Even for ecommerce stores that keep a tight rein on their brand, disorganized product assets create risk.
When product photos, lifestyle images, and campaign assets are scattered across shared folders, email trails, platform media libraries, and design tools, nobody is certain which version is current or approved. And that isn’t just an internal efficiency issue.
Product pages are a key brand touchpoint and conversion driver for shoppers. The imagery and assets that power these pages need the same governance as every other part of the customer experience. Otherwise, sales channels drift off-brand, and shoppers can drift with them.
Ecommerce digital asset management is the solution, providing the centralized governance needed to keep storefronts on-brand, up-to-date, and conversion-ready.
What you need to know
- Product pages are critical brand touchpoints that influence customer trust, purchase confidence, and conversion rates — so product assets deserve the same governance as brand assets
- Shared drives and native media libraries don't provide the version control, approval workflows, rights management, and other governance tools product assets need
- An ecommerce DAM provides capabilities that storage tools can't, including governance by design and automated distribution to storefronts
- This ensures images, videos, and other visual content are correct, current, and consistent across every sales channel
- Frontify DAM is ideal for ecommerce, not least because of our new commerce integrations with Akeneo, Salsify, and Shopify
What is ecommerce digital asset management?
Ecommerce digital asset management is the practice of centrally storing, governing, and distributing the visual assets that power online retail. The photography, video, lifestyle images, campaign creative, and other brand assets showcase your products, support your brand promise, and reduce barriers to purchase. They need to be looked after. And an ecommerce DAM system is how you do it.
But an ecommerce DAM isn’t just a glorified media library to centralize, store, and search assets. (Though that alone would be extremely valuable, considering the high volume of assets per product. Think multiple angles, lifestyle shots, 360 spins, video, localized variants, schematics, review overlays, etc.)
In fact, ecommerce DAM goes much further, bringing structure and control to how product assets are governed and distributed.
It ensures that correct, current, and approved assets can be easily identified and accessed. And that they can be deployed seamlessly to every storefront — and every channel — where products are sold. Because the job isn't done when the product asset is created and stored; it's done when the asset is live and correct on the product page.
This is what separates ecommerce DAM from a shared drive — or worse.
Why ecommerce teams struggle with asset management
Many ecommerce teams struggle with product asset management due to legacy systems, manual workflows, and the sheer volume of assets the ecommerce demands.
- Product pages feature an average of eight photos
- Multiply this by hundreds or thousands of SKUs
- Then across all the channels where these assets are deployed
When you do the math, the number of assets in circulation is staggering.
To govern this effectively requires formal structures, defined processes, and — ideally — automation. But, since you’re reading this article, we guess that a ‘shared drive or worse’ is what you’re working with right now. And that leads to lots of challenges for teams like yours.
Assets live in a patchwork of disconnected systems
Product assets live in shared drives, creative tools, commerce platform media libraries, email chains, and Slack. Plus, you know there are copies of out-of-date assets stored on people’s desktops despite your best attempts to stamp that out. Without a single source of truth, teams can't be confident which asset is current or approved. Search time increases, approvals slow, and product pages take longer to go live.
Product assets change faster than processes can keep up
Product assets aren’t static, especially in sectors like FMCG. They’re constantly being created, updated, localized, and retired. Shared drives weren’t built for this level of complexity. They can store and structure files. But they can’t track the changes that assets are subject to — and neither can your team. As a result, different versions of assets circulate, and no one is quite sure which they’re supposed to use.
Updating assets across channels is slow and manual
Asset changes also need to be reflected in storefronts, and that can mean a lot of manual work, replacing it in every marketplace and channel where it appears. This isn’t just an inefficient use of team time. It can seriously delay time-critical updates and create inconsistency between different channels.
Asset volume outpaces the tools managing it
To aid consideration and conversion, more is more. Every product needs more images, more angles, more lifestyle shots, more video. Volume compounds with every new product, market, and channel. And shared folders break under the pressure — subfolders spawn, names make no sense, and duplicates divide like cells under a microscope. No wonder no one can find what they need anymore.
Storefronts go live with outdated or off-brand imagery
And this is where it all culminates. In the gap created by fragmented systems, people do their best with what they have at hand.
