The Digital Asset Management Buyer's Guide

Regain control of your digital assets

If you're a digital asset manager, marketing or communications manager, you probably spend a lot of your day trying to keep control of your organisation's creative assets: videos, images, brand assets and associated documents.

Do any of these situations sound familiar?

• You have trouble locating media files and you're not sure if they're saved to your local machine, saved somewhere in the cloud or in an email.
• You're frequently buying or producing fresh content instead of recycling existing assets, because you're not sure what your organisation currently owns.
• There's no consistency across campaigns and branding because you're not in full control of your media assets.
• Work is delayed and inconsistent because creative teams can't find the asset they need.

If so, you could probably benefit from Digital Asset Management (DAM) software.

In this guide we're going to look at what DAM software actually is, the problems it solves and some questions to ask a vendor before making a buying decision.

What is Digital Asset Management (DAM) software?

Digital Asset Management (DAM) software is an effective way of organising digital files in a centralised location making it easy to store, use and share assets.

DAM systems are used for managing media assets, including photos, videos and logos, but they can also be used to store other digital files.

Dedicated DAM software is now seen as an essential part of the technology stack for organisations of all sizes, from SMEs through to multinational blue-chip companies, offering many benefits over cheaper alternatives.

Problems Digital Asset Management solves

A dedicated Digital Asset Management platform solves a wide range of common issues affecting DAM and brand managers. Here are just four of the most important ones that a DAM like ResourceSpace can solve.

Makes sharing resources easy

Sharing digital assets with internal and external stakeholders sounds easy, right? Simply download it from whatever file storage software you use and send it over.

You probably know it's often more complicated than that.

Sending large files, or a large number of files, is impossible over email because of attachment file size limits. Even third-party apps like WeTransfer cap how much you can send unless you pay for the premium version.

A DAM offers a fast and secure way of sharing multiple large assets. You'll be able to generate sharing URLs that can be accessed quickly with no need to download the file, while you can also create specific URLs for sharing with external users and set optional access restrictions.

Having a dedicated central repository for all your digital assets, with each user having access to what they need, will also significantly reduce the number of requests you receive for different files.

Simplifies license and permissions management

One of your most important jobs as a Digital Asset Manager is to manage the copyright and licensing agreements that accompany your images, videos and other files. You might only be able to use an image for a certain period of time, or you might be restricted to where you can publish a video. The right to use someone's likeness (a picture or video) is particularly an issue when it comes to images of children.

A Digital Asset Management platform should include some form of license management, and automatically notify you or lock down the file when permissions end. Your DAM will also make it easy to find relevant licenses because they'll be associated directly with the files they relate to. You'll no longer have to dig through folders on your local machine or Google Drive to find them.

Manage external stakeholders

If you rely on external content contributors, for example graphic designers or videographers, it can be difficult to get them all to stick to a single process. They'll share files with you in different ways or send them to various team members, meaning it's hard to make sure everything has been approved and keep track of where certain assets are stored.

With a DAM, all of your external stakeholders simply upload their assets to a single location. The Digital Asset Manager will have visibility of all uploads and be able to approve accordingly. This ensures a single, clear and logical process for uploads from external stakeholders.

You'll also be able to restrict access to those people so they'll only have access to what they need, while you can set passwords for specific external uploads too, ensuring no one can upload a file who doesn't have permission to do so.

Ensure brand consistency

A common frustration for Digital Asset Managers is spotting outdated brand assets being used on marketing and sales collateral. Unfortunately, when you don't have a single location for all your branded assets, it's hard to be sure which is the latest version of a file.

A DAM makes this confusion a thing of the past.

Everyone who requires branding assets will know where to find them, and you'll have complete control over what they can access.

Time-limited sharing links also ensure that stakeholders won't be able to simply bookmark a link to an asset that eventually becomes outdated: instead they’ll have to re-request the file, keeping you in full control.

I'm already using Google Drive/Dropbox/Sharepoint - do I need DAM software?

If your organisation is already using a solution like Google Drive, Dropbox or Microsoft SharePoint for file storage you might be thinking you don't need to invest in a dedicated DAM solution. Some of the companies we speak to even think that those platforms are DAM systems.

