Navigating the Digital Asset Management Maze: Brands Seek Solutions Amidst Growing Visual Demands
October 15, 2024, 7:23 am
Location: United States, California, Santa Clara
Employees: 201-500
Founded date: 2011
Total raised: $100M
In the fast-paced world of digital marketing, brands are grappling with a deluge of visual content. A recent survey by Cloudinary sheds light on the challenges faced by companies in managing their digital assets. As the visual economy expands, the need for effective digital asset management (DAM) becomes critical. Brands are caught in a web of multiple DAM systems, struggling with integration, workflow, and collaboration issues.
The survey reveals that 57% of brands utilize two to three DAM solutions. This fragmentation complicates the management of assets, particularly images and videos. The reliance on visual content is undeniable. Brands use it to build trust, enhance credibility, and boost market awareness. Yet, as the number of digital assets grows—25% of brands now store over 50,000 assets—so do the challenges.
Text-based assets still dominate, making up 85% of stored items. However, visual content is on the rise. Images and videos are essential, with 79% and 66% of brands using them, respectively. The future looks even more visual, with expectations for increased use of images (65%), short-form videos (64%), and 3D content (41%).
Despite the clear importance of visual assets, brands face significant bottlenecks. The survey highlights two main areas of concern: workflow and collaboration, and post-production. A staggering 51% of respondents cite the availability of management resources as their top challenge. The time and effort required to create asset variations also weigh heavily, with 48% of brands struggling in this area.
When it comes to delivering assets to development teams, managing requests and feedback is the leading hurdle, affecting 44% of brands. Timely deployment of assets and late feedback are also major pain points, impacting 39% of respondents. The creative process is fraught with issues, including asset quality and support for multiple formats, which 50% of brands report as problematic.
In this landscape, speed is of the essence. Nearly a third of brands say it takes days to get approved assets live on their websites or applications. In a world where agility is key, these delays can translate to lost opportunities. Brands recognize the need for a streamlined approach. Workflow and collaboration, along with asset optimization, are deemed the most critical capabilities for modern DAM systems.
As brands look for solutions, automation and generative AI emerge as potential lifelines. The survey indicates that 86% of brands consider the integrability of DAM systems with their tech stack to be extremely important. Automation can alleviate some of the burdens. The top tasks identified for automation include personalized asset composition (53%), asset variations for different channels and devices (49%), and brand guideline moderation (43%).
Generative AI holds promise for enhancing asset management. Features like automated image and video management (52%) and automatic content modification (47%) could revolutionize how brands handle their digital assets. The potential for AI to streamline processes is significant, especially as the demand for efficiency grows.
The Cloudinary Global DAM Survey, conducted by Researchscape International, involved 420 DAM users from various sectors. The findings underscore the urgent need for brands to adapt technologically. As the visual economy continues to expand, the challenges of managing digital assets will only intensify.
Brands must embrace innovation. The integration of automation and AI into DAM systems could pave the way for smoother workflows and enhanced collaboration. By addressing the bottlenecks identified in the survey, companies can position themselves for success in a visual-first world.
In conclusion, the digital asset management landscape is evolving. Brands are at a crossroads, facing the dual challenge of managing an ever-growing volume of visual content while striving for efficiency. The insights from the Cloudinary survey highlight the pressing need for brands to rethink their approach to DAM. Automation and generative AI offer a glimpse of hope, promising to transform the way brands manage their digital assets. The future is visual, and those who adapt will thrive.
The survey reveals that 57% of brands utilize two to three DAM solutions. This fragmentation complicates the management of assets, particularly images and videos. The reliance on visual content is undeniable. Brands use it to build trust, enhance credibility, and boost market awareness. Yet, as the number of digital assets grows—25% of brands now store over 50,000 assets—so do the challenges.
Text-based assets still dominate, making up 85% of stored items. However, visual content is on the rise. Images and videos are essential, with 79% and 66% of brands using them, respectively. The future looks even more visual, with expectations for increased use of images (65%), short-form videos (64%), and 3D content (41%).
Despite the clear importance of visual assets, brands face significant bottlenecks. The survey highlights two main areas of concern: workflow and collaboration, and post-production. A staggering 51% of respondents cite the availability of management resources as their top challenge. The time and effort required to create asset variations also weigh heavily, with 48% of brands struggling in this area.
When it comes to delivering assets to development teams, managing requests and feedback is the leading hurdle, affecting 44% of brands. Timely deployment of assets and late feedback are also major pain points, impacting 39% of respondents. The creative process is fraught with issues, including asset quality and support for multiple formats, which 50% of brands report as problematic.
In this landscape, speed is of the essence. Nearly a third of brands say it takes days to get approved assets live on their websites or applications. In a world where agility is key, these delays can translate to lost opportunities. Brands recognize the need for a streamlined approach. Workflow and collaboration, along with asset optimization, are deemed the most critical capabilities for modern DAM systems.
As brands look for solutions, automation and generative AI emerge as potential lifelines. The survey indicates that 86% of brands consider the integrability of DAM systems with their tech stack to be extremely important. Automation can alleviate some of the burdens. The top tasks identified for automation include personalized asset composition (53%), asset variations for different channels and devices (49%), and brand guideline moderation (43%).
Generative AI holds promise for enhancing asset management. Features like automated image and video management (52%) and automatic content modification (47%) could revolutionize how brands handle their digital assets. The potential for AI to streamline processes is significant, especially as the demand for efficiency grows.
The Cloudinary Global DAM Survey, conducted by Researchscape International, involved 420 DAM users from various sectors. The findings underscore the urgent need for brands to adapt technologically. As the visual economy continues to expand, the challenges of managing digital assets will only intensify.
Brands must embrace innovation. The integration of automation and AI into DAM systems could pave the way for smoother workflows and enhanced collaboration. By addressing the bottlenecks identified in the survey, companies can position themselves for success in a visual-first world.
In conclusion, the digital asset management landscape is evolving. Brands are at a crossroads, facing the dual challenge of managing an ever-growing volume of visual content while striving for efficiency. The insights from the Cloudinary survey highlight the pressing need for brands to rethink their approach to DAM. Automation and generative AI offer a glimpse of hope, promising to transform the way brands manage their digital assets. The future is visual, and those who adapt will thrive.