A DAM system is a lot more than a storage platform. It unifies teams, accelerates deliverables, reduces legal risks, removes asset lifecycle risks and eliminates isolation between departments.  

It is one thing to know and understand the impact it can make, but this is only half the work. You need to present your DAM business case in a way that can relate to c-level executives. Speak to their concerns, business focus, goals, responsibilities and, most importantly, how digital asset management can tie it all together.  

Want to know where to start? Here, we’ll guide you through 6 easy ways to gain the executive buy-in for your DAM initiative.

What is an Executive Sponsor? 

Simply put, an executive sponsor is an upper-level management position that oversees business projects and overall deliverables. This means ensuring projects meet deadlines and align with the overall business strategy and vision. It also means ensuring that any changes or transitions made for the company stay true to the business’s future growth plan. They hold a lot of weight within an established organisation.  

They know the organisation inside and out and play a key role in championing any movements made within the company. Therefore they are essential for approving funds and budgets for any project or initiative. Without the nod of approval from your executives, there won’t be a DAM.  

6 Ways to Gain The Executive Buy-In for a DAM

Presenting a DAM business case is more than showing data. Executives are champions of change, but they need to believe in the initiative and how it aligns with the company growth path. A DAM is more than a project, it’s an ongoing investment; maturing and evolving with the company. So the executive buy-in must highlight the importance of having workplace processes and technology that can keep up with the demands of the digital age. Here’s how you can achieve this:  

• Have a well-rounded business case  
• Understand your executives’ language  
• Tell user stories  
• Showcase DAM ROI  
• Demonstrate what a non-DAM workplace looks like 
• Choose the right system for your company 

1. Have a Well-Rounded Business Case 

A compelling business case is more than data collection and a sales pitch. You need a sharp vision of what DAM can achieve, plan implementation strategies and have a DAM vendor in mind to solve existing challenges.  

First, you need to do your homework. Observe workflows, identify areas of opportunity and investigate current storage systems. Collect as much data as you can, including:  

• Employee pain points, daily frustrations, or challenges  
• Current storage costs  
• Average time spent finding assets  
• Understand what features would solve main challenges  
• Understand specific events that cause over expenditure in time/money  
• Familiarise yourself with current procedure documents  

Data is one thing, but the devil is in the details. You also need to understand how a DAM can help (ideally with a demo), have a strategic direction and a steadfast implementation strategy.  

A well-rounded business case shows a clear picture of what content chaos looks like, then provide a solution. And it all starts with having a supportive team. Broad skill sets, differing roles across departments and a unified vision make a world of difference.

2. Understand Your Executives Language, Values, Knowledge and Vision

Rule 1 of any business: know your target audience. Chances are, the questions your executives will ask focus around how the DAM will affect their departments and the company as a whole. So before jumping into your business case, you need to know who you are speaking to and understand their perspective. You need to speak their language and ask questions that will shed light on how a DAM will influence their goals. Consider the following:  

Chief Executive Officer

CEOs are concerned about the overall brand value, compliance, how the DAM will mitigate risks and enhance procedures. Ask questions regarding any risks of litigation because of licencing, if existing ROI of content is optimal and if overall project deadlines/client demands are being met.  

Chief Information Officer

A CIOs area of expertise focusses on the overall technology roadmap of the company and overall collaboration between departments. So you’ll want to focus on any areas of improvement that can enhance current procedures. Are IT departments experiencing any overload with content support/management demands? Can storage costs keep up when asset volumes grow? Can cloud storage offer a solution to this? Are procedures out-dated?

Chief Financial Officer

Operational costs, maintaining value and overall legal compliance are all areas concerning the  CFO. You can ask questions about the risk of company resources being wasted on reproduction of digital assets and any financial implications of litigation over compliance issues. You can also focus on overflowing budgets regarding storage costs. 

Chief Marketing Officer

CMOs are interested in how a DAM will impact departments from a top-level perspective. So, think about focussing on the state of Martech stacks compared to others in the industry, risks of misplacing or duplicating assets and the impact of this to company expenditure, brand agility and client demands.  