Although there are some similarities, these solutions are nowhere near as feature rich as dedicated DAM solutions. The likes of Google Drive and Dropbox can be used to store files, but that's about it. By comparison, Digital Asset Management software functionality includes:

• Convert and resize assets within the DAM, allowing you to modify photos and videos for different channels and purposes on-the-fly.
• Advanced metadata capabilities, making it much easier to categorise and search for files. Control how assets are tagged and make searching for what you need simple.
• Integrations with existing company systems so you can synchronise media files with other databases and platforms.
• Much more granular permissions and access control, making it easy to ensure users (including third parties) have access to all the functionality they need - and nothing more.
• The option to customise the DAM with your organisation's branding. This makes the platform feel like part of your organisation, which helps with user adoption and buy-in.

DAM vs file storage solutions

	Digital Asset Management	File Storage
Multimedia asset storage
Scalable storage capacity
Metadata-powered search
Access permissions	Granular: Team, User & Asset-based access	Limited: Folder & Asset-based
Enterprise Single-Sign On (SSO)
Asset sharing	Advanced sharing functionality, both internally and with third-parties	Basic link sharing
Consent management
Automated asset workflows
Technical support
Customer support
Tech stack integrations
Insights & reporting

How to choose a DAM in 7 steps

Step 1: Audit your current assets

Before you begin choosing DAM software, understand what you're trying to manage. Audit every location where digital assets are currently stored, including shared drives, cloud storage platforms, desktops, external hard drives and email attachments. Speak to different departments rather than relying on IT or marketing alone, as teams often maintain their own unofficial libraries.

Look beyond the number of files and consider the types of assets you will actually be managing. Videos, photographs, audio files and documents are just some of the different digital assets you might need to manage and organise with your DAM, and these resources are likely to come in different formats and be in various categories as your library expands. You should also identify duplicate files, outdated assets and any compliance risks, such as missing consent or licensing information.

Build a scalable Digital Asset Management plan by identifying the asset types you already make use of, as well as what might be included in the future. Some DAM software solutions will be better suited to images, while others may have greater multimedia functionality. Be sure to ask and check with the provider that they have experience in serving your particular digital asset requirements.

A thorough audit provides a realistic picture of your requirements and prevents important content being overlooked during migration. It also creates a useful benchmark for measuring the success of your future DAM implementation.

Step 2: Define requirements

One of the biggest mistakes organisations make when learning how to choose a Digital Asset Management system is focusing on features before identifying their own needs.

Some DAM systems come with plenty of impressive tools and features, but are they beneficial to your business? Having a list of non-negotiable criteria will help you get genuine value for money from your DAM provider, rather than feature-rich software that doesn't necessarily help your organisation.

To help you, we've outlined five essential DAM requirements you won't want to compromise on:

• Is it scalable?
• Are there simple integrations with existing systems?
• Can the interface be customised for your brand?
• Is support and onboarding from the provider included?
• Are the server facilities suitable for your organisation?

Beyond these points, consider what changes may be in store for your sector and how your DAM system will support you to grow as your needs change. Think about who will use the platform, how assets move through your organisation and which workflows need improving. Consider requirements such as metadata management, version control, approval workflows, permissions, integrations, AI-powered search, reporting and external sharing. If you operate in a regulated environment, security, audit trails and rights management may be equally important.

Prioritise your requirements into essential, desirable and optional categories. This helps you compare vendors objectively rather than being distracted by features you’re unlikely to use.

A critical feature that you need to assess is the user experience (UX). Will your team find the platform easy to use? The ResourceSpace Knowledge Base walks you through common tasks and explains how you can get the most from the features, so can be a useful place to start.

Metadata tools are also becoming increasingly more sophisticated, so be sure to choose a DAM system that can evolve to improve search accuracy and reporting.

Step 3: Shortlist vendors

Once your requirements are clear, begin researching vendors that are a good fit for your organisation. Avoid judging systems purely on price or the length of their feature list, and instead consider how well each platform supports your workflows, the sectors they specialise in and the level of support they provide after implementation.

