How to Leverage DAM for Shopify to Maximize Your eCommerce Success
- Digital assets make a major contribution to improving conversion rates by enabling product visualization, enhancing customer experience, boosting SEO, and better social media engagement.
- Shopify users encounter enormous challenges when managing digital assets, including scattered images, difficulties uploading images to Shopify, reformatting issues, and the need for more version control.
- Catsy DAM contains built-in features that can effectively eliminate these challenges, including a single source of truth library, powerful search, and direct API with Shopify.
In this Article
Shopify has become one of the most dependable eCommerce platforms, enabling millions of businesses to build online stores and sell so easily through just one dashboard.
As of 2023, over 4 million websites worldwide use Shopify, spread across 175 countries. According to Shopify, the global economic activity on the platform is now at $440+ billion, and Shopify powers 10% of the US eCommerce.
However, like any other platform, some succeed, and those fail. One of the key success factors that businesses need to get right in is DAM for Shopify. This is important because the modern buyer relies heavily on digital assets such as images and videos to make purchase decisions. The more polished and branded assets you get onto your product details pages, the more you are likely to sell.
If you are not able to manage these assets well then your experience in Shopify may not be impressive.
We understand this challenge very well and that’s why we have prepared this DAM for Shopify guide to help you succeed, just like the rest who are already making the right call in digital asset management in their Shopify business.
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Importance of Digital Assets for eCommerce Conversion Rates
eCommerce is driven by digital assets. They provide potential customers, who could be far away, with a sense of what the product is like, without actually having to physically interact with it.
In a physical store, customers can see, touch, and feel the products they’re interested in buying, which helps them make informed decisions. However, in an online store, customers do not have the luxury of physically interacting with the product before making a purchase. Digital assets bridge this gap.
Here are the main reasons why digital assets are important for eCommerce:
Digital assets can improve product visualization
Digital assets improve product visualization by providing customers with a more realistic and accurate representation of the product. For example, high-quality images of a product can provide customers with a detailed view of its design, texture, and other features, making it easier to visualize the product and understand its benefits.
Videos can further enhance product visualization by providing customers with a more dynamic and interactive way to view the product. They can show the product from different angles, in different environments, and even in use.
Improved visualization also leads to superior customer experience. For example, a video that shows how a product works can be more effective than written instructions, as it is more engaging and easier to follow.
Digital assets can boost Shopify's SEO
When search engines crawl websites, they look for content that is informative, engaging, and relevant to users. Digital assets such as high-quality images, videos, infographics, and interactive media can provide users with a more engaging and informative experience, which can lead to increased user engagement and backlinks.
So when users engage with high-quality digital assets on a Shopify store, they are more likely to share the content, which can increase the visibility of the store and signal to search engines that the content is valuable and relevant. In turn, search engines may rank the Shopify store higher in search results, leading to increased traffic and sales.
Digital assets can increase social media engagement
Here are some ways that this can happen:
- Grabbing attention: Visually appealing and informative digital assets can make users stop and take notice of the products.
- Encouraging sharing: When users come across digital assets that they find interesting or valuable, they are more likely to share them with their followers.
- Strengthening brand awareness: A cohesive and visually appealing social media presence will eventually establish your company as a trusted source of information and products in your industry.
The cycle of challenges Shopify users face when managing digital assets
These are the top challenges you are likely to encounter or are already encountering when managing digital assets for your Shopify-powered eCommerce business.
1. Scattered images, which make it difficult to find the correct assets
Most organizations have their digital assets all over: desktop computers, LAN servers, laptops, hard drives, USBs, Dropbox, Google Drive, name it. Because of this, poor-quality assets like images can accidentally make their way into your Shopify store. Additionally, your team will constantly have so many photos that you have to sift through them to find the correct version. And when you can’t find the right images, you’ll go back to square one. That means taking more photos or buying.
The challenge with this kind of storage is that it’s not only hard to keep track of the assets but your ability to get them into your Shopify store fast is highly diminished. This is dangerous considering that eCommerce speed is of the essence.
Let’s take the example of a pet food retailer that sells a variety of products such as dog food, cat food, and treats. Each product has multiple flavor and size variations, which require different product images to be displayed.
Over time, the retailer may have accumulated numerous images of the same product, stored in different locations. For example, they may have a couple of the chicken-flavored dog food images on several desktops, another group in Google Drive, and another in Dropbox.
This can make it difficult for the user to quickly locate the correct image for a particular product variation. For instance, if a marketer wants to add a new chicken-flavored dog food product with a larger size to the website, they may have to spend time searching for the correct image in different folders. This can be a time-consuming and frustrating process, especially if the retailer has a large inventory of products.
2. Challenging for teammates to upload images into Shopify
If your workflow has a step that demands a certain number of images be uploaded to Shopify before moving to the next step, then the team tasked with uploading the images will find it overwhelming to find and export those assets.
