So, you’re ready to invest in digital asset management and it’s time to evaluate what vendor is best for you.  

A DAM demo is your opportunity to knuckle down and figure out which vendor is going to give you the ROI you need. Not just with features, but also support and (most importantly), is it going to fit with your use cases.  

When you’re ready for a DAM demo, it’s crucial to arrive armed with the right questions. That is, don’t just think about what the software can do, think about how what you’re trying to achieve, what your goals are and what are the ‘must-have’s. In other words, how is DAM going to solve your business’s challenges?  

Here are 6 things to think about when preparing yourself for your DAM demo: 

6 Tips To Prepare (& Ask) During A DAM Demo

The right DAM solution is a long-term investment (and relationship) between you and your DAM vendor.  

So, at the conclusion of the demo you should be able to see whether or not the DAM vendor will be able to successfully meet your use cases, and solve company pain points. This means understanding how the DAM can holistically integrate within your workflow from beginning to end.  

Here are some key questions we recommend asking during your DAM demo:  

1. File Types

Features aren’t the be all and end all, but you still need to make sure your DAM system is actually a solution that will support your existing workflows.  

Although file types may not seem like the most important thing, they soon will be if you run into restrictions down the line. Especially when it comes to storing large, raw and more complex files. Not all DAM systems support the same files, so the last thing you want is to invest in a solution that restricts the documents you need to work with.  

This ends up placing a cap on what you can and can’t use. Not ideal right? 

Another element you need to consider here is what departments will be using the DAM. Different departments handle different asset types, so it’s important to choose a DAM vendor that works for everyone (not just the sales or marketing team).  

Questions To Ask Yourself

• What are the non-negotiable file types your teams frequently work with? E.g. Excel spreadsheets, GIFs or PNG files? 
• Do you currently or plan to store large or complex archival files? 
• Do you need to preview complex audio or 3D files within the system? 

Questions To Ask Vendors

• What files can I preview and edit within the DAM system itself? 
• How does the DAM successfully handle/store large file types? 
• Multiple departments will be accessing the DAM platform, is there a restriction on what file types we can upload, archive, edit and distribute? 
• How does the DAM cater for archival file type storage? 

Thankfully, at Collaboro, we don’t just support most file types, we support all file types. This is because we build your DAM solution from the ground up, making it entirely bespoke to your company’s workflow and file requirements.  

2. Software Integrations

A successful DAM solution should speed up workflows, not slow them down.  

Integrations are another necessary cog in the DAM machine. Without the right integrations, your teams still risk wasting valuable time switching between platforms.  

No matter what industry you’re in, whether it’s graphic design, publishing, government or marketing, your ideal DAM solution must fit into your creative and professional workflow.  

Questions To Ask Yourself

• What are your non-negotiable system integrations? 
• Why are system integrations necessary for your company? E.g. Are your teams wasting time switching through different systems? Is it interfering with the quality of work, productivity or missing deadlines? 

Questions To Ask Vendors

• What systems does the DAM integrate with? 
• What kind of ROI can we expect to see in terms of saving time and resources? 
• What if we change operation systems down the line? How will the DAM system cater for these changes? 

At Collaboro, we don’t take a one size fits all approach to integrations. Rather, we custom make our DAM solution around your business, no matter the industry or your requirements. This means seamless integration with your existing project management, CMS, design software, video asset management systems – you name it. 

3. Service & Support

Important features are one thing, but they won’t get you the ROI you need if your employees don’t know how to use them. DAM service and support ends up being the lifeline between the system and the solution.  

Your DAM solution is designed to be the custodian of your digital assets, and they need to be in capable, trusted hands from the point of sale till long after DAM implementation. 

Asset upload, metadata tagging, onboarding and training are just the basics of the kind of services and support you need. Here’s some additional questions to consider: 

Questions To Ask Yourself

• Who will be taking the lead on vendor correspondence e.g. updates, troubleshooting, etc.? 
• Are you going to have an internal team dedicated to DAM support? 
• Do you need support with asset upload and tagging? 
• Do you need support with DAM training? 
• Is local, on-shore support important to you? 

Questions To Ask Vendors

• How long does it take to implement the DAM software? 
• What is the average turnaround time for support requests? 
• How many account managers will be I be in contact with? 
• Who takes care of initial and ongoing asset uploads? 
• What support do you offer to guarantee DAM adoption? 

At Collaboro, we believe the support is just as important as the DAM software itself. We provide you with a dedicated account manager and around the clock, Australian-based support, so you’ll always have a reachable contact when you need it most.  

We also take care of essential DAM admin tasks so you don’t have to. This includes everything from employee training, ingesting, sorting, transcoding, uploading and tagging assets.  

In short, we don’t like to overcomplicate things, so you can enjoy all the benefits of a DAM solution, without all the hard work.  

4. Security Features

Today, nearly every business holds our personal data, from medical centres to insurance companies and legal departments. So, data breaches, security risks and sensitive files getting into the wrong hands is severely damaging to your brand’s reputation and consumer trust. 

That’s why entrusting your digital assets with the right DAM vendor has never been more important. Before you begin your demo, make sure you take into account the following: 

Questions To Ask Yourself

• Does your company have compliance measures you need to meet?  
• What level of security do you need to protect your digital assets?  
• Do you need to share assets with external parties, clients or partners?  
• Is on-shore data storage important to you?  

Questions To Ask Vendors

• What kind of security features does the DAM provide?  
• Do you offer user permissions and restrictions?  
• Do you store data on-shore/locally?  

At Collaboro, we partner with Microsoft Azure to deliver the most comprehensive set of compliance measures of any cloud service provider. With features like permission-level access rights, passwords and secure cloud hosting networks, our DAM solution mitigates the risk of data breaches or unauthorised asset access and sharing.   

5. Scalability

One of the biggest mistakes companies make is preparing for the ‘now’ and not the future.  

DAM solutions should make it easy for companies to grow and scale their digital assets. But if the software won’t cater to and support your business growth in 1, 5 or 10 years’ time, then your ROI will take a hit.  

Questions To Ask Yourself

• Do you have plans for growth? 
• Are you forecasting to branch out your content offerings (such as video or podcasts) in the next 5-10 years? 
• Is scalable storage important to you? 

Questions To Ask Vendors

• Are there are caps or restrictions on storage? 
• Are there any additional fees if I need to increase cloud storage or add users to the platform? 
• Do you offer additional offline storage for large, raw or archival files? 
• Will scaling storage slow down the software? 

At Collaboro, we grow with your business, not against it. Our unique, multi-tiered storage offering provides users with a scalable cloud-based DAM platform paired with an offline storage facility for large, raw and complex file types. 

6. Business Use Cases

You want to know your DAM vendor has experience dealing with businesses in your industry. So, the larger or high-profile clients they have on their books, the more you can trust that the vendor will be the right fit for your business.  

Questions To Ask Yourself

• Can you trust the company? Have they been around for a decent amount of time? 
• What ROI are you looking to achieve with a DAM solution? 

Questions For The Vendor

• Do you have any use cases for customers in a similar industry? 
• What ROI did businesses notice after implementing the DAM software? 
• Do you have any customer testimonials I can see? 
• Will you take the time to understand my businesses current challenges and future goals? 

At Collaboro, we don’t overcomplicate things, we tailor our DAM platform to your individual use case, to solve your unique pain points.