Look for customer case studies, independent reviews and examples of organisations with similar requirements. Consider factors such as scalability, ease of use, deployment options, integration capabilities and long-term product development.

Creating a shortlist of three to five vendors makes the evaluation process more manageable, while allowing meaningful comparisons between different offerings.

Step 4: Secure a demo

A product demonstration is your opportunity to see how a DAM performs in realistic scenarios rather than idealised marketing examples. Before the session, prepare a list of everyday tasks that matter to your organisation, such as uploading assets, searching by metadata, sharing files externally or managing approval workflows.

Where possible, ask the vendor to demonstrate these processes using examples that reflect your own use cases instead of a generic presentation. Encourage representatives from different departments to attend so they can evaluate the platform from their own perspective.

A successful demo should leave you with a clear understanding of how the system fits your existing workflows, not simply which features it includes.

Step 5: Security review

Digital assets often contain commercially sensitive information, for example licensed content or personal data, making security a critical part of the evaluation process. Assess how each vendor protects your assets through authentication, encryption, permissions, audit trails and backup procedures.

Review how user access is managed, particularly for external agencies, freelancers and temporary contributors. Ask how the platform supports compliance with relevant regulations and whether permissions can be applied at both user and asset level.

The right DAM should balance robust governance with a user experience that enables teams to collaborate efficiently without creating unnecessary barriers.

Step 6: Build the business case

Decision-makers will want to understand the operational and financial benefits before committing to investment.

Build your business case around measurable improvements rather than general claims, including reducing time spent searching for assets, eliminating duplicate creative work, improving brand consistency, strengthening compliance or accelerating campaign delivery. Include examples of current inefficiencies wherever possible to demonstrate the cost of maintaining existing processes.

Remember that a DAM is an operational tool that improves the way digital assets are managed across the organisation, not just a file storage solution, making the investment easier to justify over the long term.

Step 7: Plan onboarding and migration

Choosing the right platform is only part of the process. Successful DAM implementations are built on careful onboarding and migration planning.

Rather than moving every historical asset immediately, many organisations begin by migrating active assets first before introducing archived content in phases. This allows teams to experience the benefits quickly while reducing implementation risk.

Alongside migration, plan user training, metadata standards, permissions and governance processes. Make sure every team understands how assets should be uploaded and tagged to maintain consistency as the library grows.

By treating implementation as an organisational change project rather than simply a software deployment, you'll maximise adoption and ensure your new DAM delivers value from day one.

AI in DAM: what to evaluate

Artificial intelligence has quickly become one of the biggest developments in Digital Asset Management. 

What was once viewed as an emerging, nice-to-have feature is now a must-have for a modern Digital Asset Management platform. The challenge for buyers is understanding which capabilities genuinely improve day-to-day workflows and which introduce unnecessary cost or risk.

When it works effectively, AI removes repetitive manual tasks while making digital assets easier to discover and reuse thanks to automated metadata tagging. Rather than relying on users to manually describe every uploaded image, AI can identify objects, people, locations and other visual elements, automatically populating metadata fields. This saves significant time while helping organisations maintain more consistent metadata across large asset collections.

AI-powered DAM search

AI is making a big difference to how users search for assets within a DAM, supporting natural language queries versus traditional metadata keyword searches. 

For example, users can search for phrases such as ‘children planting trees’ or ‘volunteers distributing food after flooding’ without requiring those exact words to exist in the metadata. ResourceSpace also supports visually similar search, where a user uploads or selects an existing image and the DAM identifies other assets with comparable colours, subjects or composition.

Other advanced AI capabilities

Other AI capabilities are becoming increasingly valuable, such as facial recognition that can identify specific people across multiple assets, making it easier to organise event photography or locate approved imagery featuring particular people.

For organisations working extensively with video and audio, automated transcription and subtitling can generate searchable text from spoken content, improving accessibility while creating additional metadata that makes long-form media easier to discover.

