Why Agencies Should Leverage DAM and PIM

If you work for or run an agency, you know they’re fast-paced. Balancing multiple accounts and the files that come with them can be overwhelming at best and a source of errors at worst. That’s why many agencies rely on digital asset management (DAM) and product information management (PIM) software to deliver exceptional service and world-class omnichannel campaigns. Whether you’re in marketing, advertising, creative, or SEO, organized, controlled access to content is central to delivery customer experience. 

Combining DAM and PIM technology brings all of your technical product data, marketing content, and digital assets into one system, making it easier to launch and optimize successful omnichannel campaigns. Using a DAM and PIM solution gives you the ability to manage product information and content for your clients, publish content across multiple channels, and sync product information with integrated tools. You’ll even be able to measure the success of the assets you create. 

Here’s a look at how DAM and PIM software enables agencies to get results for brands that want to compete and grow in the ever-changing digital landscape.

Importance of DAM and PIM for agencies

Managing creative for multiple clients and brands can be a lot to juggle. Unlike in-house teams, agencies aren’t as ingrained with the day-to-day nuances of a brand but are still expected to understand every detail to quickly deliver exceptional design concepts, pitch decks, marketing campaigns, and more. Incorporating DAM and PIM software into your agency workflow can make it easier to strike this balance. With configurable permissioning structures and robust metadata options, agency teams can access and share the correct content quickly, allowing for faster turnarounds and improved efficiency. 

In the same vein, without day-to-day knowledge, it can be difficult for agency teams to keep up with changing assets. But by leveraging a DAM and PIM platform — either internally or shared with the client — teams can stay on top of changing assets and information to help them avoid using outdated or inconsistent content. With shared systems, any time that a client updates an asset, it will be reflected for the agency as well. And if the agency decides to use an internal system, there are plenty of ways to share content with clients (e.g., via portals) and allow teams to add new content using metadata mapping or Google Drive uploads.

Manage client product information

DAM and PIM solutions give digital agencies a central source of accurate content and product information to design and manage client campaigns. Some agencies purchase this software and use it as an in-house tool to manage workflows, deadlines, and campaigns for all their clients. Other agencies manage assets and product information directly in their clients’ DAM and PIM solutions. And some agencies even provide digital asset management and product information management as a service and maintain and administer their clients’ DAM and PIM platforms.

However your agency chooses to implement these solutions, your creators, account managers, and other contributors get secure, permission-based access to your clients’ content and product information in one place. No more wasting time trying to get everyone on your team working from the same new product spreadsheet. A DAM and PIM system gives your whole organization access to the assets and data they need to make decisions and optimize campaigns — no matter what timezone they’re in. 

Publish across any channel

Your teams need to publish client product listings and ads everywhere from Amazon to Facebook and Instagram. With a DAM and PIM solution, you can organize your product information and content for centralized syndication across websites, digital and print catalogs, and thousands of e-commerce channels. Then, whenever you need to update a product, you can make the change in one place and sync information updates across multiple platforms. 

Together, DAM and PIM software helps you launch products faster by managing product hierarchies, variants, attributes, assets, and more in one system. It’ll also enhance product listing accuracy and reduce negative reviews and returns — both big wins for your e-commerce clients. With these major challenges handled, you free up your agency teams to build compelling marketing stories and digital experiences that grow your agency’s brand. 

Sync product data with integrations

To make the most of your DAM and PIM investment, you’ll want to integrate them with your existing technology stack. Thanks to the magic of APIs, you can use pre-built integrations or custom connections to sync content and product information across all your tools. When your DAM and PIM tools are equipped with an API, it’s much easier to automate manual steps in your process. 

Acquia DAM (Widen) comes with the Acquia API endpoint that makes searching for and sharing your product information easier. Companies have built integrations with technologies like Drupal, WordPress, Sitecore, Salesforce, Magento, Hybris, ATG, and Umbraco — just to name a few. With product information and content synced across all possible platforms, you can create the kinds of seamless customer experiences your agency wants to be known for. You’ll also save time and money on internal workflows and increase collaboration inside your organization. 

Evaluate the success of assets

Your product information and digital assets are both important elements in campaign performance. It’s helpful to know which assets are being used, by whom, for what purpose, and where. With a combined DAM and PIM solution, you can track digital asset performance with dashboards to share with clients how assets perform during campaigns and over time.

You can create custom dashboards that monitor site metrics, search patterns, user engagement, referral sources, and location. With these insights, you can compare how different brand assets perform during campaigns. This is the kind of information you can deliver to your clients that makes your team more valuable — and sets you apart from other agencies without a DAM and PIM platform. 

Getting started

Customers expect accurate, robust, up-to-date, compelling campaigns, and you need to help your clients deliver that experience. A DAM and PIM solution makes it easier for your agency to build omnichannel customer experiences based on product data and content. Having a central source for content and information makes it easier to publish across all channels and sync data through all your tools.

Over 850 global brands trust Acquia DAM to help them deliver a stellar customer experience — agencies included. Help your clients get their products and e-commerce experiences to market faster with Acquia DAM and our PIM solution, Entries. 

Learn more about Acquia’s combined DAM and PIM platform. Request, watch, or click through a demo today.

Note: This article was originally published on Widen.com in November 2021 and has been updated to remain current.