Demand for video and media-driven experiences has exploded, and as a result, nearly every industry has entered the business of content creation. 

For example, let’s look at agriculture. 

A company that sells farming machinery can't compete just by placing its products into a catalog in an era where the best story wins. They have to produce professional video ads to tell stories about family, and the value of our land to inform us about their brand values to build trust and win the business of customers who value the same thing.

And it’s not cheap. These productions are a significant investment for any business. It requires a lot of time and effort to create a high-quality ad that will resonate with viewers. 

This media isn’t just an ad, it’s fuel for future creations and it holds the history of the company that made it. It would be a shame if any of these assets were lost or forgotten.

But that’s exactly what happens when there isn’t a scalable way to manage and organize in place.

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Related Case Study: Cloud Collaboration Workflows for Agribusiness

The Right Time for a MAM

At some time, the amount of content owned by an organization grows to a point where it’s difficult to navigate deep into folder structures to see what media is available.

That's where media asset management systems (MAMs) come in. 

MAMs can be extremely valuable for teams who work with large amounts of media files. They can help teams keep track of their files, ensure that they’re properly tagged and organized, and make it easier to find and share files. 

By using a media asset management system, you can answer three questions for your team:

1. What media do we have?
2. Where is it?
3. How do I use it?

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Guide to Introducing your Team to MAM

If you're planning to introduce your team to its first media management solution, then they’ll need to understand how it will impact their day-to-day workflow. 

Properly planning the MAM onboarding process will maximize understanding and minimize resistance from those who thought life was just fine when they couldn’t find their media. 

Here are seven key points to keep in mind when introducing your team to their first media management solution.

1. Keep it Simple 

Try not to overload your team with information or features. It may be tempting to dazzle people with all the features and bells and whistles your media management solution has to offer. This can be stressful for users who are just trying to learn the basics of the software—but you're sensible and would never do that. 

A better approach is to keep introductions simple, only showing the most basic information and features needed to start using the product on day one, or even restricting access to advance features at the admin level if possible. 

Simplifying the first interactions with your MAM will help users feel more confident as they begin to use the software and will prevent them from becoming overwhelmed. Once users have a firm understanding of the basics, they can then begin to explore the more advanced features of the software on their own. 

After the initial introduction and success with your MAM, you can then start planning workshops to teach more advanced things or invest the resources to create an internal knowledgebase around your new solution.

2. Focus On the Benefits

If your team understands the benefits of a new solution, it will make sense to them endure and push through any rough patches at the beginning because the payoff will ultimately make their life easier. 

Media management and collaboration solutions can improve how teams work by providing a number of benefits. 

1. They can create faster without having to ask others to send them media
2. They can work more efficiently and effectively with each other while managing media files and collaborating on projects
3. They can easily access and share files, regardless of the location from a central repository for all media assets
4. They can manage media assets and track changes and revisions to avoid losing files

Related Post: 3 Ways to Improve Collaboration with External Agencies

Identify where the pain points are without media asset management, and try to paint a brighter future at an individual level first, then expand into how that will help your organization meet its goals. This leads us to the next point…

3. Get Buy-in From Key Stakeholders 

It's important to get buy-in from key stakeholders for new technology because the rest of the organization will be more likely to follow suit if the decision-makers are on board. 

If stakeholders see that media management will improve the bottom line and help teams be more productive, then they'll be more likely to be open to using it themselves. 

Some information that could increase stakeholder buy-in could be:

1. Reminding them about the production cost or value of your media
2. Explain how a MAM can improve ROI for media assets
3. Providing pricing information for the solution of your choice
4. Report on how much time is lost searching for assets with inefficient management
5. Identify bottlenecks in the create process that could be fixed by a MAM

By getting everyone on board from the beginning, you can avoid resistance and increase adoption. 

4. Set Up a Testing Period 

Uncertainty and commitment don't mix well. Ever seen Mr. Bean on the diving board? It's difficult to make a choice to go “all-in”when we do not have all the information that we need. 

This applies to bringing in new solutions as well. If your team has an opportunity to experience the positive outcomes of a MAM first-hand, they will feel better about committing to it. 

A trial of your MAM can be a great way to see if it is the right fit for your organization. It can also help the people you work with to get a feel for how the system works and how it can be used to benefit the team.

Setting up a trial of your MAM for a single project or smaller team is a manageable step to take at the start. This way, you can see if the MAM is right for you and your organization before making a larger commitment. 

The Following Tips Will Help You Avoid Common Mistakes

So far we've illuminated the way to MAM success, but there can still be pitfalls along the way. There are some common mistakes our team has witnessed when MAM adoptions fail. These are some things you can pay extra attention to.

5. Define the Goals 

Without a clear understanding of what you want to achieve, it’s impossible to select the right media management solution and have your team fully utilize it for the best ROI. 

• Do you want to improve or automate your file management?
• Make it easier to collaborate with remote teams? 
• Streamline media workflows
• Implement stricter security controls? 

These goals need to be explained with a clear definition of how success will be defined so the value of managing media well can be verified.

6. Don't Overlook the User Experience

Technology delivers the real value of a MAM, but the ability for users to use it determines if your organization can receive that value. 

An intuitive and user-friendly interface is crucial because if your team can’t figure out how to use the system, they won’t use it.

Try out the solution yourself before selecting it for your team and ask yourself these questions in order to decide if the software is intuitive:

1. How easy is it to find what you're looking for?
2. How easy is it to use the features you need?
3. Are the instructions or tutorials easy to follow?
4. Do you need a lot of trial and error to figure things out?
5. Do you have to read a lot of documentation in order to use it?

7. Consider Integration

Remaining nimble is critical for success in today's media landscape. Being able to integrate new solutions into existing systems is a key part of that. 

Don't make the mistake of choosing a solution that can't be integrated into existing or future systems. Doing so will limit your options down the road and make it difficult to take advantage of new opportunities as they arise. 

Choose a solution that has its own API and the ability to integrate with 3rd party products and services. 

Use This Guide and You'll Do Fine

By following these simple tips, you can easily introduce your team to the world of media management. Your organization will feel more confident with a solid understanding about the benefits a MAM can bring. All this will open the door for teams to manage media in a way that can scale. And as teams begin to re-discover their media and collaborate with less friction, they'll appreciate the solution you have introduced to them.