AI-specific DAM questions to ask

When evaluating vendors, consider asking the following questions:

• Is AI included within the platform, or is it charged as a separate add-on?
• Which AI features are included as standard?
• Is your organisation's data used to train third-party AI models?
• Does AI processing take place within the platform itself, or are assets sent to external AI providers?
• Can AI outputs be reviewed, customised or written into specific metadata fields rather than replacing existing metadata?
• How much control do administrators have over when and how AI features are used?

These questions are particularly important for organisations managing commercially sensitive content, personal information or regulated assets. Understanding where processing occurs and how your data is handled should form part of any wider security and procurement review, not simply your assessment of AI functionality.

If you’re evaluating ResourceSpace, the answers to these questions are straightforward: 

• AI tools are included on all paid plans, allowing organisations to benefit from AI capabilities without purchasing additional module
• AI processing is performed by our own internal LLM, with no third-party data sharing, helping organisations retain control over their assets and metadata.
• ResourceSpace also supports per-field GPT prompts, allowing administrators to configure AI to generate or enrich specific metadata fields based on their own requirements, rather than relying on generic automated outputs.

Ultimately, the most effective AI in DAM is the platform that applies AI in practical, transparent and controllable ways to improve metadata quality, accelerate asset discovery and reduce manual administration without compromising governance, privacy or trust. As AI continues to evolve, those principles are likely to prove far more valuable than any individual feature.

12 questions to ask before choosing a DAM

Ahead of choosing a DAM vendor, ask these 12 questions of the provider and yourselves to ensure you're getting the best solution for your needs.

1. How scalable is the platform?
2. What security measures are in place?
3. Is the software cloud or on-premise?
4. Is the software open source or proprietary?
5. Does the vendor have experience in your industry?
6. What features are desirable and what are must-have?
7. How does the DAM use metadata?
8. What's the pricing model?
9. Is there a free trial or demo available?
10. What's involved in the onboarding process?
11. Is support available if required?
12. What future updates are planned for the system?

Let’s dig into each one in more detail.

How scalable is the platform?

Your digital asset library can grow quickly, so it's important that whatever DAM you invest in has room to grow without frequent increases in cost. You also need to think about this in terms of team members. For example, you might only need two active users at the moment, but what about when your team expands?

Make sure you’re clear on the points at which your price would increase based on asset storage as well as users.

What security measures are in place?

This might be the most important question you ask.

Your DAM isn't just a place to store stock photos or images that are already publicly available on your website or social media platforms. There'll also be digital data that needs to be kept private or that has copyright restrictions. With this in mind, you need to know the platform you're investing in is secure.

Ask about all of the following:

• How can I manage permissions?
• Is there a single sign-on solution available?
• Is multi-factor authentication available?
• Can I configure multi-user privacy?
• Is the vendor ISO 27001 certified?
• Where is data hosted, and does that satisfy our GDPR and data residency requirements?
• What are the backup and disaster recovery arrangements?
• If the DAM uses AI, is our data processed by third parties or used to train external models?

Is the software cloud or on-premise?

Some DAM software providers offer solutions that need to be installed and run on your organisation's computers, whereas others host their software remotely over the internet.

The latter, known as cloud software, can often give you more flexible usage options simply because it's not tied to a particular location or machine.

Cloud software can be accessed from anywhere in the world, which is ideal if you have users in multiple locations, or out in the field. It also requires no IT infrastructure or expertise to set up and run, as the software vendor will manage its operation on your behalf.

Cloud software is much easier to update, too; remote technical support and upgrades can be implemented without disrupting your business operations, whereas on-premise technical support involves much more intensive resources.

Often companies that have limited in-house IT support, or who need to know they can access rich media files 24/7 from any location, find cloud software solutions much better suited to their organisation. It is also more likely that your vendor partner is ISO 27001 compliant, meaning cloud-based solutions meet the latest industry security standards.

Is the software open source or proprietary?

Most DAM vendors provide proprietary software, whereas ResourceSpace is open source - but what's the difference, and what does it mean for you?

Open source software providers make the source code freely available. This means that anyone can adapt and enhance it if they have a specific need that's not being currently met.

By contrast, proprietary software is locked by the vendor who retains complete control over the functionality of the solution.