- Some use what they can find, not knowing more appropriate assets exist
- Some commission new assets, which costs money and hurts consistency
- Some go live with the few assets they can find, underselling the product
This results in the same items being represented differently across channels — as well as expired, unlicensed, and incorrect visuals making it onto live product pages. Across hundreds or thousands of SKUs and multiple storefronts, catching these errors manually is impossible, so they accumulate unnoticed until a customer or a brand audit surfaces them.
If this hits home a little too hard, rest assured, this is a very common problem for ecommerce brands. And it is eminently fixable. The answer is to apply the same governance practices to product assets as you do to brand assets — and to use the right software to do it.
Why product assets need the same governance as every other brand touchpoint
Most businesses manage their brand assets with a high degree of control. Logos, guidelines, campaigns, and templates are secured in brand management platforms, and use is controlled by strict governance and guidelines.
So why aren’t product assets afforded the same care and consideration? Why are they languishing in shared drives — unstructured, unguarded, and ungoverned? Are they not brand assets too?
That distinction between brand and product assets is actually artificial: the product page is a brand touchpoint, and the imagery on it shapes brand perception as much as any ad. Here’s our take on it.
The storefront is where brand perception is formed
Think about it. To buy a product, every customer has to traverse a product page and view its contents. But not every customer will see or engage with your adverts, social feed, or email campaigns.
Your storefronts are the frontline of your brand exposure — seen by high-intent audiences — so they need to be on point.
And where purchase confidence grows or fades
Plus, product assets directly affect how customers identify, evaluate, and select purchases.
Research from UX experts, the Baymard Institute, consistently shows that shoppers rely on product imagery as their primary evaluation layer, exhausting product visuals before engaging with copy. When imagery is limited or inconsistent, confidence drops, and users are more likely to defer or abandon a purchase.
The impact of mismanaged product assets
Mismanaged product assets can undermine both brand perception and purchase likelihood — and that hits revenue. Here’s what product asset missteps might mean to customers.
Confusion and cart abandonment
A potential customer sees their neighbour using a new gadget and asks where they got it. The neighbour enthuses about the product and shows them the box so they can look it up online. But when the customer visits one of your marketplaces, they’re not sure. “This kinda looks like it… But the box didn’t look like that… Maybe I’ve got the name wrong…?” And thanks to a simple out-of-date packaging shot, your shopper abandons their cart in confusion.
Concern and loss of confidence
Someone searches for pants on your site. The copy says bootcut jeans, but the picture shows knee-high boots. A seed of doubt takes root. “How have they got the wrong photos here? If they can’t get their photos right, do I trust them to ship the right product? Or to look after my bank details and data?” And just like that, customer confidence is lost.
Cultural disconnect and distancing
A customer in the Middle East is browsing a product page during Ramadan. The lifestyle imagery shows people eating and drinking in public during daylight hours, due to a localization oversight. The customer thinks, “Really? Do they understand this market at all?” The imagery feels out of touch with local customs and, instead of building affinity, it creates distance.
This is why strong governance is just as important for product assets as it is for brand assets. So what does that look like?
What governance means for product assets
Governance is a framework of processes and controls to make sure product assets are correctly managed and deployed during their lifecycle. Strong governance helps teams find and use assets with confidence, and ensure storefronts are always up to date.
Why this requires an ecommerce DAM
You’d be forgiven for asking ‘If fragmented folders are the problem, why can’t we just consolidate everything into one shared drive? Surely then we’ll be able to manage things better?’
But that would only solve one small part of the problem — storage. It doesn’t facilitate better governance in the way an ecommerce DAM system does. It just relocates the chaos. Teams still face the same issues: outdated imagery, unapproved assets, and unclear rights.
Digital asset management systems are specifically designed for the challenge of managing millions of assets, and governance workflows are built into the functionality.
- Metadata makes clear what usage rights apply
- Version control is automated
- Permissions define access
This ensures brands remain in control of product assets — even as product and staff numbers grow.
Plus, ecommerce DAM has the added advantage of automated distribution workflows, sending the right product assets straight to your storefronts. More on this later.
What ecommerce DAM does that shared drives and native media libraries can't
You might be wondering how exactly a digital asset management (DAM) system is different from tools like SharePoint, Google Drive, or the built-in media libraries found in ecommerce platforms.
As we’ve touched on above, the key difference is that DAM does more than just store files. Here’s the functionality that matters most.
1. Centralized asset library
Storage isn’t the only function of ecommerce DAM, but it is the foundation for everything that follows. At the heart of DAM is a single, governed library where all product photography, lifestyle imagery, video, and brand assets live together in one place.
