Stock images management for your brand

It is not always practical or economically viable to create your own images for your brand. Sometimes its easier to purchase stock images. In many cases stock images are the fastest and most cost-effective way to access the images you need to complete a project; however, stock images are not without risk.

The challenge of usage rights

Many people think when they purchase a stock image, they have unlimited usage rights. They are wrong. Most stock images have strict usage rights. Many have expiry dates and restrictions on how images can be used. Some providers may allow you to extend these rights with ‘perpetual’ or ‘unlimited’ versions for a fee. Others may even allow you exclusive usage for an additional fee, however, most have expiry dates and limits for ‘editorial use only’. If you do not understand and comply with the usage rights of the stock images you have, you may be exposing your brand to commercial litigation.

Avoiding the common mistakes of usage rights

If you have a great Digital Asset Management (DAM) solution, such as the one at the core of the XL.Today™ digital marketing platform, you have the opportunity to manage and control how your stock images are used.

Your XL.Today™ DAM automatically uploads any usage rights and creator data embedded in a stock image, which then allows you to manage your own restrictions around who in your organisation can access the image and how it can be used. This can include an approval process by you. This information can allow you to manage your stock images in a way that ensures your brand is compliant with copyright laws.

Accessing your images

Once you have an understanding and control over your stock images, you then want to maximize their value. This may include using the images multiple times. If your images allow you to do this, then you want to make them easily accessible to people in your organization. Your XL.Today™ DAM makes this possible.

Your XL.Today™ DAM looks and works like a stock library. In fact, when you upload your stock images into your XL.Today™ DAM, it captures all of the embedded metadata, which helped you discover the image. Stock libraries use metadata to tag images, making it possible to filter your search using lots of search criteria.

Search tags

When you upload your stock image into your XL.Today™ DAM, the same tags are often embedded in the image, allowing you to search your own image library using the same advanced criteria to discover the image. This means that you have your own stock image library, which is embedded in your campaign workflow. You no longer need to add your own tags to images to make it simple for your people to discover and use stock images that you have purchased and manage.

The value of a digital marketing platform with a DAM

A digital marketing platform will add value to your organisation, however, almost none include a Digital Asset Management solution (DAM). That’s because DAMs can be expensive. Full function DAMs, such as the one at the core of the XL.Today™ can easily cost more than $100,000. Paying a subscription fee for both a digital marketing platform and a digital asset management solution is cost-prohibitive for most small to medium organizations, however XL.Today™ provides both for a low-cost month or annual fee. This allows small to medium organizations the same access and security that was traditionally reserved for large enterprises.