What if they upload images that have already been uploaded? Without a centralized library, it can be challenging for team members to locate and access images that have already been uploaded. This can lead to duplicates being uploaded, wasting valuable time and causing confusion. Moreover, finding specific images in a disorganized library can be a time-consuming and frustrating process.
Furthermore, team members with different levels of expertise may find it difficult to upload images to Shopify. Not everyone on the team may have the technical know-how to navigate the Shopify platform or work with image files. This can result in delays and errors, making it difficult to keep up with the pace of the business.
3. Reformatting Issues
Shopify has specific requirements for image file formats, sizes, and resolutions. For instance, Shopify supports JPEG; Progressive JPEG, PNG, GIF, HEIC, WebP, and AVIF, and they cannot exceed 20MB in size. This means that team members may have to spend time reformatting images before they can be uploaded, which can be time-consuming and tedious.
One of the primary issues with reformatting assets is that it requires specialized skills and knowledge. Maybe your camera captures raw photos and you have to upload them in JPEG format or perhaps you have to convert a TIFF to a JPEG. Not all team members may be familiar with editing software, which can make it challenging to resize or reformat various digital assets. This can lead to inconsistencies in the appearance of product materials, which can create a confusing and unprofessional shopping experience.
For example, if there is a step in the workflow where someone has to upload images then the person uploading those images to Shopify may have a difficult time reformatting and exporting them if they do not have the right skills.
Another issue that can complicate the reformatting process is the need to maintain quality and clarity. When resizing images, for example, it’s essential to preserve the image’s aspect ratio, otherwise, it may appear distorted or stretched. Similarly, when cropping images, care must be taken to ensure that the essential details of the image are not lost. For example, if an image of a product is cropped too tightly, it may not be clear what the product is, and potential customers may be discouraged.
Furthermore, some products may require images in different formats or orientations to showcase their features effectively. For instance, some products may require images showing the front, back, and side views, and each view may need to be in a different orientation or aspect ratio. This can make it challenging to maintain a consistent look and feel across all products.
Finally, the reformatting process can be time-consuming, especially when dealing with large numbers of assets. If a team needs to reformat dozens or even hundreds of assets for a product, it can take a significant amount of time to complete the task, which can slow down processes.
4. Lack of Version Management & Consistency
Developing a solid version management and consistency plan in place is a key component to the success of any business. Without it, eCommerce businesses can find themselves in a difficult position.
A version management system is an important part of any Digital Asset Management (DAM) system. Without version control, it’s impossible to keep track of different versions of digital assets across other products or platforms. This can lead to inconsistencies in the information presented to customers, which can create confusion and potentially lower customer satisfaction. Shopify users should look for DAM software that has versioning capabilities to ensure that the information they present to their customers is consistent, accurate, and up-to-date. Versioning also helps ensure that any changes to assets are tracked and easily accessible, making it easier to keep the most up-to-date version of each asset readily available to customers.
Investing in a DAM system with versioning capabilities is a crucial step for Shopify users to make sure that their customers have a positive experience
Features in Catsy Digital Asset Management that solve the challenges
Catsy Digital Asset Management solution can save you from these exhausting and time-consuming challenges which can drain your resources and ruin your assets.
These features include:
- Single source of truth library
- Powerful search
- Direct API w/ Shopify
- Re-sizing and re-naming in Shopify format
- User-friendly metadata management
Single source of truth library
Catsy DAM for Shopify’s centralized repository offers unparalleled convenience in storing, organizing, and retrieving digital assets. You simply take all your product photos in any format and dump them into a single source of Truth library for all of your assets.
With a single source of truth, you can ensure that all digital assets are up-to-date, accurate, and consistent across all channels.
Example: Let’s say a pet food retailer wants to introduce a new line of dog food from a popular brand. The retailer’s marketing team has created a range of product images for this new line, including photos of different flavors and ingredients, packaging, and marketing banners. Here’s how they can use Catsy’s as a single source of truth to manage these assets:
The retailer’s team can create a folder specifically for the dog food line in Catsy DAM, which will serve as the single source of truth for all digital assets related to this line. They can then upload all digital assets related to the line to this folder.
In other words, all digital assets for the dog food line are stored in one central location, making it easier for them to manage and access these assets as needed. They can also ensure that everyone on the team has access to the same digital assets, eliminating the risk of team members using outdated or inconsistent assets.
Additionally, the retailer can add metadata tags, indicating the brand, the specific dog food line, and other relevant information. This helps to ensure that all images are optimized for different platforms and devices and that they all maintain consistent branding.
Catsy DAM offers powerful search functionality for easy discovery of assets
Searching for images within the Catsy platform is made easy with a powerful faceted search and keyword search so you can always find what you’re looking for, fast. This functionality allows users to quickly locate the digital assets they need using keywords or tags.
You can also apply unlimited attributes to digital assets for enhanced findability, making it even much faster to search.
