Do you work for a marketing / creative / advertising agency?

Are you on the lookout for ways of adding new profit centers without adding staff?

How quickly and easily are you able to respond to client demands for digital files?

In our experience of working with agencies, we can guarantee that some of your clients want web-based access to the digital assets you’re producing for them.  You are the resource to make this happen… aren’t you? 

Think strategic. Work light.  Produce more. On-demand Digital Asset Management systems can do just that.

Give clients the ability to offer their sales channels and affiliates controlled access to download photography, catalog pages, logos and line art.  Help them make the creation of localized advertising and promotional materials a breeze.  Get out in front of the competition and help your clients be on the cutting edge of marketing and creative software technology. 

Internally, get art directors, account managers and production staff on the same level — giving everyone connected to a project limited or unlimited access to files, whichever you choose.

View a short video snippet from the owner of ZDO, a creative agency using Widen's DAM system, about the impact of DAM. 

In this video, Bryon Zimmerman discusses how they are faster, more efficient with their jobs by shortening file retrieval time.  The Widen on-demand DAM system helps them move on to the next project faster and realize more profits by reducing individual project time. 

Many of us here at Widen work on pro bono projects for local organizations such as Forward Lymphoma and Breast Cancer Recovery Foundation.  Some of us volunteer.  Some are asked.  Some are directed.  And why do we do it?  For many of us it’s the feeling of contributing to the greater good.  To do something that makes a difference in the lives of friends, our community, and our world.  We work in marketing, IT, sales … and we talk about digital asset management, software as a service, photography, prepress, and all the other things in our normal 8 to 5 world.  But then we have those moments where we are helping to raise money for lymphoma research.  Providing PR resources for breast cancer awareness.  Doing something more than our normal routine … leaving a positive mark on the world more than directing marketing campaigns, more than adding new clients, more than looking at the bottom line.  Instead, our return on investment becomes saving lives.  Curing lymphoma.  Curing breast cancer.  Isn’t that a return on investment that makes pro bono work important?

DEAR DR. DAM:  I’m Trent, a marketing director for a manufacturer of top-of-the-line tactical apparel and uniforms.  You know that Sprint commercial with the fire fighters and the walkie-talkies…I’ m going to keep it simple like that and limit the bull.  First, I need help storing all of our files in one central location.  Next, we like the ability to control templates that would be used by our business partners and sales channels.  We want dealers to enter a brand asset management software system through our dealer portals and allow them to customize templates, or grab images and logos for promotional use.  This talk about digital asset embed links looks like an important component, along with single sign-on user authentication and robust video asset handling capabilities.  We use Salesforce.com, so we’ll take the Widen integration for DAM and media builder seriously.  So, I don’t really have any more questions for you, as I think you realize I know what we need.  Can I just get your blessing that this is a sound business decision?

DEAR NO BULL TACTICS TRENT:  I like your style.  Are you sure you don’t want to balance the budget or get clean water too?  You have a good handle on your digital asset management needs.  Widen is said by the analysts to be a down-to-earth DAM SaaS provider.  They’re a good choice to give you technology and service, without any bull – what you see is what you get.  You’d be a good speaker at a DAM conference with attitude and drive like that!

DEAR DR. DAM:  I want a hosted digital asset management solution and I want it now.  Sorry, for my candid nature, but I’m Raymundo, the web marketing manager for a mid-size sporting goods manufacturer.  We don’t have an I.T. department that can support such a system, nor can they fully support our marketing efforts.  Our digital files are stored in multiple locations within a file folder structure with no associated metadata.  Our users will require something that is easy to use (i.e. functionally fit) as they will not put up with a system loaded with confusion.  My main focus needs to offer global access to our assets, while enforcing brand consistency.  With that said, varying roles and appropriate permissions are key.  For our retailers and print partners, we’re building an online digital asset management warehouse to download approved files for their advertising, and also to use as an FTP for printers doing outsourced work on our catalogs.  We’ve recognized that there are many types of DAM systems—ranging from light, medium, and heavy.  We do one catalog per year per brand and have a handful of brands under the chief brand.  We have a few dozen sales and marketing people on our staff serving a couple hundred dealers. 

