Digital asset management (DAM) systems: Basics and benefits.

Digital asset management (DAM) is the process of organizing, storing, and distributing digital files using specialized software. By centralizing media libraries, DAM systems streamline workflows, ensure brand consistency, and support legal compliance.

Digital assets organization is essential for modern enterprises managing large volumes of media content across teams. Digital asset management systems offer a range of benefits that help teams organize their digital resources more efficiently.

In this article we’ll explore the importance of digital asset management, what these systems do, and the different types of asset management systems available.

This post will cover:

• What is digital asset management?
• Digital asset management vs creative asset management
• Benefits of digital asset management
• Who uses DAM?
• DAM trends to watch
• Choosing a DAM in 2025
• Get started with Experience Manager Assets

Digital asset management (DAM) provides a structured approach to managing an organization’s digital files. It’s the process of organizing, storing, and retrieving digital assets. Digital assets can include images, videos, audio files, documents, and other types of digital content. The purpose of DAM is to enhance the efficiency, security, and accessibility of digital assets, ensure they are used consistently, and to enable organizations to use assets to their fullest potential.

What are digital asset management systems and how do they work?

A digital asset management system is a software platform used to organize, store, retrieve, and manage digital files across their entire lifecycle — from creation and distribution to archiving, reuse, and eventual retirement.

Digital asset management system capabilities include:

• Asset creation: Many DAM tools include built-in image and video editing features, which can help speed up the creation process. With advanced DAM software like Assets you can even leverage generative AI for content creation.
• Editing and review: DAM solutions simplify collaboration with built-in tools for commenting, annotation, and version control — allowing multiple users to leave feedback and suggestions on a single asset.
• Integrations: Users can integrate with other tools such as Adobe Creative Cloud, content management systems, and project management tools.
• Sharing and distribution: You can streamline the distribution of finalized assets by integrating your DAM system with other tools, such as content management systems or social media platforms.
• Tracking, organization, and archiving: When projects are completed, digital asset management solutions ensure assets are organized by date, metadata tags, or file type.
• Secure storage: Utilize DAM solutions to safeguard assets from unauthorized access or modification by establishing user permissions and roles. Additionally, many DAM solutions use encryption as an added layer of protection.
• Search and retrieval: Once files are archived, DAM solutions provide tools for organizing, indexing, and searching assets. Some digital asset management tools include AI-powered search functionality along with the ability to group assets based on specific criteria — making it easier to locate assets in the future.

There are a wide variety of digital and creative asset management systems available — from basic cloud-based solutions to enterprise-level systems with advanced features and integrations. To find the best solution for your organization, consider your team’s specific workflows and processes, the types of digital assets you’re working with, and what level of ownership and security you need.

Example of a digital asset management system.

Adobe Experience Manager Assets is a cloud-native AI-powered DAM that makes creative and content production more efficient by providing easy-to find and easy-to-use assets and supporting highly tailored customer experiences. Experience Manager Assets’ customizable digital asset management system allows discovery, governance, and activation of assets to scale personalized experiences with ease.

Upload any type of asset and filter functionality to quickly locate assets within the DAM. Asset generation enables the creation and modification of new or existing assets using generative AI integrations with Adobe Firefly. The digital rights management features ensure legal and brand compliance and remove access to expired assets — providing enhanced safeguards for brand identity.

Creative asset management (CAM) is a systematic way of organizing, storing, and accessing creative assets used in marketing and advertising campaigns and design projects. While CAM is primarily concerned with managing assets involved in the creative process (e.g. drafts and works-in-progress), DAM refers to the storage of finalized assets for wider use across the business.

What is a digital asset?

A digital asset is any type of media or data stored in a digital format that can create value. This may include a wide range of files. Some examples include:

• Documents: PDF, Word (DOC/DOCX), Excel (XLS/XLSX), Google Docs/Sheets.
• Web Pages and code: HTML, CSS, JavaScript, XML, JSON, PHP or Python.
• Spreadsheets and data: Excel, CSV, Google Sheets, databases (SQL and DB).
• Technical files: CAD files (DWG, DWF), blueprints or schematics.
• Legal and admin docs: Contracts, licenses, invoices, HR forms (PDF and DOCX).

Digital assets can also encompass more specialized types of files, such as computer-aided design (CAD) files, scientific data, and other forms of digital content. In general, digital assets are created, used, or managed by an organization and carry value that can be implemented across channels. For example, images of products can be utilized for ecommerce, videos can be used for marketing, and documents can be employed for research.

What is a creative asset?

