When beginning a new DAM project, it’s important to interview all the stakeholders you can to find out what problems they need the digital asset management system to solve. Then take (literal) page out of Goldilocks and the Three Bears before you try to solve them.
Some problems will be Papa Bear problems - too hard, hot or otherwise difficult to complete well quickly. Some problems will be Mama Bear (gender roles, yikes!) problems - too soft, cold or small to make much impact. We are looking for Baby Bear problems - just right.
What is a “just right” problem? It depends on the project. Some I’ve found will solve a frustrating, repetitive need, especially if it impacts highly valuable colleagues who should be focussing on other tasks that leverage their skills. For example, try getting headshots off of the Chief of Staff’s desktop and into a searchable, sharable system where only the approved photos can be used. Another example, rights-managed photography images. Designers are great at finding on-brand, beautiful images to be used in campaigns but shouldn’t have to use a calendar system to know when to replace them or emails full of licensing information to know how to use them now.
Why are these good examples? You have found a job that is important and will improve the working life of your stakeholders. You have made their jobs easier and that wins friends! But these examples also incur negative consequences when done poorly - wrong headshot, grumpy executive; using expired photography, lawsuits or invoices - so you have removed a future stress for them as well. When they
Part of the power of a DAM is its ability to add metadata (like tags for the executive’s name, home office, or keywords to delineate for print/web), include licensing information (like photographer’s name, region or even attach the license) and even automate to remove assets from use on expiration dates. This means the problem files are turned into useful, searchable assets that can be fully utilized to increase ROI without involving the stakeholders every time.
If you solve 1 or 2 quick win problems early in the DAM project, you will hopefully have shown the value of the project and win the trust of stakeholders for those Papa Bear problems like powering a new CMS an notice the quieter Mama Bear problems like restructuring a library to include new content areas seamlessly. Communicate the quick wins with the project team and users and be sure thank those who gave you the gift of knowing about these opportunities in the first place. Keep the conversation going and you’ll learn the quick wins to target next.