The process of selecting a Digital Asset Management solution can be daunting. The licensing costs alone can be staggering, even before adding in the additional expenditures for integration, consulting, and user training. Beyond just cost, though, lie other potential pitfalls: too few (or too many) features, poor integration with existing system, or a lack of vendor support.

Digital Asset Management systems, for those unfamiliar, are intended to help an enterprise compile and organize its digital media. These assets can include images, video, audio, documents, files -- virtually anything. The benefit of these systems is that through metatagging and searching within these resources, users should be able to find and access what they need quickly and efficiently. Beyond these basics, however, lie countless additional features and customizations intended to make the tools more relevant for various industries and team needs.

With the goal of making the selection of a Digital Asset Management solution easier, CMS Watch has just released The Digital & Media Asset Management Report 2008. The report takes a look at a total of 18 key vendors, including EMC, North Plains, Interwoven, ClearStory Systems, and others. And detail is the key here -- the report is a weighty 275 pages long, and goes in-depth on each vendor, as well as the general challenges of Digital Asset Management solutions, their strengths and weaknesses, and what solution is likely to best fit your needs.

CMS Watch has a history of creating high-quality reports on topics across the content management spectrum, and this is no exception. The report homepage is worth a look -- it has a link to a 20-page excerpt of the report for those looking for a free preview, as well as a number of endorsements from people who have used the report.

Making the wrong decision on a Digital Asset Management solution can be an expensive mistake, but taking the time to do your due diligence up front can save you time, money, and headaches.