Media Systems takes a look at how its WoodWing software suite can support museums and heritage organisations in tackling challenges brought on by the pandemic as well as those which have long troubled the sector.
Two big trends are currently affecting the management of content, both in the heritage sector and business more generally. Firstly, the twin challenge of an increase in the number of channels and ever-evolving customer demand. This, in practice, means greater complexity and volume than ever before.
Brochures, catalogues, newsletters, websites, email, wall labels, social media, apps, and more. Also, many of these channels need to have almost the same content produced, but with different specifications to ensure it is optimised for the particular channel.
Secondly, the effects of the pandemic mean many organisations need to achieve the same or greater output with fewer resources and a workforce predominantly based at home.
How to respond?
Inspiration can be found from organisations successfully fighting against these challenges at scale in the publishing industry.
Over the past couple of decades, publishers have battled the emergence of blogging, increased competition for ad dollars, social media, downsizing, new channels, the decline of print, and more. And that was even before the impact of Covid-19.
Publishers have been constantly reinventing the ways they work and creating new efficiencies just to survive. Suffice to say, there is a lot the heritage sector can learn from them.
One technological solution embraced by many publishers – large and small – is Media Systems’ WoodWing software.
WoodWing offers two key solutions that reduce complexity, improve efficiency, and make creative workflows faster and more productive. These are WoodWing Assets, a Digitial Asset Management solution relied on by organisations such as BuzzFeed, and WoodWing Studio, a content creation and workflow solution utilised by companies such as Cosmopolitan and Esquire publisher Hearst.
How does it work?
Organisations throughout the museums and heritage sector face major challenges in keeping on top of vast collections – whether these are historical and in physical form, or digital files for marketing purposes. Taking WoodWing Assets as an example, common problems solved by the platform include:
Sharing
Share your files via link with (remote) staff, partners, or suppliers, allowing them to download the file they need, on-demand.
Editing
Users can simply open an Adobe Photoshop or InDesign file from the WoodWing Assets browser and start designing. WoodWing Assets will make sure your edits are saved and your images linked.
Maintaining permissions
Permissions can be configured to determine who can view, download or edit digital assets, so you can always control who sees what.
Search
WoodWing uses leading search technology, including AI tools such as Amazon Rekognition to auto-tag images, allows you to add as many metadata fields as required, and will ensure that you can always find what you need, instantly.
As for WoodWing Studio, the benefits include:
Workflows
With Studio, you are able to predefine workflows for internal (and external) contributors, so you can work on publications simultaneously and with the utmost efficiency. Files sent for editing or reviewing show up in a user’s Studio Inbox – everyone is connected and can view progress via the inbuilt graphical production monitor.
Creating for different channels
Studio provides the ability to quickly and easily transform print content into digital and vice versa. For example, you may want to create a printed guide for a certain event or collection but also want the information to appear on your website – you can do this from starting with either format and switching to the other as and when required.
Automations
Studio is built for handling automations. For example, if you needed wall labels for an event, you could easily define a discrete set of assets as a collection within Assets, and Studio could then automatically produce the printed labels. Many other time-consuming tasks, such as catalogue production, can be highly automated too.
Demonstrations of how WoodWing Studio and WoodWing Assets work are available below.
A brief introduction to Assets
Some testimonials for Assets
A brief view into creating content in Studio
Media Systems would be delighted to talk to all heritage organisations about specific requirements. You can contact the team at [email protected]
