The fact is, not everyone is going to need every software program. At Filecamp, we have spent a lot of time developing a powerful and secure digital asset management system, one that will benefit companies big and small. But to be honest, however, buying our software won’t make sense for everyone and every company.

So let’s go over some scenarios and situations you might find yourself in, and let’s explain when and why you won’t need digital asset management software. For example, if you run a small business, or are a lone entrepreneur with only a few digital assets, there’s a very good chance that you simply won’t need a DAM system to help manage and distribute your digital assets.

Evaluating Whether You Need A Digital Asset Management System

Every company’s situation is going to be different and there’s no one-size fit all solution or way to evaluate needs. Whenever you’re considering purchasing a new product or service, you need to sit down and weigh the costs versus the benefits. Fact is, specialized digital asset management systems are typically more expensive than simpler consumer-focused solutions, such as Dropbox or Google Drive.

A digital management system, however, features many benefits that simpler solutions lack. If you’re considering purchasing our product, or a competing digital management system, you need to sit down and consider whether your company will benefit from these additional features.

There are many features that you need to consider. For example, a DAM system features much better organizational tools, as well as highly customizable user access features. If you want to check out the features for our digital asset management system, you can do so here.

Is Organization Really Essential?

At its heart, a digital asset management system allows for easier organization, especially if you happen to have a large number of media assets. These days, companies have hundreds or even thousands of digital assets floating around. Keeping these assets organized is essential. Not only does sound organization lead to efficiency, if you happen to lose vital files, you could find yourself shelling out serious cash to recreate what you already had.

A good digital asset management system will be able to keep huge numbers of files organized. The effectiveness and ability of a good asset management system to keep files organized far exceeds e-mail and more basic systems, like Dropbox, etc.

If you only have a small number of files, however, organization won’t be much of a priority. Keeping the files organized on your hard drive, or through Google Drive and other similar platforms, should be enough to keep your files in order. This will be the case for many small businesses that don’t engage in a lot of marketing efforts.

Of course, many small businesses could benefit from having a digital asset management system. Let’s say you run a small web design and marketing business. If you’re managing a lot of clients and handling their files, setting up a digital asset management system could be a huge help.

For example, you will be able to tag your files with relevant keywords (metadata) so that they are easier to find and reuse. This will add value to your clients, ensure access and security for their files, and make it easier to manage relations.

You Don’t Care About Custom Branding

If it doesn’t matter to you that Dropbox or Google Drive (etc.) logos and branding will be all over the place when sharing files with your customers and other stakeholders, you might be able to get by using these solutions. Of course, having your own brand, rather than Google’s, or Dropbox’s, can add a whole new level of professional feel when sharing files and collaborating with your clients and partners.

If you care about your own brand, you will be better off using a DAM system with which you can brand with your own logo, colors and URL. Further, most DAM solutions can easily be integrated with your company website, so that your clients will feel they are still on your site when they need to view, download, or even upload files to you.

You Don’t Collaborate With a lot of Outside Parties

Digital asset management systems are great for companies and individuals who collaborate with outside parties. They are also great for companies with multiple departments and multiple people collaborating on projects. If collaboration is low or non-existent, however, a digital asset management system probably won’t deliver much more value than a system like Dropbox, or even your own email and hard drive.

Good DAM systems feature extensive security tools, allowing you to easily control who can access what. When you’re working with a large number of people, it is essential to ensure that they can access needed files. At the same time, you don’t want to create security risks by allowing open access to anyone for anything.

At their heart, digital asset management tools are as much about coordination as they are about storage. A DAM system makes it easy to coordinate large teams and multiple parties, and it ensures that you have full control of your assets during any coordinated efforts. If coordination isn’t a big part of your company’s efforts, however, you may be able to get by using a simpler solution.

Change Isn’t Always Constant, Sometimes It’s Rare

They say the only constant is change. Well, if your company rarely changes anything, such as logos and websites, or rarely adds new photos and other types of media to its library, you may not need a digital asset management system. If your marketing materials are all set, and you don’t plan on changing or updating them, you may not need to set up a digital asset management system.

For example, some companies have the same logos, the same brochures, the same website, and same everything else that they had in place a decade ago. For many businesses such complacency could spell trouble, but sometimes your customers know what they want, and they know they don’t want change.

If you find yourself in this situation, a digital asset management system probably doesn’t make much sense. Instead, you should organize all of your files on your computer, then make a few backups, and then make an online backup. Redundancy is always good, even for companies that rarely change or evolve.

You Don’t Have the Right Talent

Software is only as good as the people using it. The best photo editing software still can’t turn terrible photographs into masterpieces, and even the most basic touch-ups require a skilled and steady hand. The same is true of digital asset management software. You’re going to need someone on your staff who is both skilled enough and has the time to properly utilize a digital asset management system.

No, this doesn’t mean you have to hire a person to do the work full-time. The only time you’ll most likely need a full-time digital asset manager is if your company is exceptionally large and works with a huge number of collaborators. Even a small company, however, will need a point person on staff who can handle requests, monitor problems, and otherwise provide oversight.

Before you determine whether or not you need a digital asset management system, you should first ask yourself who is going to benefit from it the most, and who would be best to provide oversight for the whole system. Then, you should get that person (or persons) involved in the decision-making process.

If you’re approaching this from the other angle, say perhaps you’re a marketing manager, you need to sit down and weigh the costs of a digital asset management system versus the overall benefits for the company. Remember, your boss or CEO may not see the importance as quickly as you do, so you may have to break things down for them.

Luckily for you, a lot of DAM systems are quite simple, and allow you to get started right away. And most DAM vendors have extensive support so that you are always able to get help if you experience any problems. Ever tried calling Dropbox for support? … Hmm … No? Didn’t think so

Don’t Bother If Your Company Won’t Adapt

Sometimes staff can be stubborn and unwilling to adapt to change. This is especially true if your staff is filled with more senior members who have become used to doing something a certain way. If this is the case, you need to sit down and ask yourself how much effort will it take to get them to use a digital asset management system?

Of course, managers can push change through if they really want to. Even if your staff is reluctant to adapt, if management is on board, acquiring a digital asset management system can be a good idea. The question you have to ask yourself is if your managers are truly on board.

If not? Work on selling your management team and the rest of your staff on the benefits of a digital asset management system before purchasing one. If you need to pitch your staff, start with the people a DAM system will provide the most benefits too. Marketing managers, graphic designers, etc. They’ll have the easiest time seeing the benefits.