DAM explained in plain English
What exactly is Digital Asset Management?
"Digital Asset Management (aka DAM) consists of management tasks and decisions surrounding the ingestion, annotation, cataloguing, storage, retrieval and distribution of digital assets."(Source: Wikipedia).DAM is a concept that starts from the assumption that certain files (assets) have a high intrinsic value to an organization (for example brand identity artwork files). This value can be amortized across multiple uses more readily by using a database system (instead of a file system) to track, organize, display and distribute these assets. (Source: damagemag.com/DAMDictionary.htm).In DAM - files with high intrinsic value, are recognized as valuable assets of the organization or business, are called digital assets and are often managed with the same care as physical assets.DAM systems, typically software or web-based services, provide tools to store, manage and securely distribute digital assets (files) to authorized users.
The 10 Characteristics of a DAM
The DAM Foundation defines 10 standard requirements of a DAM.- DAM systems ingest assets individually or in mass sets, and allow for the manipulation of those assets and their metadata individually or with mass actions.
- DAM systems secure the assets they contain. Security in a DAM extends to defining access control lists (ACLs) for assets and defining roles for users accessing the system.
- DAM systems store assets as both binaries and metadata. A DAM system can store multiple file types and allows for the customization of metadata fields and the metadata in those fields attached to the stored files.
- DAM systems render/transform assets upon ingesting into new forms, such as thumbnails or proxy files. The new forms generated on asset ingest via transformation should all be stored as asset parts of the original file uploaded.
- DAM systems enrich assets through the extension of metadata and metrics regarding the use and reuse of the asset throughout its lifecycle.
- DAM systems relate assets by tracking the relationships between and among an original asset and versions/variants of the original. Versioning and version control tools are central to an asset’s life in a DAM system.
- DAM systems regulate a structured process in the management, creation, and review of assets with workflow tools. Via programmed workflows, DAMs allow for a decentralized workforce to collaborate together in a centralized system.
- DAM systems allow for users to find assets and to retrieve those assets by facilitating search through metadata, collections, workflows, and access control tools. By increasing the discovery of assets that may not have been easily accessible before ingest, a DAM assists workers in leveraging existing content for maximum work potential.
- DAM systems have a preview function that allows users to view assets before downloading or opening a file on their own device. By allowing users to take a look at assets in search quickly, without download, DAM systems reduce the amount of time users must spend in search.
- DAM systems produce/publish content by providing methods whereby assets may be shared, linked to, or otherwise be distributed outside the system. This DAM function may be as simple as generating a URL on ingest or as complex as allowing users to build collections of items for sharing with a workgroup.
Additional reading:
- [https://www.brandkit.io/blog/the-8-core-features-of-a-modern-digital-asset-management-system](The 8 core features of a modern Digital Asset Management system)
- [https://www.brandkit.io/blog/tagging-guide-a-framework-for-digital-asset-management](Tagging Guide - A Framework for digital asset management)
- [https://www.brandkit.io/blog/is-there-a-best-practice-way-to-setup-your-brandkit-visual-library-or-dam](Is there a Best Practice way to setup your Brandkit, Visual Library or DAM?)
- [https://www.brandkit.io/blog/un-stock-your-visual-content-marketing](Un-stock your Visual Content Marketing.)
- [https://www.brandkit.io/blog/we-re-a-media-company-now-inside-marriott-s-incredible-money-making-content-studio](‘We’re a Media Company Now’: Inside Marriott’s Incredible Money-Making Content Studio)
- [https://www.brandkit.io/blog/maybe-a-mini-dam-is-all-you-need-e6eac73d-bb58-49e0-84aa-6e1881c0a5a7](Maybe a Mini DAM is all you need).
- [https://www.brandkit.io/pages/why-dam](Why DAM?)
- [https://www.brandkit.io/pages/why-not-dam](Why Not DAM? )
- [https://www.brandkit.io/pages/dam-vs-dropbox](DAM vs Dropbox)
- [https://www.brandkit.io/pages/brand-management-systems](Maybe what you need is a Brand Management System (NOT a DAM))
DAM explained in plain English
What exactly is Digital Asset Management (aka DAM)? DAM explained in plain English.