What is digital asset management?

Image: Screen example of the Terentia platform.

This post is part of Terentia’s basic series aimed at helping to provide more context and clarity around important terms in the industry.

You’re either already working in the DAM industry or have heard the term and want to learn more. While the phrase may be considered self-explanatory, what exactly is DAM?

What is digital asset management?

DAM is that singular and combined source that allows organizations to store, organize, manage, discover, distribute and connect assets. DAM is how we manage in a digital environment. 

Defining digital asset management (DAM) isn’t difficult but sometimes the terminology can get a bit technical and even convoluted (but we’re to help so it doesn’t get that way). 

It is both a system and a practice area. 

Think of how DAM could incorporate brand, production, collections, rights management, etc. 

What goes into a DAM?

A lot of hard work!

We know that’s oversimplifying it, but that’s meant to be a nod to all of the hardworking individuals and teams who are constantly thinking about DAM management. 

So what goes into a DAM? A DAM system or software houses repositories of media files including images, photos, audio, documents, videos, text. This could be items from your collections or even your brand assets. Then, by applying metadata taxonomies to assets, DAM managers and other users are able to group, search, and distribute what’s in the DAM. 

Depending on the DAM solution, there are different features and capabilities. Though you’ll want one that doesn’t limit your space and the potential for how you can use your assets to support your organization. 

DAM systems are often implemented by marketing and operations teams across various industries for help in defining and managing their online brands. These products can also be used to reduce the duplication of an organization’s assets, maintain up-to-date collections, and control security of assets with role-based permissions. Some businesses assign specific individuals as DAM administrators or “librarians" to oversee these assets and ensure they follow established brand-specific guidelines.

Who should be using a DAM?

All departments! From collections to operations to marketing, a DAM allows for different assets to all be combined into a singular system. With the right platform you can break down departmental silos and create a cohesive home for all of your institution’s assets.

You’re essentially allowing teams to have company-wide access to presentations, graphics, videos, images, audio files--whatever you add to your DAM. And the right system for your organization will enable you to create teams and different permissions on access as needed, but it just got a lot easier to be collaborative and get people excited about your institution. 

Why is DAM important for your cultural (or any) organization?

Think about the efficiency of having a single source to house all of the information, assets, and stories you have. Some organizations don’t have a DAM at all and others have multiple DAMS sometimes even going as far as having a different DAM per department. 

Having the right DAM in place allows your teams to have access to assets to be able to better do their own jobs and also ultimately serve the mission of the institution (whether it’s the PR department sharing images and stories from an event or the editorial team pulling an image of an artifact to be able to add to the organization’s member magazine--the use cases can go on and on). 

Having an organized, centralized repository for your assets are key for you to be able to tell new stories and engage with audiences. Chat with us to learn more about how Terentia’s platform can help you get there.