Another DAM Blog

Blog about Digital Asset Management

Category Archives: Digital Asset Management

digital asset management


by 1 Comment

How do I create use cases for DAM?

A blog reader asked about how to create use cases for DAM.  I gave a presentation about this topic during a DAM conference.

What use cases did you have before DAM was part of the equation? Before you had a DAM, were your workflows documented?

All too often, use cases are not documented. In fact, they may be locked in multiple silos where each person (even within the same group ) do things differently.  Therefore, migrating to a workflow with DAM becomes a mystery. Without use cases, the user adoption of the DAM is often lower if users do not know why nor how nor when to use the DAM.   Where does DAM fit in the users’ daily workflow? Use cases can also affect the choice of a DAM solution.

Use cases need to be documented and shared.

Another reason for having use cases is training for new people. How do newly hired people find out how to do their job? Are they born with this knowledge? Should an employer expect everyone to know how to use all the tools and policies of the organization to get their job done?  Not likely.

Enter a new person (new hire) to the organization. What are they supposed to do? What tools are involved? When do they use the DAM and for what purposes?  Should new people operate differently than people doing the same tasks for years within the same organization? Not likely, but they often do. Does each person who coaches a new person give their own version of how to do things (plus or minus a few steps)? Is this standardized? This is often not only due to a particular level of experience, but lack of documentation and poor training. And we expect consistency. Somehow. Maybe by mind reading? That is not likely going to happen.

When you start researching a DAM for your organization, instead of looking at shiny features, see if it would work well with your use cases by presenting them to the vendor during a demo. Have real assets you would likely be working with along with real use cases. Ask the vendor to demo their solution for your use cases with your assets with metadata from start to finish in front of you.

Start building use cases with what you have and how you do things today.

  • What do you do today?
  • How do you do it?
  • Who does what?
  • When does it happen?
  • Why is it done that way?
  • What is the process?
  • What tools are used?
  • How could this improve?
  • How can this be done more consistently?

Be sure to consider the people, process and technology (in that order) which are involved from start to finish. Not sure who/how/what is involved? Ask by using…

  • Surveys
    • Online or paper form, with long answer questions, not simply ratings
    • All roles (don’t expect 100% return, even with a prize)
    • Send to everyone including decision makers and potential DAM users doing the daily work
  • Group workshops
    • Be aware of who is talking and who is not
    • Include all group members
    • In case extroverts have all the say while introverts remain quiet in the corner getting frustrated, have people take turns talking so everyone contributes
  • Individual interviews of:
    • Not just senior staff, but junior staff for a varying perspective
    • Both computer literate and those who prefer analog
    • All roles

When reviewing who is working, consider their role in the organization, not just their name so you can build and scale these job functions as needed.

Who makes the initial request? Who/What takes the request? Who handles/processes the request? Where does the request go after that? and after that? and after that? (note a pattern to fill the gaps)

How many other people do the same task(s)? Is this redundancy to handle volume or act as a backup? Can this scale up or down today based on the amount of work to do?

What is the volume of requests? Where do the requests get filled/completed? Who does this? Who/What delivers the end product/service?

Consider the whole life cycle of typical project from idea to delivery. And walk through all the steps.

How much communication is involved in all this? Likely not enough.  It is not enough to lock decision makers in a room. As discussed earlier, there are different points of view to keep in mind.

Keep the communication channels open among all differing points of view.

Stay positive. When negative points need focusing, laugh about it, then find a resolution.

Create roles. Envision the end result. Have a goal. Make it clear. Try even mind mapping. Simplify when in doubt. Follow through. Measure the results.

Avoid jargon and acronyms (so anyone can understand it). Be open to feedback, but have a schedule with deadlines and accountability.

However you create use cases, write them down and share it within your organization.

Let us know when you are ready for vendor neutral consulting on Digital Asset Management. We can also help you create your use cases.

How do you create use cases for DAM?


by Leave a comment

How do people talk about DAM within an organization?

When discussing Digital Asset Management (DAM) within an organization, there are (at the very least) three different points of view. These perspectives often include the following:

  • Business
  • Creative
  • Technical

The business aspect is often the sponsor of the DAM. This perspective looks at:

  • Money (what is coming in and going out, even if the organization is non-profit)
  • Time (hopefully used wisely)
  • Delivering the product(s) and/or service(s) to clients

The technical group is often one of the facilitators of business, supporting the communication, creation and delivery of those products/services (more and more every day). The more technology is involved in acquiring/creating/delivering/selling those products/services, the more significant this technology point of view plays a role within the business. DAM has many technical facets (similar to an onion). The technical people need requirements, specifications, use cases, a realistic budget, schedule and the tools to make things happen.

