“Less is more” doesn’t apply when it comes to creating media content today. Content is published in more places than ever, from TikTok, YouTube, Twitter, to Threads. Brands, big and small, are looking to diversify their presence and revenue streams. You need content for today, content to repurpose in the future, and content that didn’t turn out the way you hoped—but you save just in case. 

Evidently, shooting, editing, and posting a TikTok on a phone isn’t the same as creating a 9-figure film for theatrical release. One thing the teams behind the screens have in common? They need to produce more content faster and adopt a solid workflow that seamlessly manages it all. With that comes the importance of media asset management (MAM). 

Below, you’ll find all you need to know about media asset management and how it can transform your workflow. 

What is Media Asset Management (MAM)?

Asset management is like organizing our homes. We all have our own approach, from color-coding our closet to sticking labels on kitchen items. Without it, getting dressed or preparing that recipe would take twice as long. Our digital, nontangible items need the same care and organization. 

Media asset management is defined as a systematic approach to storing, organizing, retrieving, and distributing digital media files, including images, videos, audio, and documents. Why is this needed? Without media organization, companies could lose content and even business opportunities. And if an organization has teams or presences on multiple continents, disjointed workflows can cause partners or colleagues the inability to access the content they need. Plus, media files tend to be large and uploading and downloading can be a headache, especially when many solutions have limitations. For instance, most email service providers have an attachment limit of 20 or 25 MB.  

Ci has found that individual creators can have between 40-60 TB of archived content while some of our Enterprise customers have petabytes of content. As our world becomes increasingly digitized, setting positive habits now only sets us up for success later when our asset libraries inevitably grow. 

Key Components of Media Asset Management  

Think of a MAM like a cake, made up of file organization frameworks, metadata, and access control. Multiple layers of components come together to make a whole, and if there’s a single missing element, it can all come down.  

For example, if you’re a marketer, your latest task may be creating a new banner for an upcoming campaign. You’re tasked with using the same specs as the last campaign but need new branding and taglines. If you’re working with a MAM without file organization, you’ll need to scroll through every file to find what you need, which could take hours or even days. And without metadata, you won’t be able to see the dimension or file format—unless you download the file.  

When making the case for a MAM at your organization, some common obstacles are a limited budget and a lack of awareness among decision-makers of its full capabilities and benefits. When fighting for adoption and shopping for the right system, consider these key characteristics to persuade others:  

Centralized storage

One of the most critical, if not the most, piece of media asset management software is centralized storage. By centralizing content in a storage solution for use across the board, there’s a single “source of truth,” and cross-functional teams can enjoy more harmonious collaboration (and a happier finance department).  

For larger companies with teams in different cities, centralizing storage across multiple locations requires a solution that a) virtually connects remote storage locations or b) stores content in a cloud-based service that can be accessed from various locations. With an end-to-end cloud platform like Ci Media Cloud, the possibilities are virtually endless. In a single platform, Ci offers collaboration, acquisition, archive, enrichment, catalog, distribution, and more.  

Access control and user permissions

You may be an individual running a business or side hustle and occasionally outsources part of your work. Or you may be a part of a larger team that works with third parties and deals with sensitive content. Whatever the case, who receives access to your content and for how long should be done strategically yet frictionlessly, so it doesn’t slow down the creative process. We’ve likely all been there when there have been too many hands on deck or sluggish IT processes for access management requests, leading a project further away from completion. When shopping for a MAM, look for diversity in access and get these questions answered:  

• Do all parties have to make an account to be able to collaborate or does an email address suffice?  
• Can some users send invites but not others?  
• Can users be given permission as a viewer only and not a collaborator?   
• Are there different plans for an individual contributor versus an enterprise?  

Version control

Even with technological advancements and automation, our workflows still aren’t immune to human error, like selecting the wrong media file and ignoring proper naming conventions. A MAM that supports the ability to view and compare previous versions of a cut offers efficiencies in the editorial and review process. Version control is also crucial for concurrent work, ensuring multiple team members can simultaneously work on a project using the latest and correct version. 

History tracking

History tracking is crucial in a MAM solution because it allows organizations to monitor and track changes made to media assets over time. This feature often includes audit logs of edits, versions, and user activity. These insights ensure transparency, accountability, and the ability to revert to previous versions if needed. History tracking also boosts asset management by providing an end-to-end historical record of how a file evolved throughout its lifecycle.  

