Definition: Image Bank Software

Organising media within organisations is becoming increasingly complicated. The number of types of files nowadays goes beyond photos and videos and the number of media channels is increasing. A handy way of organising all your image materials is to use image bank software, for example.

What is Image Bank Software?

Image bank software, also known as an online image bank, is a platform that makes it possible to organise, manage and share image material online.

All types of image files can be stored in an online image bank. Think of photos and videos, but also of PDFs and presentations. In this way, valuable photos are collected in one central location to which all authorised stakeholders have access.

What are the advantages of Image Bank Software?

Using image bank software is safe, saves costs and promotes brand consistency.
An online image bank makes sending files by e-mail or other online transfer services unnecessary. This prevents files from getting lost, falling into the wrong hands or existing in multiple versions unnecessarily.
By using image bank software, you also save costs as an organisation. Files are organised in a clear manner, which saves time looking for the right materials. In addition, it reduces the production costs of unnecessary duplicates or re-productions.
Finally, it promotes brand consistency. An online image bank facilitates the central management of brand files and brand visuals, so that only the latest versions of brand files are used.

What is the difference between an Image Bank and Digital Asset Management?

A Digital Asset Management system is always an image bank, but image bank software is not always a Digital Asset Management (DAM) system. A DAM system is the natural successor to an image bank software and is much more advanced. In a DAM system you can not only store image files but also other digital assets such as artwork, text files, spreadsheets and audio files. In addition, Digital Asset Management makes it possible to metadata, group and (automatically) tag files much more dynamically to make searching, filtering, finding and sharing the right files and quality even easier. Finally, DAM systems are often highly scalable Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) solutions, easy to link to your IT and media landscape and they often have interesting features and expansion possibilities. So if your organisation is ready for the next step in Brand Management and Media Management, Digital Asset Management is the right choice today.

More information

There are many different Digital Asset Management (DAM) systems and DAM providers. Therefore, take a look at our DAM benchmark to compare solutions based on your functional requirements. Download the comparison guide without any obligation.