A creative asset is any resource used in advertising, marketing, or branding. It can be any file from images and videos to other design elements, like logos and brand colors. Here are some examples of creative assets:

• Images: JPEG, PNG, GIF, TIFF, RAW, PSD, AI, SVG.
• Videos: MP4, AVI, MOV, WMV, MKV.
• Audio: MP3, WAV, AIFF, FLAC, OGG.
• 3D Models and animations: STL, OBJ, FBX, GLB, BLEND.
• Design files: Adobe Illustrator (AI), Photoshop (PSD), InDesign (INDD), Sketch, Figma.
• Presentation media: PowerPoint (PPT/PPTX), Keynote, interactive PDFs.
• Creative writing and scripts: TXT, DOCX, Final Draft (FDX), Celtx.

Digital asset management offers various benefits to organizations — from efficiency gains and brand and legal control to measurable performance impact. DAM helps businesses of all sizes save time and improve workflows. Here are ten key benefits of digital asset management:

1. Improved efficiency. Centralizing and organizing digital assets makes it easier to find and access files without having to sift through multiple locations or folders.
2. Increased productivity. Easy access to files enables users to work more efficiently. By automating repetitive tasks such as resizing, cropping, and organizing, DAM tools can free up time for more important tasks.
3. Better collaboration. DAM systems enable multiple users to access and work with digital assets simultaneously, facilitating easier collaboration among teams on projects.
4. Improved security. By controlling access to digital assets and automatically backing up files to a secure location, DAM solutions can help protect against data loss and ensure compliance with relevant regulations and laws.
5. Better use of assets. Digital and creative asset management tools track and report on the usage of assets. This can help organizations optimize and identify utilization opportunities for digital resources.
6. Brand consistency. A DAM solution enables consistency in usage across all digital assets, which helps maintain a consistent brand image and messaging across all channels.
7. Legal compliance. A DAM solution can help organizations ensure utilization of digital assets follows copyright and other legal requirements.
8. Multi-channel distribution. Digital asset management systems simplify the process of distributing and repurposing assets across channels and platforms.
9. Reduced production costs. Having centralized assets makes it easier to find and reuse existing and approved materials. This reduces the costs needed to recreate assets and avoids duplicate efforts.
10. Increased engagement. With organized assets, teams can deliver engaging on-brand content at the right moments in a customer buying journey. A Digital Asset Management (DAM) system also helps personalize the experience, guiding customers through the journey more efficiently.

DAM acts as a centralized media source for everybody within your organization who may use or distribute digital or creative assets. It is used by a wide range of organizations and businesses, including:

• Marketing: Digital asset management systems simplify the process for creatives to generate assets for marketing materials and advertising campaigns. It makes it easier to collaborate with the sales team to develop presentations and share relevant assets. DAM software can then help measure the effectiveness of their marketing and sales efforts by tracking how assets are utilized and who is using them.
• Design: Designers use DAM solutions to centralize reviews and annotations, organize existing project files, and share finalized assets across teams. DAM solutions enable multiple designers to collaborate on projects — providing version control, shared resources, and built-in editing tools.
• IT: Developers and IT departments utilize digital and creative asset management solutions to store, organize, and access digital assets associated with the development, maintenance, and deployment of software, websites, and other digital products. DAM solutions can store code snippets, file libraries, and other resources that can be reused for new projects.
• Legal: Legal teams can utilize DAM solutions to organize, store, and access digital assets related to legal proceedings and negotiations — including documents, contracts, legal briefs, and other relevant materials. DAM makes it simpler to collaborate and share these documents with other legal professionals.

DAM is utilized by any organization that creates, uses, or manages large volumes of digital content. It enhances the efficiency and accessibility of digital assets while reducing the risk of data loss and supporting regulatory compliance. Businesses that work with external users — such as agencies, clients and contractors — can utilize DAM solutions to establish appropriate file permissions, track changes and annotations, and control the use of specific assets.

How Pfizer transformed its content supply chain.

Pfizer is accelerating the pace of healthcare innovation by transforming processes across the organization — from research to commercialization.

As part of this effort, the biopharmaceutical leader is implementing enterprise-wide initiatives using Adobe’s supply chain solutions. With Adobe’s digital asset management system, Pfizer gains improved access to digital assets and reduces both the time and cost of content production through efficient asset reuse.

Seamless integrations between Adobe Experience Manager Sites, Adobe Workfront, and Adobe Creative Cloud applications streamline content creation and delivery workflows.

Learn more about how Pfizer is driving innovation with Adobe.

With brand and marketing assets becoming even more visible across digital channels like social media, maintaining consistent imagery is more important than ever for building brand authority. As a result, digital asset management systems are becoming essential to successful digital transformation efforts.

• Reliance on AI to meet content demand: Across the board, organizations are likely to increasingly rely on AI to handle the demand for basic content. This could be through creating content, quick and efficient image editing or improved metadata management.
• AI-powered tagging and organization: AI tools will be increasingly used for automated tagging and content organization to improve search results and help everyone in the organization reach their assets faster.
• Sustainability-focused: Cloud-based solutions may reduce a company’s carbon footprint. Digital asset management can also support sustainable marketing and ESG reporting.
• Seamless interoperability: The future of DAM lies in flawless collaboration with other systems – like customer relationship and marketing automation platforms.

