What Is the Difference Between CMS and DAM?

Investing in a digital asset management (DAM) system is often quite essential for most companies looking for an effective way to build and manage their digital presence. A DAM is significantly different from a Content Management System (CMS), a tool that helps manage content on your website. As a business owner, you may be unsure which tool is best suited for your specific needs or if you need to purchase both. 

What Is the Difference Between CMS and DAM?

A Digital Asset Management (DAM) solution is designed to provide a simple and efficient way to allow companies to store, manage, and share digital assets. You can easily maintain those assets across the company, allowing various team members within the company to have access to them. A DAM also allows you to have a streamlined and efficient way of managing those digital assets with external partners, allowing you to better control the accuracy of the content and the latest versions of those assets.

This is significantly different from a Content Management System (CMS). A CMS is used to create, edit, and then publish content online. It is common for companies to use a CMS because it is a streamlined method of creating useful content, but it has limitations.

Companies typically can use a CMS solution to manage their website content. That is typically all a CMS does. You use it to store and manage the content you create for your website or other digital experiences. A CMS usually does not provide the tools necessary to build a complete digital experience, which is what a Digital Experience Platform (DXP) does. This means you have an obstacle to overcome if you need a way to create and manage your content in a streamlined and efficient manner.

Why Do You Need Digital Asset Management?

There are multiple reasons why your company likely needs to use digital management software. The key benefit is that it allows you to organize, store, retrieve, share, and manage all of your digital assets in one centralized location. This makes it possible to better and more efficiently manage all of these assets.

Consider, for example, the pain points that arise when this cannot be done. You send a digital file to an external partner to use in their advertising, but they are using an older and outdated version within a few months. With this system, they can access the most recent and necessary assets to use instead. This allows for only brand-approved digital assets to be used by other departments within your company as well as all external partners.

Also notable is that a DAM allows companies to reduce the time employees spend looking for a specific digital asset. This is a big factor in overall productivity in today’s productivity-driven workspace. Most companies will report a significant increase in team productivity after they implement a DAM solution.

How Much Is a Digital Asset Management System?

Digital asset management tools are an investment in your company, and often, they pay for themselves over time in improved efficiency, fewer errors, and more productivity. DAM solutions range in price based on the solutions provided and the features they offer, which can also range significantly from one product to the next.

Pricing typically varies greatly based on whether or not you want an on-premises solution or you want a version in the cloud. Both are viable and beneficial but significantly different in the way they operate. Typically, overall pricing on a DAM solution will range from $1,000 to $250,000 or more annually.

It is worth it for companies to compare products and their features carefully to determine which is the best fit for their overall goals. Looking at a few digital asset management system examples can help you better learn which is worth the value to you.

Lumavate, for example, is a full-service Product Experience Management (PXM) system. That means it includes a built-in digital asset management solution along with other core and necessary features such as a product information management (PIM) solution and a digital experience platform (DXP). In addition to this, Lumavate also includes other functionality that is core to the daily operations of most companies. That includes text messaging, a form builder solution, and much more.

Considering all of this added value, you may expect to pay substantially more for these digital asset management tools. However, Lumavate is generally about 75 percent more cost-effective than competitive solutions. That is critical to note.

Note, too, that Lumavate is a flexible, highly advanced, and reliable solution, not a stripped-down version but a fully designed system. And pricing is very transparent. You can see the price of Lumavate on its website right now. That helps take out most of the questions about what a product like this may cost you.

How Do I Choose a Digital Asset Management System?

There are numerous digital asset management companies and solutions available. While that may be the case, not all products are the same, and many of them are limited in what they can do for you. The move to a DAM is typically to improve productivity, reduce mistakes and communication breakdowns, and help support the company’s asset management. Anything that limits this may not be worth your investment.

When comparing the options, there are several key things to look for in the top digital asset management companies and products. To determine which is best for you, consider these key questions about any product. The best DAM solution for your business typically will fall in line then.

What is the primary problem we’re trying to solve with the DAM?

It could be organizing existing fines, finalizing and sharing projects that are in place but also changing over time, improving collaboration, or streamlining your project goals.

How many digital assets do we have, and what types?

Some DAM solutions have limitations on how much they can hold as well as the type of digital asset files they can manage. Look at what you are using now and how well it is supported.

How will we structure the taxonomy of our digital assets?

Specifically, you want to be sure the technology you choose can align with the way you need and plan to use your assets. If it limits you, that makes it harder to use overall.

Where and how will the digital assets be used?

Ensure your solution fits with the flexibility and versatility you need. Look specifically for any limitations.

Lumavate offers excellent versatility, customization, and productivity-boosting features. Take a demo of the product now to see how well it can work for your needs.