There are a number of benefits to open source DAM software:

1. There's no license fee to pay, and no vendor lock-in either. This means if you want to end your relationship with the vendor, you can do so while retaining use of the software.
2. The DAM can be customised to your requirements, while you can also benefit from modifications others have built. Your open source DAM vendor might even be able to develop bespoke features for you.
3. Open source encourages innovation, which means improvements often happen more smoothly and quickly than with proprietary software.
4. You'll become part of a community of like-minded users. The collaborative approach allows you to compare the modifications you've made and benefit from those created by others. Open source also encourages an exchange of ideas, helping to form solutions and upgrades that wouldn't otherwise be available.

Does the vendor have experience in your industry?

Many DAM vendors claim to have a solution that works for organisations in any sector, but you could be better off working with a partner who truly understands the needs of your industry.

For example, charities often need access to critical media files urgently when they are responding to a humanitarian crisis, or they need to give volunteers in remote locations the ability to upload photos and videos.

In the museum sector, meanwhile, many curators are already using programmes such as The Museum System (TMS) or Emu to catalogue artefacts, and want a rich media management solution that can integrate photo and video data with the information held by those systems.

Equally, product marketers need DAM software that can be easily accessed and used by multiple stakeholders inside and outside their organisation, including suppliers, so it must be intuitive to operate.

If you're considering multiple DAM vendors, talk to them about their understanding of your organisation's unique needs, and their experience working with other companies in your sector. Ask them to share examples of previous projects that they feel are relevant to what you're trying to achieve as proof of their industry expertise.

What features are desirable and what are must-have?

Some DAM systems offer a huge range of features, often with additional costs attached, but do you actually need them? Putting together a list of non-negotiable criteria will help you get the best value for money from the DAM.

Here are five essential DAM requirements you won't want to compromise on:

• Scalability - the DAM needs to be able to grow with your organisation.
• Will you be able to integrate the DAM with your existing systems?
• Can the interface be customised to your brand?
• Adequate support and onboarding provided by the vendor.
• Server facilities suitable for your organisation's compliance requirements.

How does the DAM use metadata?

 

Metadata is at the heart of Digital Asset Management. It's how you organise and search for your assets, and if the software doesn't use it intelligently it'll seriously limit the value of the platform.

The more sophisticated the use of metadata, the easier your DAM will be to manage.

What's the pricing model?

There are various pricing models used by DAM providers. For example, with ResourceSpace the software itself is free to use with no usage restrictions. You simply pay for customer and technical support, as well as increased cloud storage when required.

However, other vendors will charge monthly fees and scale up costs based on required features. If the software packages are rigid, you might end up paying significantly more for the use of a single feature you need from the next package up.

Is there a free trial or demo available?

We'd recommend only investing in a DAM that offers either a free trial or demo, but ideally both. Don't take the vendor's word for it when they talk about feature capabilities or insist their software is perfect for what you need.

All DAM providers should be able to give a demo at least, so insist on seeing the features you need in action.

What's involved in the onboarding process?

Whether or not a new DAM will be adopted successfully in your organisation often comes down to the onboarding process and initial vendor support.

Speak to your shortlisted vendors about how much help they can provide in getting set up, if they can provide long term support, and the costs involved with this.

Is support available if required?

Some vendors will set you up with your DAM and send you on your way. Sometimes that's all organisations need, especially if they have a DAM specialist on the team.

However, even if you think you don't require post-sales support now, this doesn't mean you won't at some point in the future. Think about what would happen if the person responsible for managing and maintaining your organisation's DAM left the business (even if that's going to be you). How would the business continue to get the best from the platform without that person's experience and knowledge? This is where on-demand customer support would be invaluable.

What future updates are planned for the system?

Digital Asset Management platforms should be constantly improving and evolving. What's standard now won't necessarily be adequate in a few years time.

Ask about the recent changes made to the software, and if they have a published development roadmap.

We make our future development plans openly available, as well as posting to our blog whenever a new version of ResourceSpace is released.
5 considerations ahead of choosing your DAM software

Building a Digital Asset Management business case and securing senior buy-in

Choosing the right DAM for your organisation is tricky, but that's not the only challenge you need to overcome - you also need to secure buy-in for the software from senior stakeholders.