The FTP site does not work well for dealers and we’re doing away with the dealer extranet.  Since we’re revamping our web site, we want to replace the dealer extranet with a hosted DAM solution that will also replace the FTP site.  Some dealers have their own catalogs so once a year they will do a complete download of the entire product line.  Therefore, we obviously have a decent amount of volume when it comes to usage.  We also have a few different printers and advertising agencies, so the DAM system would serve as hub for all levels.  Our file types include product and lifestyle photography, PDF fact sheets, word docs and spreadsheets.  We have some templates for dealer promotions so a web-to-print type of collateral customization tool would be helpful in streamlining the creation of branded materials.  We need our DAM system in place before we launch the new website. 

DEAR BAM HUB RAYMUNDO:  You are facing quite an endeavor.  Your situation sounds complicated, but it’s a pretty average situation for many marketers your size and a mid-sized brand asset management software solution that can scale to meet your needs is well within reach.  You’ll be able to condense your need for different internal resources by doing away with the hard drive storage and FTP usage.  Your DAM system will serve as the graphic communications hub for internal marketing and sales, advertising agencies, printers and your dealer network.  Establishing metadata taxonomies and adhering to those standards will be imperative to the success of the system.  Widen can help you with that by sharing best practices in what others have done from the Widen user community.  Your marketing people should like what the dynamic media building tool can do for your dealers by allowing them to customize ads, brochures and other promotional sales collateral within branding standards.  Hang in there… Widen will help you move along quickly, but in manageable chunks.

Here's the winning entry for the first week of Dr. DAM Madlibs. 

Be sure to stay on the lookout for the Week 2 Dr. DAM Madlibs to enter into the contest for the $50 Amazon.com gift card.   

WINNING CONTENT:

CLIENT:  I’m Amy, the Creative Director for an Agency. I’m responsible for managing and creating brand approved media for our clients. As for digital asset management, my role is to dig through stacks and stacks of CD's to find an image I need to work with. We have images and videos and they’re used by our clients to drive their marketing efforts.

CLIENT:  However, I have issues with finding everything I'm looking for. It makes me feel like a rat in a maze. All I want is to have organization in my life!

DR. DAM:  I know what you’re going through and I can help you solve your problem. Here’s what I recommend you do, get a DAM solution from Widen to give you a competitive edge and new revenue streams. Once you’ve implemented a more effective digital asset management solution, what are you going to do?

CLIENT:  Now I can focus on business related activities. I feel so relieved! I’m going to go to the mall for a new pair of shoes with the raise I'm going to get!

Software-as-a-service is now the most fashionable method of using software technologies.  “It used to be fashionable to purchase software independent from the infrastructure and service needed to run the software,” communicates a hypothetical former I.T. fan of installed software.  “It meant job security, new challenges, and a chance to work with different departments that I did not understand.” 

The former I.T. fan of installed software (FITFOIS – see side note regarding JABOT in previous blog regarding acronym use) revealed that he really did not understand the demands of the business unit and really didn’t care.  Mr. FITFOIS goes on, “I admit that working with other departments was like working blind, especially with marketing and creative teams.  Those people had weird demands that I just didn’t understand so I wasn’t really interested in the software installation projects from the marketing and creative teams.”

“The process for purchasing installed software was entertaining,” Mr. FITFOIS comments, “these installed software salespeople commit to doing everything and under deliver every time, it is truly an amazing spectacle – a disaster really.”

This is typical of installed software providers which is one of the key reasons they are no longer the fashionable choice for deploying software technologies.  The other key reason why software-as-a-service providers are more fashionable is the service levels.  Service levels are non-existent in the installed software world and business units are fed up.

Mr. FITFOIS divulges, “you don’t really know how important service is until you actually receive it and I would never go back to installed software given my recent software-as-a-service experience.”  Evidence of this can be seen with an installed software provider in the digital asset management industry.  The research organization CMS Watch identified less than favorable customer experiences with a specific installed DAM software provider AND as a result also uncovered an integrity / lack of factual data issue.  This example can be found at the following blog: DAM vendors engage in analyst payola, then dissemble about it, too.