Metadata and Advanced search capabilities 

When you think of search capabilities in a system, searching by file name is probably what comes to mind first. However, MAMs typically offer advanced search capabilities that go beyond just file name, like metadata. Having more than a few basic search features will come in handy as the more filters there are, the faster your file can be found.  

Metadata in a MAM is essential for efficient search and retrieval, file organization, rights management, and technical details like frame rate, color space, and more. More innovative platforms will offer the ability to add custom metadata to files or leverage AI to automatically enrich content.  

In addition to search capabilities, look for other features to simplify search like:  

• AI-powered tagging 
• Auto-transcription (Speech-to-text) 
• Boolean search  
• Export inventory logs 
• Sorting and filtering 
• Timecode-based video logging 
• Viewing options (List view and preview thumbnails) 

Keep in mind that advanced search capabilities are no use if they’re paired with a not-so-stellar UI.  

Integration with other tools and platforms

Media workflows often involve a variety of software and hardware tools. Integrations ensure that the MAM can seamlessly interact with different tools to streamline manual processes, like copying or transferring files from system to system, leading to increased efficiency.  

Consider the different tools that you’ll need to connect to the MAM:  

• Creative (e.g. Non-linear editors, Photoshop, Lightroom) 
• Marketing (e.g. Hubspot, Hootsuite, social media platforms) 
• Task management (e.g. Monday.com, Asana, Wrike)  
• Communication (e.g. Microsoft Teams, Slack, Zoom) 
• Single sign-on (SSO) integrations for access control  

Automation

With the 24/hour news cycle, fierce competition, and demanding audiences, automation is no longer a nice-to-have but a necessity—and the difference maker in saving both time and budget. Automation reduces manual, routine tasks associated with asset management. This frees up creatives to focus on more creative tasks and increases overall efficiency.  

AI-powered facial and object recognition and transcription can enrich the metadata associated with media assets. AI-driven tagging helps ensure that files and clips can be found in the MAM by simply searching for keywords or phrases in the video or audio. Automation can also be used for transcoding and distribution workflows–ensuring assets are made available quickly without human intervention. In QC and archival workflows, automation helps ensure compliance while protecting against data loss. 

Types of Media Asset Management Solutions 

Like cloud storage vendors, an asset management solution has more than just one type. Understanding the differences will ultimately unveil the right one for you and your field.  

The difference between a MAM and digital asset management (DAM) comes down to the type of assets being stored and the workflows supported. In a nutshell, media asset management solutions like Ci Media Cloud focuses on multimedia files like videos and images and is built to support media production workflows. Typical MAM customers include orgs in media and entertainment and creative teams. Meanwhile, a DAM supports assets like digital images, design files, documents, and presentation materials for a wider range of business workflows. DAM solutions are not limited to media production teams and can be used by marketing, PR, advertising, and brand teams.  

And then there are content management systems (CMS), which are commonly used as a repository for web content that’s published, including blog posts and website content. This content may include text, images, and multimedia but typically, a CMS isn’t equipped to manage rich media or assets for long-term storage.  

Benefits of Media Asset Management 

Whether you have a modest library or decades of assets that need organizing, organizations new and established can benefit from a MAM solution or software. Here are the top five benefits:  

1. Find files faster: MAM solutions helps you organize media more efficiently. When using MAMs with robust metadata management or enrichment, combined with search capabilities, users can quickly locate the files they need. The resulting efficiency and time saved on rifling through libraries is crucial in fast-paced media production environments.  

2. Work more collaboratively: MAM systems help collaboration among team members by offering a central storage location for sharing and working on projects together. Version control features and access controls help ensure that members can access the latest versions and work together seamlessly.  

3. Improved output: A MAM system enforces users to define and apply standardized metadata and visual consistency to assets. This standardization ensures all assets are tagged with proper descriptions for faster search and helps keep an on-brand visual identity.  

4. Save cost and time: Automation features in MAM can help reduce manual efforts like transcoding and file format conversion. Centralizing assets reduces the chances of storing duplicate files or redundant content creation, with helps save costs.  

5. Better compliance: Many MAM solutions have digital rights management (DRM) tools built in–allowing users to manage digital rights, licenses, and permissions together with their media assets. This is paramount for ensuring compliance with copyright regulations and contractual agreements.  

Cloud-based MAM solutions offer more benefits to consider:  

1. Scalability: Cloud-based MAM solutions offer scalability, allowing organizations to easily scale their storage capacity on demand. This is beneficial for growing media libraries and dynamic production environment where storage needs can vary over time.  

