, and to eliminate overuse of the same assets.      

 Are you an uploader or administrator, and you want to make digital assets easier to find? Or maybe you're a downloader searching for a specific digital asset and can't find it? Then metadata is the answer.

 

Auto AI and Manual Tagging

 Simple Asset Manager's Auto AI tagging feature allows you to customise your DAM to recognise and tag assets as almost anything from faces, text, objects, colours, and more.

 In turn, manual tagging allows you to tag digital assets with any information you prefer. Ultimately, this gives you complete flexibility over how your asses are stored, and more importantly, found.

 So, if you need to find digital assets that fit certain characteristics, you'll always be able to find them quickly and easily. This means an end to those situations when you know you have an asset but don't know where to find it.

 

Search Functionality

 As the name suggests, the search functionality of a DAM allows you to search for a specific asset in your collection of stored assets. This means you don't have to spend hours searching through local or external hard drives or scroll through tons of assets just to find that one asset you need.

 Simple Asset Manager's search functionality ensures that you'll be able to find your digital assets easily by using tagging, metadata, and advanced searches. This means you'll save a lot of time and effort, which you could rather spend on completing your project.

 So, if you’re someone who's constantly searching for assets for your campaigns, search functionality is there to minimise the strain and ensure you get the right asset at the right time.

 

Text Analytics

 Text Analytics is the process of analysing and converting unstructured text data into information that you can easily understand, and by implication, find. This makes it the ideal solution for those times when it's not enough to know what an asset is but, more importantly, what it says.

Simple Asset Manager's Text Analytics feature can analyse a vast number of documents and tell you exactly what percentage of a specific document refers to any given subject.

So, if you deal with countless assets which are text heavy like leaflets, informational booklets, white papers, or how-to guides, you'll love text analytics for how easy it makes finding the digital assets you need.

 

Approvals and Governance

 In our earlier post, we mentioned how important compliance is in digital marketing. Simple Asset Manager's Approvals and Governance feature takes compliance to the next level. This is because the idea for Simple was born in financial services and, as a result, it's highly optimised for regulated industries.  

By design, this feature ensures effective and efficient governance and compliance and that no asset gets to the market without the right approvals. In addition, it gives you flexible approval processes that you can customise to your specific needs and requirements, as well as full tracking and reporting capabilities.

So, if you're responsible for brand governance, risk and compliance, or form part of the leadership of an organisation, you'll be able to track your compliance, governance, and approval processes more efficiently than ever.    

 

Bulk Sharing and Watermarking

In our previous post, we mentioned that the ideal DAM should allow for the seamless sharing of assets. Here, the bulk sharing feature of some digital asset managers make it easier for you to share folders and digital assets both with internal and external stakeholders. In turn, this ensures that the right stakeholders get the right assets at the right time.

In Simple Asset Manager, this process is as simple as selecting the folder or subfolder you want to share and creating a shareable link where stakeholders will be able to download a compressed version of the folder. You’re also able to share these assets in the platform with users who have already been granted access.

It doesn't stop there though, the platform also comes with watermarking features that allow you to protect your digital assets and ensure their integrity, no matter who you share them with.  

This makes it the perfect solution if you're someone who needs to manage many digital assets and find it difficult to track them.  

 

In-App Markup and Editing

In-app markup and editing allows you to mark up, give feedback, or leave comments on any digital asset within the platform. This means no more email feedback, or, even worse, downloading and printing the asset to make notes on it.

As a result, Simple Asset Manager's Markup feature gives you a structured framework for your reviews and approvals and a central place where you can collate feedback.

Apart from making your review and approval processes quicker, easier, and more efficient, this feature also allows your teams to collaborate better. It also allows you to reduce the number of revisions and, as a result, the number of versions of an asset you generate. Ultimately, you'll end up saving time and money.  

So, if you're a reviewer or approver, you’ll find the most value in this feature and, apart from the benefits mentioned above, you'll be able to use your DAM for more than just storage.

 

Open API

An API allows you to integrate one platform or application with another. In other words, when your systems are integrated, you’ll be able to use the data in one system across all your applications.

Simple's Integration feature, thanks to the Open Data Initiative, has over 500 connectors that allow you to integrate your systems effortlessly. This is especially valuable considering that most marketers nowadays use a variety of systems or platforms in their campaigns.

As a result, you'll be able to integrate Simple with several market-leading tools including Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, Adobe, Salesforce, Simple Marketing Ops, Microsoft Dynamics 365, and many more.

So, if you're someone who relies on multiple systems in your workflow, but you're tired of switching between applications, our Integration feature was built for you.

 

Baskets

Our Basket feature allows you to seamlessly share multiple assets from different sources. This makes it the ideal feature to not only save time and be more efficient, but also to reduce the number of assets you'll need to download. This is because it gives you the ability to review collections of assets and download only those you need.

So, if you're someone who works with many assets from different sources, and you want to save time and effort, you can use this feature to create and share baskets of only the assets you or other stakeholders need.

 

In Closing

As you can see from the features described above, DAMs should go further than just providing secure storage. In fact, the right DAM should provide you with the complete solution to store, manage, and download your digital assets. Hopefully, this post helped illustrate what the essential features are and how Simple provides them.

 To find out more about Simple and how it can help you, visit our website for more details.