A 2013 Gartener report states that more than 25% of the content that workers see in a day consists of pictures, video, or audio (Extensis, 2013). Because a large percentage of information intake happens through visual media, handling visual assets effectively is an important task for both organizations and individuals. This is where Digital Asset Management (DAM) comes in play. As the Stibo Systems website explains, “DAM is the management, cataloging, storage, retrieval, and distribution of digital, media, and brand assets – which can include everything from PDFs, videos, images, to music, and more.” Although this is the general description of digital asset management, DAM can stand for either the strategy of managing digital assets throughout their entire lifecycle, or the systems, which are the combination of specific type of software and hardware that help to implement a DAM strategy (Keathley E. , 2014).

In order for DAM programs to be certified as DAMs they have to meet the following ten characteristics as described by Mark Davey, CEO of IQequity and President of DAM Foundation, and ratified by DAM Foundation board members. The ten essential characteristics inquire that DAM systems:

1. Ingest assets individually or in mass sets.
2. Secure the assets they contain.
3. Store assets as both binaries and metadata.
4. Render/transform assets on ingest into new forms, such as thumbnails or proxy files.
5. Enrich assets through the extension of metadata and metrics regarding the use and reuse of the assets throughout its lifecycle.
6. Relate assets by tracking the relationships between and among an original asset and versions/variants of the original.
7. Regulate a structured process in the management, creation, and review of assets with workflow tools.
8. Allow for users to find assets and to retrieve those assets by facilitating search through metadata, collections, workflows, and access control tools.
9. Have a preview function that allows users to view assets before downloading or opening a file on their own device.
10. Produce/publish content by providing methods whereby assets may be shared, linked to, or otherwise be distributed outside the system. (Davey, 2014)
    
    

Even though these ten characteristics are essential for DAMs, they do not guarantee success for the software. In addition to the basic requirements, DAMs should also generate unique ID codes, handle several different file types, and provide administrative capabilities and the ability to have different user types (Keathley E. , 2014).

Moreover, user interface (UI) is one of the characteristics that forms the basis of a good system, but is often overlooked (Rouke, DAM Usability and Access: How do I look (and feel)?, 2014). In his article “DAM Usability and Access: How do I look (and feel)?”, James Rouke (2014), a DAM consultant at IQequity, states that “a well-functioning system that looks dated or too technical might miss out to a less well-functioning system that looks nicer and is easier to use.” The goal of the UI is to make the users feel excited by the opportunities presented by the system, not to make them feel alienated as described by David Austerberry (2005), the author of Digital Asset Management (Focal Press, 2004). Michael Kräftner (2010), CEO of Celum, also knows the importance of simple UI. He states that even though the system is extremely complex “it should smell, look, and feel like something I am already used to.” Kräftner (2010) explains this fenomen through the following methaphor:

“[The system] should be a Ferrari that at the first glance just looks like the coziest minivan you can imagine, but under the hood it is still a Ferrari, but I am not scared about its possible speed. I will enjoy driving fast, but I am not scared because it does not look aggressive.”

Yet another feature that is essential for a successful DAM system is the interoperability and content exchangeability with other systems (Käftner, 2010). An example of this type of compatibility is Cumulus’ Adobe Drive Adapter that allows the user to work natively in the Adobe software and quickly check the file back in to Cumulus (Canto, 2014). Another plug-in for Cumulus is the PDF Extended Pack, which aids in separating pages and rebuilding PDF files (Canto, 2014). Similarly, North Plains (2012) provides the “compatibility with Adobe Creative Suite 6 and the capability to transfer assets and metadata from Xinet to Telescope via ConnectR functionality” with extensive updates in 2012.

Considering all the characteristics and features, a good DAM solution should give the users the flexibility to match their workflow (Extensis, 2013). According to the Best Practices Guide by Extensis this includes being able to publish as many websites as needed, distribute all assets or a subset of them, control the distribution of files, maintain brand consistency, create branded portals where users can access assets on-demand 24/7, and have unlimited number of users visit the sites. It is important to remember that “the DAM should be useful to the user and speed up operations rather than hinder them” (Rouke, Creating Order out of Media Chaos, a book review, 2014). As Elizabeth Keathley (2014) states in her latest DAM book: “Never forget though that the most important idea behind a DAM is making the machine you build serve the users, not the other way around” (p. 73).

Based on user feedback, Capterra (2014) has listed the top digital asset management software products of 2014. The list includes IntelligenceBank, WebDam, Integrate, Widen Media Collective, and Cumulus (Capterra, Inc., 2014). Special features that contribute to the success of some of these software are discussed above. Based on Keathley’s book though, a good DAM system is mainly about striking a balance between “speed versus safety, flexibility versus reliability, flexibility versus consistency, usability versus quality, and accessibility versus security” (Keathley E. F., 2014, p. 34).