Identify key stakeholders

First, you need to identify exactly who you need to secure buy-in from, and it won't just be your manager.

There'll be groups of stakeholders that need to be invested in the DAM because, even if they're not decision makers, they'll be users of the system. If they're not bought into it, they won't adopt it effectively.

List the groups of stakeholders and what their specific challenges are. You can then prepare a business case with tailored scenarios for each group.

Building a solid business case

When building your DAM's business case there are several steps to consider:

1. Research and preparation

The foundation of any successful business case is the research and preparation. You're much more likely to win over decision-makers if you have a firm grasp on existing processes, operating costs and how investment in a new system will deliver ROI.

Remember, this is the key information that’s going to win over senior stakeholders. By putting specific numbers against current time wasted searching for assets, the amount of money spent on rebuying or reshooting assets that already exist, and a proposed annual saving delivered by a new DAM (hours saved x people x salary cost), decision makers will actually have something tangible.

Let’s take a look at a potential example:

If it takes staff members 30 minutes to find an asset they need, convert it to the necessary specs and then distribute it to the appropriate channels, and you have 20 images a week to process, one person is spending 10 hours a week on admin time.

A DAM System could reduce this to just 5 minutes an asset. That’s less than 90 minutes each week, saving you over 8 hours of wasted staff time.

2. Build support

When it comes to securing buy-in from the whole organisation, start with some key voices who'll support your business case and act as advocates of the system. These could be members of the creative, marketing, PR, sales or IT teams, and as long as you've got a solid business case that solves their challenges, they'll be on board.

3. Be specific

You'll probably have a long list of benefits of the DAM you've selected, but it's a good idea to identify the ones that are most relevant to your organisation, especially those benefits that senior management will care about the most, like changes to day-to-day operations and how costs can be reduced.

4. Calculate wasted time and costs

Work out how much time your new DAM can save your organisation, and then how much money it'll save you over the course of a year.

Streamlined processes will save money by reducing wasted admin time, improving security and increasing efficiency.

Common mistakes when choosing a DAM

Make sure you're not making these common mistakes when deciding on the right Digital Asset Management vendor for your business.

Not conducting an audit ahead of implementation

One of the main reasons for investing in a DAM solution is to gain visibility of your assets and manage them effectively. However, it's going to be very difficult to get to this point if you don't start off by working out what's wrong with your current asset management strategy.

Take stock of all current assets before making the switch. Where are they, who's managing the process currently, and how are they categorised?

Organisations that don't audit their digital assets ahead of migrating to the new DAM will find their processes are just as disorganised as before.

Not shopping around

Don't just purchase from the first vendor you find. Even if it's us! You need to be sure that the DAM you invest in is right for you. This means considering the problems you want to solve and asking the questions we've listed above.

Check out our Digital Asset Management Comparison Checklist

Underestimating the importance of metadata

A successful DAM has metadata at its heart. It's what allows for logical categorisation (in many different ways) and makes it easy for users to locate the assets they're looking for.

If you don't take the importance of metadata seriously you'll end up not collecting the right metadata, not structuring it properly, or not collecting it at all.

Misunderstanding the total costs involved

Sometimes the total cost of ownership of a DAM isn't as clear cut as it might appear. What's more, not all DAM vendors are transparent with their prices.

However, ResourceSpace has no software licence fee and an easy-to-understand pricing structure. Simply choose an annual support package (Team, Business, Enterprise or Platinum Cloud) based on your functionality and storage needs. We'll provide you with a clear monthly cost, and you'll know exactly what you're going to receive.

When choosing a DAM system, make sure you know exactly what you're paying for, and what will incur more charges, before you invest in a DAM.

Not securing buy-in from the DAM users

The biggest threat to your DAM's success is a lack of buy-in from the people who’ll be using it on a regular basis.

In our experience, most of the issues arise when the person responsible for implementing the system hasn't involved the wider team in the decision process.

If there's a free trial let them try it out; if there's a sales demo get them on the call. The key is to get them invested in the DAM early on, while comprehensive training on how to use it is also essential.