What to save in Digital Asset Management platforms: Defining the Challenges and Strategies

In today's digital age, organizations are swimming in a vast sea of digital assets. From photos and videos to PDFs and logos, the list of digital content types seems endless. With the proliferation of digital cameras capable of capturing dozens of frames per second and the advent of generative AI, the creation and accumulation of digital assets have reached unprecedented levels. According to a Gartner report, the average file size of digital assets has increased by 35% over the past five years due to the rise of high-resolution media and advanced video formats. With all of these advancements, organizations face the daunting challenge of determining what to store in their Digital Asset Management (DAM) software.

As organizations grow, so does the size and complexity of their digital asset repositories. One of the fundamental questions in DAM software is whether to keep every version of an asset or just the final iteration. While the final asset may seem like the desired destination, the journey it took to get there holds valuable insights, especially in Work In Progress (WIP) scenarios. Storing intermediate versions can aid in tracking changes, understanding the evolution of assets, and facilitating collaboration among team members. However, it also poses the risk of cluttering the DAM software with redundant or outdated files.

The dilemma of what to keep, kill, or combine becomes even more pronounced in the face of the exponential growth of content creation. Easy access to content creation tools through DAM integrations and the rise of generative AI have made it effortless to produce and edit digital assets. Yet, this abundance comes with a cost: the risk of creating search clutter, inefficient asset retrieval, and information overload. Without a systematic approach to asset management, organizations may find themselves drowning in a sea of irrelevant or duplicate files, making it challenging to locate and utilize valuable assets when needed.

In light of these challenges, it's imperative for organizations to develop a comprehensive strategy for managing their digital assets effectively. This strategy should encompass several key considerations:

• Establish Clear Criteria for Asset Retention: Define clear criteria for determining which assets to retain and for how long. Consider factors such as relevance, usage frequency, and legal or compliance requirements. Identify assets that hold strategic or historical significance to the organization and prioritize their preservation.
  
  
• Implement Version Control and Revision Tracking: Implement robust version control mechanisms to track changes and revisions to digital assets. Capture metadata associated with each version, including timestamps, contributors, and change history. This enables teams to trace the evolution of assets and revert to previous versions if necessary.
  
  
• Implement Review and Approval Processes: Establish clear review and approval processes for digital assets, especially those generated or modified using generative AI. Define criteria for evaluating the quality, relevance, and compliance of AI-generated assets. A report by McKinsey highlights that generative AI is expected to contribute to a 10% annual growth rate in digital content creation. Consider incorporating metadata fields to indicate the involvement of generative AI in asset creation or editing, enabling teams to track and assess the value of such assets over time.
  
  
• Utilize Cold Storage for Archival: Implement a tiered storage approach, with cold storage reserved for archival of assets that are infrequently accessed but still hold value. Cold storage solutions offer a cost-effective means of retaining large volumes of digital assets without burdening primary storage resources. Define retention policies for cold storage assets to ensure compliance with regulatory requirements and minimize storage costs. 
  
  
• Regularly Review Redundant Assets: Conduct regular audits of the DAM system to identify redundant or obsolete assets. Establish criteria for determining when to delete assets, such as expiration of relevance or lack of usage over a specified period. Implement automated workflows for asset lifecycle management, including archival, deletion, or consolidation of assets based on predefined rules. Best practice is to store as much as you can, but defining these workflows helps determine when you have too much of a certain type of asset. 
  
  
• Opt for Write Once Read Many (WORM) Storage: WORM storage ensures that your files cannot be overwritten once they are saved. This type of storage is crucial for compliance with various government regulations and industry standards that require data integrity and long-term preservation of digital assets. WORM storage is particularly important for industries like finance, healthcare, and legal services, where tamper-proof records are essential for audits, legal holds, and regulatory compliance.

In conclusion, the process for determining what to store in a cloud-based Digital Asset Management system should be multifaceted and require a proactive and strategic approach. By establishing clear criteria for asset retention, implementing robust version control and metadata tagging mechanisms, and leveraging automation technologies, organizations can effectively manage their digital assets and derive maximum value from their content repositories. By navigating the seas of digital asset management with foresight and diligence, organizations can harness the power of their digital assets to drive innovation, collaboration, and success. To learn how Orange Logic can help your team, schedule a call today.