Full disclosure is what software-as-a-service providers embrace and what installed software providers fear.  It is this reason that SaaS is the new black and the most fashionable choice for maximizing the use of software technologies.

Did you know that approximately 80% of women in the workforce fall into only 20% of the industry categories tracked by the federal government?  That means that there are MASSIVE amount of industries out there that are underrepresented by women – including the prepress / premedia sector.  What is Widen Enterprises (an industry leader in software as a service and prepress) doing to change this?

Widen has partnered with Madison Area Technical College (MATC) in assisting in the education of non-traditional female students in prepress technical careers. As part of MATC’s Tools for Tomorrow: Women in Trades and Technology Program, Widen has welcomed three women to its Madison facility to learn about career opportunities within the prepress industry.  I spoke with Nancy Nakkoul, Program Coordinator at MATC and she offered a great perspective of why this type of experience is important.  She said, “This type of opportunity gets students thinking beyond the classroom and allows them to envision themselves working in a particular industry. Thanks to companies like Widen, these women get an up-close and personal look at the variety of jobs available in the prepress industry.”

The Tools for Tomorrow Program encourages women to consider a vocation in the fields of high-skill construction, or industrial and technical fields, and then offers a network of services and education related to those industries. Widen’s more than sixty years as a leader in software technology, prepress and color industries provides an invaluable glimpse at technical careers in this sector. By offering a full day of job shadowing, Widen’s prepress professionals provide a first-hand perspective of the industry and help women to network with people already working in the field.  Nikkie Keck, a Widen Digital Sampling Specialist, was one of the prepress employees who met with the MATC students.  She offers a fantastic perspective as she went through a similar program at MATC several years earlier.

Students enrolled in the program got a behind-the-scenes tour of the Widen facility and spent several hours rotating between three distinct production and prepress areas, learning about the specific responsibilities of each operation.

• In the Production Art department, students learned about reviewing paperwork, project requirements, creating templates, marketing and design implications, and quality control processes.

• In the Digital Sampling department, students were shown Widen’s involvement and responsibilities to clients like Reebok, and learned about workflow from initial capture to neutralization and team-specific colorization and graphic application.

• Finally, in the Color department, students saw a demonstration of high-end color retouching and color correction, and saw a variety of ways images are manipulated for web and print.

Thanks MATC for offering this program!  We here at Widen are more than happy to help.  To learn more about Tools for Tommorrow - click here!  To learn more about Widen's premedia world - click here!

We had our big splash “60 Years of Service” celebration and announcement back in September, but I just had to blog about it again after some dialogue we had at the Henry Stewart Digital Asset Management Symposium in LA earlier this week.  The guys from Kaiser-Permanente stopped by our booth to find out more about the Widen digital media management solution and they first asked “Where is Widen?”… Response being… “Headquartered in Madison, Wisconsin. “ Next, they asked “How long have you been around?”  Answer being quite firmly “60 Years…” the confused looks on their faces automatically triggered the question, “Did you say 6 or 16?”  I had to clarify with my Wisconsin accent “6-T or 6-D (depending on how you want to say it meaning 6-0)” … 60 years.  Like many others that ask about our age, the response is “Wow, a 60 year old DAM company!”  

I’d love to make the claim… that yeah “we invented digital… we invented digital assets… and we invented the term ‘digital asset management.’  We didn’t invent any of that, but we were there as they all evolved.  We were managing large amounts of large files for clients before DAM was an industry and DAM solutions were commercialized.  You can take a look at our history and see how we’ve evolved from a photographic engraving shop 3 generations of Widen’s ago to learn more about how we’ve evolved.  Keyword being:  “we’ve evolved.”  There’s a lot behind evolution… and the evolution of a technology company.  However, to keep it simple, two things remain constant in a continuously changing world of marketing operations and creative workflows from a Widen point of view.  First, Widen is committed to ‘interpreting the unarticulated demand of the marketplace’  through client interaction and providing technology solutions to make their everyday lives easier, save money and bring more value to each customer and their customers.  Secondly, we value our reputation, culture and commitment to ‘customer service.’  Whether you need Widen for premedia production help or for marketing software solutions, you’re going to find ‘service’ in the title of each division because that’s what it’s all about.  We will earn your business every month because of the service – Software as a Service or Premedia Services.  There’s not many other companies in the content management space that can say they’re 60-years-old. 