3. Tell User Stories 

You would never buy a car without taking it for a test drive – and a business case is no different. So, give them a taste of the reality of content chaos. Recounting user stories provide a tangible idea of what unorganised content looks like from those who must work with it. Examples may include:  

• Specific events regarding storage/organisation issues that have resulted in delays, missed deadlines, legal risks and brand devaluing 
• Genuine pain points and everyday frustrations from employees  
• Personal stories from employees regarding current procedures  

If executives understand that the same issues are being raised across departments and employees, the more they can empathise and champion the change.  

4. Showcase ROI: Quantify Costs/Time Savings

ROI is a measurement of the amount of time and money a company can tangibly save. It’s a fantastic way to prove the value of a DAM system and how it can improve productivity. ROI filters through in maintaining brand compliance, removes organisational silos, increases productivity and streamlines workflows. So, how do you quantify this into numbers?  

You can research existing use cases, ask your chosen DAM vendor for key insights and give the executives an idea of how the company can have the same potential return. ROI is the best educated guess you’ll have, but the findings can be impressive. And as an investment, executives will not sign off on the initiative unless they see how it will pay off long term.  

DAM ROI focusses on company savings in three areas:  

• Search  
• Content creation  
• Storage and distribution costs  

For example, a straightforward way to do this is to take note of the number of users, average wage per hour, and the average number of hours spent on searching for assets. This can also be done for the cost of each asset, the percentage of assets that need to be re-created and any storage costs. 

5. Demonstrate what a Non-DAM Workplace Could Look Like

Risk is one of the hardest things to measure and is not as simple as deciphering an equation. Every company will face their own unique set of challenges. So, ask your investors what the potential risks or outcomes of not buying a DAM may look like in 12 months time. 

You may want to use a significant event that has occurred previously because of not having a DAM in place and outline the consequences. Here are some examples:  

Risk Example: The Cost of Asset Recreation 

Say you lose a video that needs to be used again. This means more money from the marketing budget to re-edit, re-make or re-shoot the video. Raw production costs, outsourcing costs, internal head hour costs, reputational/career costs and shareholder/member wastage are all additional expenses that are easily avoidable.  

Risk Example: Copyright, Talent and Usage Risk 

Say you run an ad in-market where the talent usage and photographic copyright is out of contract. What costs will put the company out of pocket to rectify the breach of contract?  

When it comes to ongoing content and organisation challenges, it can only get worse with time unless something is done about it. DAM systems are customised to solve the company’s existing challenges, safeguard against risks and provide support when it comes to content organisation.  

6. Choose the Right DAM System For Your Company

By the time you present your business case, you should already have a DAM system in mind to provide the features, structure and sustainability your company needs. Start with what features will solve your company’s key challenges: Some core features may include:  

• Tailored platform with optimal user experience  
• Advanced level security 
• Cloud-based platform  
• Compatibility with complex and large file formats  
• Multi-layered metadata and tagging  
• Scalability  
• Both online/offline storage  
• Integration with existing systems to better automate workflows  
• Intuitive internal language function  

But, don’t just rely on features to get you by. A DAM system is a lot of work and content requires an all-encompassing solution. It will streamline the way teams work, collaborate and manage digital assets. Because of this, you need to vet the vendor as much as you do the features. Find a vendor who offers support and accessibility when you need it.  

The right DAM system should also be backed by a vendor whose aim is to work with you throughout the onboarding process and beyond. This means ongoing support, implementation, troubleshooting – even admin maintenance and employee training.  

Why Choose Collaboro for your DAM System

Collaboro is an Australian Cloud-based DAM solution that empowers your teams to do more. Our DAM platform will centralise all your digital assets, making it easier for your teams to organise, find and share all your digital media files, in one place, from anywhere. 

But a successful DAM solution requires more. This is where Collaboro brings local Australian expertise and support services to provide a customised end-to-end solution.