Definition: digital assets

What are digital assets?

In simple terms, a digital asset is any content that can be stored digitally. So that can be images, photos, videos, files with text, spreadsheets or presentations. New digital formats and formats are constantly emerging - before the 1990s we had never heard of MP3 - so the definition of a digital asset is constantly evolving. Rather than establishing a definitive list of file formats that qualify as digital assets, a digital asset can be any content, in any format, that can be stored digitally and provides value to the business (or to the user or consumer). However, there are some common types of digital file formats that are digital assets, such as:

• Images and photos: JPEG, RAW, GIF, PNG, TIFF, EPS, etc.

• Videos: MPG, MP4, MOV, WMV, AVI, etc.

• Audio files: MP3, MP4, WAV, FLAC, WMA, etc.

• Design files: PDF, AI, INDD, SKETCH, etc.

• Presentations (such as PowerPoint presentations)

• Excel spreadsheets

• Word documents

• Plain text files (such as notepad files)

• Corporate identity files (such as logos and other brand carriers and assets)

• HTML documents (and associated files, such as CSS)

Benefits of Digital Assets

All digital assets offer (additional) value, but not all digital assets are valued equally. In fact, some are irreplaceable and have a value far greater than the cost of creating them. Consider digital assets that are impossible to recreate, such as photos or videos of once-in-a-lifetime events. These assets are more valuable to a company or an individual than assets that, with some time and effort, can be reproduced.

Take stock photos, for example. Although you pay a license fee for the right to use a stock photo, it is easy to find an alternative option (for a fee) if you can no longer find a specific photo. In contrast, a 100-page digital user manual for a software program that contains a variety of diagrams and other content is much harder to recreate and therefore has more value to your organization.

Today, companies rely heavily on digital assets to influence buying behavior and build brand awareness. Digital assets provide a visual representation of your products or services and allow you to connect and maintain contact with your target audience through a wide range of channels and media. In short, from your company logo to your ad copy; digital assets form the basis of your brand identity, so effective Brand Management is a must for any organization.

Why manage assets in a DAM system?

A Digital Asset Management (DAM) system makes it possible to conveniently house all digital content within an organization in one central location. From this location, digital assets can be used and shared. DAM software can be tailored to an organization's needs. For example, a fashion company can use a Digital Asset Management system to store and access all product photos and videos. A supermarket chain can use a DAM system to centrally manage the marketing materials of different branches. A bank is able to centrally manage all its corporate identity files and digital content and share them with authorized users, marketers and local branches through DAM.