The funny thing about the digital asset management competitive landscape is that we talk about making it easy for users to search and download images, video and other types of digital media.  Once users locate the appropriate digital assets it makes sense for them to download so they can be placed on a web site or used in desktop software applications.

The funny part is coming.

Isolate the digital assets used in web sites across marketing channels for a moment.  Think of every file that is owned by corporate marketing teams and used throughout the internet for promotional purposes.  This could be product images used by distributors or dealers, training videos, recordings of executive speeches, or high-definition promotional videos.  Every time someone wants to use one or all of these digital assets they download them from the digital asset management application and place the branded files into the appropriate internet location (e.g. web site, blog).   On the surface, the digital asset management system accomplished the objective. 

Here is the funny part.

You have surrendered control over your entire marketing library because you just let everyone that needed to place your branded material on their web site to download a file from your DAM system.  Something that you were told you would have more control over just went out the window.  When you want to change or remove that file you trust everyone will check back to make sure they are using the most current version.  You could also send an email notice (or have the DAM provider do it for you) to let the user community know a new digital asset exists.  How many users do you think will change the file on their web site to the most current version because you asked them to? 

Here is a funnier part.

Imagine this is a video file -- you have just burdened the infrastructure and I.T. department of your marketing channel by giving them a cool new video to help promote the product but they cannot use it because it would cripple the entire web structure if more than 10 people watch it simultaneously.  A cool new video that cannot be repurposed by your channel partners is an expensive shame.

Now we can get serious.

Think big picture.  These files are all being used on the internet somewhere in a web page or blog.  There is only one internet so why do you need all your channels to download their own files?  It’s not your fault, you were trained by digital asset management providers to believe the purpose of a DAM system is to enable users to search and download.  Widen is here to break those bad habits caused by our own industry.

One internet, one file.

Since there is really only one internet, Widen has allowed organizations to use one file (located in the Widen DAM system) across all internet locations.  Instead of enabling users to download files, users of Widen digital asset management technology copy a pointer to that file instead.  That pointer is just a bunch of text (JABOT).  Side note:  I learned from tech junkies to make up acronyms and use them frequently to create another language that can only be deciphered by like-personnel, enter new acronym, JABOT.

When JABOT is placed on the web site or in a web content management system like Clickability, the web page presents the digital media from the DAM system every time the page loads.  This includes images and video files so the strain of video is no longer jeopardizing the infrastructure of your marketing channels.  The Widen DAM system is scaling to meet that demand.  And if you want to change the image or video, the change is made one-time to the DAM application and every place that used the JABOT now represents that new digital content within seconds.  It’s magic.  No more downloads! 

Welcome to Widen world and our philosophy on managing digital media: one internet, one file.

Widen’s expo and technology track presentation at the Henry Stewart LA Digital Asset Management Conference will feature a sneak peak at the new digital asset Embed Links technology.  If you’re planning to go to the LA show, be sure to check out a live demo of embed links in action at Widen’s booth #117. 

Embed links enable Widen Digital Asset Management users and online marketers to tie image and video assets to online mediums via unique web address, without placing the file in another location.  Every time a page loads that contains the embed link, data is transferred from the Widen DAM system to the online channel.  Embed links allow content consumers to instantly connect with rich media objects and ensures the latest content updates are always on display.


Marketing benefits of digital asset embed links include:

• One master repository for all images and videos used online
• All asset updates made in the Widen DAM system are dynamically published to an infinite number of online channels
• On-demand infrastructure scalability and “pay for what you use” services
• Consistent and accurate use of assets across all online channels

I'll be presenting "What's new in DAM SaaS" covering DAM as the foundation for online media publishing with embed links and the concept of “One Internet – One File” during the Technology Track at 2:15 on Monday, November 10.  My presentation will also include a look at DAM SaaS 2.0 with managed services on the client site using the Widen Appliance to accommodate internal creative workflows and will include an inside look at what “service” really means to a SaaS client using several customer case studies.  I'll be sitting in on the panel for the Brand&Marketing Asset Management Vendor Shootout at 1:15 on Tuesday, November 11. 