2. Remote Access: Users can access media assets from anywhere with an internet connection. Cloud-based MAMs promote seamless collaboration and allow team members to continue working on projects even when they’re in different locations.  

3. Cost efficiency: For cloud-based MAMs, subscriptions allow users to “pay-as-you-go,” meaning users don’t need to pay upfront for hardware or infrastructure. 

4. Hands-free maintenance: Cloud-based MAMs typically handle system updates and security patches automatically. This ensures that your MAM is always up-to-date with the latest security measures without burdening your IT resources.  

5. Built-in backup: By its off-premises nature, disaster recovery is built-in to cloud-based MAMs. Unlike physical storage that carry the risk of data corruption or data loss, in the event of a hardware failure, organizations can rely on cloud providers’ to recover data to maintain business.  

For example, Italian news agency, ADN Kronos previously used an MAM but was restricted by its Standard Definition (SD) formats when they wanted their deliverables in HD and 4K resolution. Other pain points included difficult file searchability and physical memory cards that caused delays. ADN Kronos turned to the pairing of Ci Media Cloud and NavigatorX, Sony’s MAM and Workflow Orchestrator. The result? ADN Kronos’ journalists could securely upload content from anywhere without traveling back to base, significantly saving time in a field as fast-paced as breaking news. ADN Kronos streamlined its workflow and now better manages its output of 2,000 news items daily. 

How to Implement MAM in Your Workflow

Implementing a new MAM solution is like planning a move. Implementing into an existing media workflow involves a series of strategic steps to ensure a smooth integration. Here’s a step-by-step guide for implementation:  

Before implementing

• Define goals and requirements: What are some challenges or inefficiencies in the current workflow? Document requirements and functionalities needed to meet these objectives.  

• Conduct a workflow analysis: From capture to final delivery to archive, analyze how media assets are created, edited, reviewed and distributed. Identify the key points and processes where a MAM solution can add value. Consider the roles of different team members involved in these workflows.  

• Choose a MAM solution: Evaluate and choose a solution that aligns with the organizations’ current and future needs. Consider factors such as scalability, user interface, integration capabilities, and support for workflow-specific features. 

• Customize settings: Customize the MAM system to align with the organization’s specific workflows and requirements. This may include configuring metadata schemas, setting up user permissions, and tailoring the system to accommodate various file types. 

Implementation

• Migrate assets: Move existing media assets to the new MAM system. Ensure that all metadata associated with each asset is accurately and completely transferred–this is necessary for members to be able to find assets.  

• Train your users: Provide training for users on how to use the MAM system effectively. Make training materials and offer workshops to teach best practices and drive user adoption. 

• Integrate with existing tools: Seamless integration enhances efficiency and collaboration. Integrate with other tools like NLEs, design, and project management. You can build it yourself, hire solutions integrators, or use platforms like Zapier.  

• Set metadata standards: Establish and implement metadata standards to ensure consistency in how media is tagged and organized within the MAM system.  

• Rollout: Launch the MAM solution across the organization. Optionally, you can conduct a pilot program with a small group of users to validate workflows in a real-world setting.  

After implementation  

• Monitor and optimize: Monitor usage and performance and gather feedback from users. Stay up-to-date on updates and new features from your MAM vendor and offer ongoing user training.  

Remember: A MAM implementation does not end at file migration. User adoption, satisfaction, workflow efficiency and reduction of duplicate storage are some of the ways you can measure success of a MAM implementation. 

• Scale and adapt: Assess your organization’s business needs and the MAM’s performance to scale accordingly. Update configurations and integrations to accommodate new workflows or requirements.  

Next steps

In the modern landscape of content creation, brands are seeking ways to diversify their presence, requiring content for immediate use, repurposing in the future, and backup purposes. 
 
When choosing the right MAM solution for you, look for features like centralized storage, access control, version control, advanced search capabilities, integration with other tools, and automation. These elements are essential for transforming and optimizing media workflows. 

Adopting a MAM solution offers faster file retrieval, improved collaboration, enhanced output quality, cost and time savings, and better compliance. Cloud-based MAM solutions offer even more benefits, such as scalability, remote access, cost efficiency, hands-free maintenance, and built-in backup. 

The only thing better than a cloud-based MAM? A cloud media asset management software that also offers remote file gathering, real-time collaboration, and media archiving, like Ci Media Cloud. If we’ve piqued your interest, contact our Customer Success team for more information. You’re now closer to future-proofing your content and elevating your workflows.