What is a DAM and why do I need one?

A DAM (digital asset management) solution is a central repository for managing all the different types of files that are the foundations of every integrated marketing campaign. These campaigns can run across a wide range of print/offline, web, mobile, social media and outdoor channels, and are produced by feeding your files to a wide variety of applications like your CMS, The Adobe Creative Suite, social channels, and more.

You need a DAM when it becomes difficult or impossible to manage all of the files, (each with a different size, format, and permission) across your content, publishing, advertising and marketing channels. A DAM simplifies your life, making files easy to find, organize, version, approve, use, and export quickly to a range of different destinations. Lost assets no longer happen, lost time is vastly reduced, and you get to be in control of your creative and production processes.

When do you need a DAM?

Everyone starts out using some form of folder structure, where the name of the folder is the only metadata. These folders are usually dispersed on the laptops of several people in your department, so typically the tipping point for considering a DAM is when assets grow in such quantity that users have a hard time remembering in what folder, on whose computer, a given file lives.