Widen has two customers presenting case studies at the DAM Conference:

Manny Cuevas, Director of Sales & Marketing for Level III Services, Inc. will talk about how the Widen hosted DAM system is used to deliver value-added services at 2:15 on Tuesday, November 11.

Stephanie Ruff, Marketing Specialist for Motorola, Inc., will present "What We Achieved with Enterprise DAM," addressing the challenges, business objectives and solutions to an enterprise-wide deployment of a DAM solution at 3:15 on Tuesday, November 11.

I hope to see you at the conference.

View the full conference program for Henry Stewart LA 2008

If you were in attendance last week at the Henry Stewart Business Briefing on Digital Asset Management in Chicago, Widen thanks you for taking the time to learn more about the challenges, opportunities, problems and solutions with DAM.  We hope you found the event to be very helpful in your quest for a digital asset management solution implementation or expansion.  If you were unable to attend, we extend the invitation to learn more from the presentations archive.



The even featured several keynote speakers and case studies, including:

• An Introduction and “How To” from Michael Moon, President&CEO of Gistics
• Benefits and ROIs from Mary Yurkovic of Playboy
• Evaluating and Selecting DAM Technologies from Tony Byrne of CMS Watch
• Digital Asset Management Deployments from Frank Chagoya of Leo Burnett
• Critical Importance of Metadata from Philip Spiegel of National Geographic
• Common and Less Common Problems and Solutions from Doug Rammel of Synapse Operational Systems and Solutions, formerly of The adidas Group

Widen’s participation included a vendor presentation by Matthew Gonnering, VP of Sales and Marketing title “The Repurposing Department of Repurposing,” covering:

• The epicenter of all digital media no matter where it is used
• One true central source of digital media linked up to the world with the concept of “one internet, one file” via digital asset embed links
• Publishing images and video without straining internal infrastructure
• The matrimony of DAM and web content management
• How SaaS providers enable scalability on-demand

A customer of Widen, Jim Scarlata of Knaack LLC, Division of Emerson Electric Company, presented a case study titled “Extending the Brand Experience through DAM,” covering:

• How brand asset management software helped Knaack marketing implement and launch the new system enterprise-wide quickly and seamlessly
• Using DAM as a Platform Technology, Not Just an Application
• Brand Consistency on a Global Scale
• Building Equity in Brand Centralization

Contact marketing@widen.com for full access to the presentations from Doug Rammel, Matthew Gonnering and Jim Scarlata.  Video segments of the Widen presentations coming soon.  View the full presentation archive from Henry Stewart at http://www.damusers.com. 

Bryon Zimmerman googled himself the other day and saw his name and face all over the web courtesy of Widen.  We said to Bryon, “You know, Bryon, you volunteered to be a video case study to express the value of digital asset management solutions for agencies, marketing organizations and creative groups.”  With that said, of course his face, name and video segments are everywhere because we (the Widen marketing team) use our own web based DAM technologies to publish our digital assets to the web.  

That’s digital asset optimization (DAO) – Widen style.  With the help of our DAM SaaS platform, our marketing team is able to repurpose the videos with just a few clicks to our own website, our blog hosted by Compendium Blogware, YouTube and other online destination sites.  Within the Widen hosted digital media management system, we manage all our videos in one location – both the file and metadata (keywords, descriptions, file details, etc.), repurpose the file in multiple formats on-demand and deliver the file to multiple people and destinations in just a few simple clicks.

What’s even more impressive is the use of digital asset embed links to display images and videos across multiple websites, blogs, press releases, campaign landing pages, e-commerce sites and many other online locations.  Anytime we need update the file in our DAM system, the videos and images are dynamically updated across all the channels in which they are published.  There’s no need to create separate libraries or locations for assets to be published elsewhere.  Updates are simple, painless and one time – one internet, one file.  

Keep your eyes and ears open for more video segments from Bryon Zimmerman talking about Widen and digital asset management for agencies and marketing organizations.  Thanks Mr. Zimmerman and ZDO for helping us show the power of DAO.