The creative aspect is often another major facilitator of any business.  Creatives may be the creators of the end of products/services. Beyond simply making business “look good,” creatives can often bring clarity to the business vision and can make the message more user-friendly. Creatives are often one of the major users of DAM. A DAM helps an organization not only archive, but also search, find, use, reuse and re-purpose ideas. Many creatives often want to create anything they want, at any time, using any resources they can get their hands on and spend as long as they want on it.

Sounds simple, right? So, why is it so hard to talk about DAM, to be heard and understood within an organization?

This seems to happen often when people work…

  • within their own different silos
  • on a remote island, office or cubicle
  • in their own world
  • locked within their own comfort zone

Most of the time, all these points of view and people work for the same organization and have the same ultimate goal (often involving the realization, creation and/or delivery of the end products and/or services). Sometime this goal is not clear to everyone due to the lack of communication, specifically dialogue (not just monologue) between groups. This dialogue should be with other people who you do not often do not communicate with, but this will help share these perspectives across groups/departments. Break down the silos, egos and misconceptions. Stop throwing work over a real/virtual wall. Stop ignoring what happens before, during and after someone works on something. Stop hiding in your office, behind your email and/or IM. Most of your co-workers don’t bite. Neither should you. Leave your comfort zone and get a fresh look at what the other groups do to make things happen. Speak up.

Build a community with your organization. Everyone should be aware what happens before, during and after each role has done their part. Decision makers should talk to people who are in the trenches to get a real sense of what is going on within the organizations and what can be improved. Don’t take any group for granted. Document workflows based on real world use cases. Share these use cases and workflows openly within your organization. Bring up topics for improvement (or don’t expect things to change for the better). Be open to communication and candor. No one has all the answers. Listen.

How does your organization talk about DAM?


by Leave a comment

Should organizations blog about their DAM?

I was asked by a few people if I thought it was good idea for their organization to blog about their DAM and even their DAM implementation. Now, the organization may be in various phases of their DAM. They may have several DAM Systems in a variety of place. They could be migrating from one DAM system to another (or consolidating several DAM systems into one). The organization could be in any variety of DAM phases from early research to system implementation to regular operations.

The short answer is yes.

The long answer you may face some challenges. Challenges such as convincing of the organization to have this external voice:  a blog (remember we are in the age of social media)

It is helps Public Relations.

It builds community

It could demonstrate how your organization:

  • Dealt with challenges
  • Recognizes successes
  • Shares its generosity with the community

10 Tips for Corporate Blogging


by Leave a comment

How can I tie performance to DAM use?

Recently, a reader explained to me how they have half of their DAM users happily using the DAM, but asked how could they get the other half to use the DAM as well?

In  previous posts, I discussed how a DAM solution can report on just about every aspect of the its use and users and how to get more user adoption.

Let us assume we already have training with written documentation available for all users, followed by continued support by a DAM administrator and there is proven value for everyone to use the DAM solution. Mindsets are not easily changed nor are they quickly overcome unless you have reinforcement by peers to show there is a better, efficient and effective way of doing things within their organization when it comes to digital asset management. And why.

In these economic times, having more ways to measure performance in an objective way (rather than subjectively) can go beyond simply looking if a project was done:

  • On time (aka delivered on time)
  • On budget (aka completed within budget constraints)
  • On spec  (aka met all specifications)

It helps if projects are effectively planned and executed as well as efficiently done too. If a project does not meet this criteria, ask why and what can be done about it. Project managers should be proficient in doing this with any project and any team. It helps to  make sure everyone in a team is held accountable for their part of the plan (rather than have an individual who would rather be an island).

  • Feedback should be listened to
  • Trust should be synonymous

Now for another way to measure performance, assuming you have a DAM with searchable, valued assets and can produce reports from the DAM.

Use the reports to measure:

  1. Start with who is using the DAM and who is not? (once you know this, ask them why or why not. You may get useful feedback and find out who is a team player who wants to share rather than hide). Whether or not they are using the tools they are supplied with can be an objective measure of performance as long as they can find what they need.
  2. Who uses the DAM to find the most assets? (are they being recognized?)
  3. Who uploads/imports the most assets? (are they too being recognized?)
  4. Who downloads/exports the most assets for a given project? (yes, recognize them too. They are saving the organization money by reusing what your organization already has on hand)
  5. What assets are being used in a project? what percentage of the assets are reuses versus newly acquired/created assets?
  6. What are the most popular set of assets? What assets have the most reuse?

Let us know when you are ready for some vendor neutral consulting on Digital Asset Management.