Businesses need to consider their needs, integrations, and scale when selecting a DAM solution. When evaluating options, it’s important to first identify your team’s top digital asset challenges and create a list of the required DAM functionalities to help determine the platform that best serves the needs of your marketing team.

Adobe Experience Manager Assets.

Adobe Experience Manager Assets enables companies and teams to create, manage, optimize, and deliver personalized customer experiences across multiple channels, including web, mobile apps, social communities, and in-store environments. Experience Manager Assets as a Cloud Service offers comprehensive features such as Adobe Asset link to meet the diverse needs and workflows of various user groups within an organization. The platform offers two distinct user experiences — the Admin view and the Assets view.

The Admin view represents the established user interface for Experience Manager Assets as a Cloud Service, granting access to the full spectrum of advanced DAM capabilities. This view is particularly suited for users who require functionalities such as integrations with other enterprise systems, managing complex workflows, implementing content automation strategies, and publishing assets to various destinations. Its comprehensive nature makes it ideal for DAM librarians, developers, and super-users who need granular control over the asset management environment.

The Assets view offers a more streamlined and lightweight asset management experience tailored for a broader audience, including creatives, marketing professionals, and line-of-business teams. This interface focuses on essential DAM tasks, providing intuitive tools for uploading assets, managing metadata, conducting searches, downloading content, and sharing assets with relevant stakeholders. It caters to users who require core DAM functionalities without the need for the advanced configurations available in the Admin view.

Further enhancing content workflows is the platform’s integration with document-based authoring for Adobe Edge Delivery Services. This feature enables website authors to seamlessly incorporate images stored in Assets repositories directly into documents they’re authoring in familiar applications such as Microsoft Word or Google Docs.

Acquia DAM.

Acquia DAM (formerly Widen) supports marketing teams across the entire asset lifecycle — from creation to distribution and long-term management. Its deep integration with the Drupal CMS makes it appealing for organizations utilizing Drupal as their web platform.

Key features include centralized asset storage for streamlined access and organization, version control and rights management to maintain brand consistency, and advanced sharing and access controls to improve collaboration. Robust metadata tagging features search for faster asset discovery, and performance analytics can track content usage and engagement.

Acquia DAM also incorporates AI capabilities, such as auto-tagging, AI generated descriptions, and translation tools to improve content localization and support global marketing initiatives.

Bynder.

Bynder is recognized for its user-friendly interface and extensive security features for sharing digital assets. Key features in Bynder include drag-and-drop uploading, access to photo editing while images are being uploaded, the ability to search by metadata, and advanced permissions management. Bynder supports all file formats and integrates with many marketing system platforms.

Bynder has introduced features like file consolidation on upload for better organization, natural language search powered by AI for more intuitive asset discovery, and a duplicate image finder to maintain clean asset libraries.

Canto DAM.

Canto DAM offers a centralized repository for all digital assets, simplifying management and access for marketing teams. Key features include advanced search capabilities, version control to track asset revisions, user access controls and permissions for secure sharing, and asset sharing and distribution options through shareable links and branded portals.

Canto also provides customizable workflows to streamline content management processes. It integrates with a range of tools and software, including content management systems like WordPress and creative software like Adobe Creative Cloud.

Brandfolder.

Brandfolder is recognized for its visually elegant and user-friendly interface, making it an attractive option for teams that prioritize ease of use and a sophisticated visual experience. It offers robust brand management features and has the potential for integration with other platforms like Canto, providing flexibility for organizations with evolving needs.

MediaValet.

MediaValet is specifically positioned for creative teams and designers, emphasizing features and integrations relevant to the creative process. This platform offers advanced capabilities for managing and distributing creative assets, including features such as collaboration, version control, and integration with design software. MediaValet also allows users to use DAM software as a video asset management platform to streamline video management creation.

Aprimo.

Aprimo is presented as a best-of-suite solution that combines DAM functionality with marketing resource management capabilities. It offers a range of automation features designed to streamline the creative team’s workflows, making it a potentially appealing option for larger organizations seeking a comprehensive marketing management platform that includes robust asset management.

Adobe Experience Manager Assets supports scalable asset management to deliver personalized customer experience efficiently. The platform speeds up collaboration by allowing creatives to get feedback directly through user-friendly tools and native integrations. It also serves as a central storage system, giving all team members easy access to assets.

Watch the overview video or request a demo to learn more about how Adobe Experience Manager can help manage all your digital assets on a single platform that can scale to meet any traffic and processing demands.

Download the digital asset management buyer's guide.