Day one is done with the Photo Plus Expo, the leading event in photography.   Kristina Lee – Backdrop Product Manager, Chris Norris – Lead Developer and I are in New York representing Widen at booth #1848 showcasing Backdrop.

What’s in the name Backdrop?  I can’t tell you how many times today people came up to us and asked “Do you sell Backdrops?”  If we did and that’s what people were looking for, we all would have left the show thinking we sold gold.  Also, no we don’t digitally superimpose you on top of 30 Rock, getting chased by a Rhinoceros on an African Safari or of your children sitting on Santa’s lap at the mall.  (We could… we do have the premedia services expertise to do so.)  That’s not the purpose of Backdrop.  Backdrop by Widen is “behind the scenes” for photography workflow management just as Widen’s other solutions are considered “back office” marketing and creative software.  (Much of the software for content management and structure of digital content is categorized as “back office.”  We’ll accept that.) 

What is meant by “behind the scenes"…you ask?  Basically, we like to think of it like this:  Photographers take photographs, creative people design – and everything in between should be held to minimal duty by automating many of the manual tasks and communication procedures.  The automated workflow takes place courtesy of Backdrop by Widen - a photography approval system working “behind the scenes.”  We understand that everyone has a different workflow and photographers have different ways of doing things with different clients.  That’s why Backdrop is both intelligent and flexible.  The configurable Photoscript is designed to follow your workflow (photographers and commercial clients) all while making things more efficient.  We don’t aim to add any steps to your photography review cycles, but we do help to remove more than a few and make other steps faster. 

So what is Backdrop?  Here’s a few of our rehearsed elevator pitches… Backdrop is a web-based photography routing and approval system… photo asset management and collaboration software… but not software as in “Oh no, I can’t buy anymore software.”  It’s SaaS – which means no installs, no licensing fees, no complicated functionality to learn, no upgrades and nobody gets left out or left alone.  Backdrop allows clients to review photo shoots online.  Can’t make it to the shoot?  Need to review and approve photos in real time?  Backdrop by Widen is there.  Trying to eliminate unnecessary travel?  Backdrop will have you at the shoot without physically being at the shoot. 

Lastly, there’s much to be said about accountability.  Backdrop is intended to let people see and interact with only the files they are supposed to see.  All comments, approvals, requests for reshoots, denials and every other major action is automatically stamped with who did it and when. 

So there’s a little ditty on Backdrop by Widen.  If you’re in the Javits Center area in New York City this Friday or Saturday, feel free to stop by Widen’s booth #1848 for a closer look at Backdrop. 

Are you planning on attending the premier briefing and networking event in digital media management and marketing operations? 

Make sure to stop by the Widen booth #117 to catch the latest in DAM SaaS technology featuring an interactive presentation of the new digital asset Embed Links.  

The event features over 75 talks, case studies, panel sessions and interactive presentations. 

Digital Asset Management Los Angeles 2008
Monday, November 10 and Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Renaissance Hollywood Hotel

Sponsored by Henry Stewart, the event is for everyone involved in production, use or management of rich media and covers:

Digital Entertainment and New Media • Film Production • Exploiting Multimedia Platforms • Brand Management • Marketing (and Advertising) • Digital Rights Management • Ensuring Security • Optimizing Creative Workflows and Empowering Supply Chains • Metadata and Taxonomy Solutions • Latest Developments in Search Strategies • Structuring the Architecture of Systems for Maximum Performance

This is an event that will deliver exactly what it promises – briefings on all the important issues supported by case studies of real world performance.  Digital content management for increased revenue, profits and shareholder value.  Digital asset solutions for cost reduction, more effective marketing, brand management and new product development.

View the Full Program Details

Register Here

Contact Widen to receive $100 off the rate card price.