Let’s say a fitness products retailer wants to introduce a new line of workout equipment on their Shopify store. The retailer’s marketing team has created a range of product images for this new line, including photos of different types of equipment, packaging, and marketing banners. Here’s how they can use Catsy’s search feature:
First, the retailer’s team can upload all digital assets related to the new workout equipment line to Catsy DAM. They can use metadata tags to indicate the brand, the specific line of equipment, and other relevant information.
Once the digital assets are uploaded, anyone who wants to find a specific image will always do it so easily via the search capability. A single search will bring all images related to this specific type of equipment, including product photos, lifestyle shots, and even marketing banners.
They can also filter by other criteria, such as file type or size, making it easier to find the right image for a particular purpose.
A direct API with Shopify simplifies the publishing of assets to multiple stores
Catsy has a direct API integration with Shopify, which enables Shopify store owners to access and manage their digital assets directly from the DAM platform. Through the API, you can then upload assets like images directly to your Shopify store and use them to populate product pages, collections, and other marketing materials.
The integration works by allowing Shopify to connect with Catsy DAM’s API, which is a set of rules and protocols that govern how different software components interact with each other.
What’s more, you can push assets to multiple Shopify stores with the API.
Re-sizing and re-naming in Shopify format
Catsy DAM offers robust resizing and renaming capabilities which make it easy to edit digital assets to meet the specific requirements of Shopify.
For example, if you need to resize your product images to fit a certain dimension on your product page, you can do so within Catsy DAM. You can also rename your digital assets to include specific keywords or tags that will help optimize SEO and make it easier for customers to find products on Shopify.
Once the resizing and renaming are complete, all you need to do is upload the edited digital assets to your Shopify store directly from Catsy DAM.
Catsy can also generate virgins in Shopify format. So you don’t have to spend hours in Photoshop.
Catsy DAM for Shopify offers user-friendly metadata management
This feature solves the challenge of maintaining consistency across all product images and ensures that all images are optimized for different platforms and devices.
Let’s say an online retailer of veterinary products wants to add a popular flea and tick medication from a well-known brand like Frontline to their Shopify store. The retailer has all the necessary digital assets for the medication, including product images and descriptions, stored in Catsy DAM. Here’s how the retailer can use Catsy’s metadata management:
First, the retailer can add relevant information about the medication to each digital asset, such as the product name, brand, size, and active ingredients. This metadata can then be easily imported into Shopify, where it can be used to populate the product pages and ensure that customers have access to accurate and up-to-date information.
They can also add tags and categories to each asset, making it easier to find and organize them in the future. For example, the retailer can tag the Frontline medication as “flea and tick,” “topical treatment,” and “pet medication,” allowing them to find and retrieve the asset when needed quickly.
Key Takeaway
Most solutions that are solely Digital Asset Management (no PIM) don’t support direct integration with Shopify. Catsy is unique because it comes with direct integration into Shopify, allowing users to easily manage their digital assets and streamline their eCommerce operations.
With a single source of truth complete with powerful features such as search functionality, direct API w/ Shopify, re-sizing and re-naming in Shopify format, and user-friendly metadata management, you will easily manage all your assets in one place, and seamlessly publish them to your Shopify store.
This not only saves time but also ensures that your product pages are always up-to-date and visually appealing, leading to improved customer engagement and higher conversions.
So if you’re looking for a DAM for Shopify solution, Catsy PIM and DAM is a perfect choice. Take advantage of 100% onboarding support, tailored training sessions, and passionate customer success representatives.
Time to break the cycle of manual asset management. Sign up for a demo today and we’ll show you exactly how Catsy’s Digital Asset Management for Shopify can work for your Shopify business.
DAM stands for Digital Asset Management. A DAM system is a centralized platform used to store, organize, and manage digital assets, such as images, videos, audio files, and other media. These assets are then made available to the eCommerce team for use on the website or other channels.
Catsy DAM has a direct API with Shopify, which allows businesses to easily manage their digital assets and streamline their eCommerce operations. With Catsy, you can easily manage all your product images, videos, and other marketing assets in one central place, and seamlessly publish them to not just one but multiple Shopify stores.
A Digital Asset Management solution can support customer engagement on a Shopify store by providing a centralized location to manage and store all of their digital assets. This allows the store to ensure that all of the images, videos, and other content are consistent with their branding and messaging, which can help create a more cohesive and recognizable experience for customers. DAM for Shopify can also streamline the process of updating and adding new digital assets to the store. This means that Shopify stores can quickly add new products, promotional materials, and other content to the store, which can help keep customers interested in the store.
A DAM solution will provide a centralized location with features for translating and localizing product content, including images, videos, and other marketing assets. As a result, businesses are able to effectively communicate with customers in different languages and cultures, leading to a successful global reach.
A DAM solution can reduce the need for physical storage and transportation of marketing assets. This translates to minimal energy consumption and carbon emissions associated with asset management.