Guest Blog Post from Tim Vial, Widen Sales Representative

In the wake of my defeat in Widen’s weekly football game, I found myself wondering what went wrong.  Many of you may be feeling like this in a much more important game. Like in a backyard football game, the team with the most talent doesn’t always win, but rather the team with the best system.  Attacking today’s global market is a lot like this backyard football game.  There are three pieces to the ultimate victory, score points (get your sales team the ball), don’t give up any points (manage all the new “looks” creative is giving you), and last but not least appeal to your fans (marketing).  How the team with the best system (DAM) will always prevail:

As the quarterback (head of your department) you are the decision maker, and the one who needs to start the production.  Each down (selling situation) is different and has certain routes that will yield better results.  You need to get your receivers (sales reps) the ball quickly, efficiently, and with the best chance of success.  Just like with your business, you need to get your sales reps the most up to date information, with the opportunity to be able to tweak it for each specific opportunity without losing brand integrity.  In the mist of all this action, you have blitzing linebackers (deadlines) closing in on you fast.  You need to play like a veteran.

Offense puts fans in the stands but defense wins championships.  On the other side of the ball, you need to keep track of all those other receivers (assets).  The offense is constantly changing their formations, and bringing in fresh, new players.  The key is managing where those receivers are, who is being used the most, and for what purpose.  That will keep you from falling behind.

Like every team in any sport, you’ve got to pay the bills.  Would a fan come and watch your game and spend their hard earned money if you showed them pictures and told stories of the “glory years” that are long and gone?  Getting your team’s fresh, new image out to the public has to be efficient and effective as well.

In the business world you face the same challenges, which can be solved with Widen’s Digital Asset Management’s Software as a Service technology.  Get your branded material out to Sales teams quickly, with the ability to change some specifics for each target audience, but maintaining brand integrity.  Manage all the new materials creative is busy producing, all the while knowing you are using the most up-to-date image, video, or document with version control.  Find the digital material you are looking for quickly with self service access complete with advanced search options, in an organized central repository, with roles and permissions allowing you to decide who uses what.  In addition, full reporting that makes it easy to find out what images are being used, what’s most popular, etc.

Competing against a business with no DAM is like playing a football game against a quarterback that throws back across the field… Easy pickings.  Let a hosted digital asset management system from Widen Enterprises give you all the tools needed for victory, while always having a “coach” there to guide you, and a “trainer” for all the “bumps and bruises”.

DAM Pros 100, DAM Joes 0

Say What?

A little diversion from color stuff...

When it comes to computers and technology, history has proved that some otherwise very intelligent people have said some very unintelligent things. Here is a list, in no particular order, of some of my favorites...

"Computers in the future may have only 1,000 vacuum tubes and perhaps only weigh 1 1/2 tons."
Popular Mechanics, 1949

"But what... is it good for?"
Engineer at Advanced Computing Systems Division of IBM, 1968, commenting on the microchip.

"There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home."
Ken Olson, President, Chairman and founder of Digital Equipment Corp, 1977

"How could this be a problem in a country where we have Intel and Microsoft?"
Al Gore on Y2K

"640K ought to be enough for anybody."
Bill Gates, 1981

"Home taping is killing music"
A 1980s campaign by the BPI, claiming that people recording music off the radio
onto cassette would destroy the music industry.

"I think there is a world market for maybe five computers."
Thomas Watson, chairman of IBM, 1943

"Everything that can be invented, has been invented."
Charles H. Duell, commissioner, US Office of Patents, 1899

"Who... wants to hear actors talk?"
H.M. Warner, Warner Brothers, 1927

"Get your feet off my desk, get out of here, you stink, and we're not going to buy your product."
Joe Keenan, President of Atari, in 1976 responding to Steve Jobs' offer to sell him rights to the new personal computer he and Steve Wozniak just developed.

"The wireless music box has no imaginable commercial value. Who would pay for a message sent to nobody in particular?"
David Sarnoff's associates in response to his urgings for investment in the radio in the 1920s.

"The internet is a great way to get on the net."
Senator Bob Dole

"The horse is here to stay but the automobile is only a novelty - a fad."
The president of the Michigan Savings Bank advising Henry Ford’s lawyer, Horace Rackham, not to invest in the Ford Motor Co., 1903

"During my service in the United States Congress, I took the initiative in creating the internet."
Al Gore describing his 1986 legislation to interconnect five supercomputer centers (17 years after the first internet servers are hooked up)

"The day I made that statement, I was tired because I'd been up all night inventing the camcorder."
Al Gore attempting damage control.

"The internet? Is that thing still around?"
Homer Simpson

"Mark, you have to wait at least 20 minutes before you go in the water, or you will cramp up!"
My Mom at Pike Lake in 1973 right after I ate my lunch

Okay, that last one had nothing to do with technology, but it was just as dumb as all the others.

Mark

Guest Blog Post from Amanda Jenny, Widen Client Services Assistant, regarding Widen color management and prepress services

Reebok International Ltd. has joined forces with women's clothing retailer Limited Too in an effort to reach the "tween-age" girls market.

The partnership calls for Reebok to sell its products in Limited Too's stores, on its web site, and through its catalogue, which is mailed to more than 4 million girls several times per year. The partnership is designed to connect the Reebok brand to trend-setting girls between the ages of seven and fourteen.

"Limited Too is widely considered the retail authority on fashion for 'tween girls," Jan Sharkansky, vice president and general manager of Reebok women's division said in a statement.

DEAR DR. DAM:  I’m Kate and I work for an interactive agency that does email marketing, websites and print collateral for a number of clients.  We have a situation with one particular client in which sales and marketing do not get along.  It’s really pretty silly… the independent salespeople don’t like and don’t use the print collateral that the corporate marketing department creates for them.  The independent salespeople need something more personalized for their customers.  Given the time-sensitive nature of their business, salespeople oftentimes end up whipping up their own sell sheets and brochures.  Of course the marketing team cringes when this happens because the business branding is inconsistent.  Since they are not all part of the same corporate head, it’s difficult to enforce.  If you can help me help my client’s sales and marketing people get along I would be very happy. 

DEAR 'CAN’T WE ALL JUST GET ALONG' KATE:  You need to check out Widen’s brand asset management solution – Media Builder, which will help you build your client relationship by helping marketing help sales.  How it works is the marketing department creates templates with certain static content such as your logo and corporate branding.  Marketing provides a library of official product imagery and associated textual content.  They have options to the degree of freedom they want to give salespeople to customize the piece – headlines, main messages, etc.  Each salesperson can build their own brochures on-demand by selecting which products their clients want to see, and then add their contact information.  Sales will be able to customize their collateral for the customer and marketing will be able to protect the brand recognition.  Best of all, you’ll look like a hero for presenting such a solution.  People helping people… it’s a powerful thing.

DEAR DR. DAM:  I’m Sampson, the web marketing manager for the world's leading source of independent news and information about the Olympic movement.  Every day, via the internet and email, we deliver the most up-to-date news on issues affecting the Olympics.  Email subscribers are alerted on developments via e-bulletins each day.  We’re in need of a rich media management system for images and videos used online and for our print magazine.  We currently house 55,000 assets on a local server using a file folder structure, but as you can guess it’s difficult to find assets.  Our #1 pain is the time it takes to locate and convert assets.

DEAR SUBSCRIBERS RULE SAMPSON:  A Widen web based DAM system would suit you nicely.  Even for a small internal workgroup it will help you drastically increase efficiency in providing the most current content to your subscribers.  Widen’s price point is more in the ball park of what you’d want to spend.  You’ll be increasing your subscriber base with the amount of quality interactive content you’ll be able assemble by increasing efficiencies in the management and distribution of this content.

DEAR DR. DAM:  I’m Tom, a 35 year veteran of the travel industry and I’m strongly recommending that state and national departments of tourism take a look at digital asset management systems in their relationships with travel agencies.  This industry is not able to serve the travel agent industry well because they are not using current DAM technology to serve up digital media in an effective way.  This includes all forms of graphics, images, videos and print collateral.  Think of all the travel agents needing images and materials to share in their marketing and sales activities.
 
DEAR TRAVEL AGENT TOM:  Thanks for the tip!  It makes perfect sense.  Travel agencies need access to images and videos for websites and other online marketing channels.  They also need access to print materials and the ability to create their own print collateral at times.  Widen’s DAM SaaS systems with embed code technology would greatly help tourism departments assist travel agents with online marketing activities because they can control and streamline the use of images and videos.  Easy access and effective use of digital media would greatly boost the marketing activities of the tourism industry because the state departments and agencies can work closer together and provide travelers with the compelling content they seek in making travel plans.