But unlike a shared drive, it isn’t just a storage layer — it’s a structured system that understands what each asset is, how it should be used, and who’s allowed to access it.
2. Asset discoverability and clarity
DAM offers advanced search functionality — using keywords and metadata — so users can quickly surface the exact asset they need. And, unlike a shared drive, there’s no digging through folders or decoding naming conventions like SummerShoot12_003.jpg or CampaignArtwork_final_v2.pdf.
Plus, every file is connected to the SKU it belongs to, and clearly flagged with usage rights and approval status, removing any ambiguity about what to use. That structure isn't just valuable for your team; it's what makes your assets usable by AI. Through the Frontify MCP (the connection that lets AI tools tap into your DAM using the open Model Context Protocol), an agent can pull the correct, approved, rights-cleared asset straight from your governed library, rather than guessing or grabbing the wrong file.
3. Cross-platform consistency
Unlike native media libraries, which sit within the boundaries of a single platform, a DAM operates above the entire ecommerce ecosystem. It becomes the single source of truth for all product assets, rather than each storefront maintaining its own duplicate and (potentially) different versions.
This creates consistency across every customer touchpoint. Plus, when assets need updating, it turns what would otherwise be a manual, multi-channel update into a single change.
4. Version control and approval
A DAM ensures there is one clear, current version of every asset. Older versions are automatically archived, so teams don’t end up working from conflicting files.
This matters when product details change. Think packaging updates, colour changes, seasonal refreshes. The DAM ensures only the latest approved asset is linked to the product, so outdated imagery doesn’t slip onto live pages.
Approval workflows add another layer of control. Shared drives don’t manage versioning or approvals — they rely on users to get it right. A DAM builds that control in.
5.Rights and expiration management
In ecommerce, rights management can be complex. Licensed lifestyle imagery, model and talent releases, and campaign assets often carry usage terms that vary by market and time window. Across a large catalog and multiple regions, tracking this manually is unmanageable, and native media libraries and shared drives do nothing to make it easier.
A DAM handles this challenge at the asset level. Rights metadata, usage terms, and expiration dates are stored with each file. When rights expire, or usage is no longer valid, assets can be automatically restricted or removed from circulation. This prevents expired or non-compliant imagery from appearing on product pages or campaigns.
5. Distribution to storefronts and channels
A DAM acts as the central source of truth for all ecommerce assets, feeding every storefront, marketplace, and channel from one place. Through connections with commerce platforms, assets are distributed directly into storefronts simultaneously, instead of being uploaded manually across multiple platforms.
This doesn’t only save time at upload but also when assets inevitably change. When an asset is updated, that change flows through to all connected storefronts. That means consistency across every sales channel in just a few clicks. Can a shared drive do that?
6. Fast delivery and optimization
Getting the right asset to the right storefront is only half the job. How fast it loads is the other half.
Slow product imagery drags down page speed, and slow pages drag down conversion — shoppers don't wait for a hero image to resolve. A shared drive or native media library does nothing here; it hands over the file and leaves the rest to chance.
A DAM closes the gap by delivering assets through a global content delivery network (CDN), so images, video, and documents load quickly and reliably wherever your customers are shopping. It also optimizes assets automatically — converting them to lightweight web formats and serving the right size for each context — without duplicate files or manual exports. Storage tools simply weren't built to do this.
How to connect a DAM to your ecommerce stack
The truly transformative value of ecommerce DAM comes from its connectivity to your wider ecommerce ecosystem. At the most basic level, integration with your commerce platforms and Product Information Management system (PIM) is a must.
Within this essential trio of tools, the DAM is the single source of truth for assets, and either the DAM or PIM feeds those assets to your storefronts.
Connecting DAM and PIM
Connecting an ecommerce DAM to your PIM creates a foundation for delivering complete and consistent product content to every channel, because visual assets are connected to real-time product data.
What is a PIM?
A PIM system houses product data like specifications, descriptions, prices, attributes, SKUs, and inventory levels. Just like a DAM is the single source of truth about how a product looks and is represented, a PIM is the single source for how a product is categorised and described.
Why connect a DAM and PIM?
Connecting an ecommerce DAM to a PIM means that the correct visuals are tied to the correct product record. This makes it easier to ensure storefronts, marketplaces, catalogues, and other sales channels present products consistently and accurately — and customers see the same product information, wherever they look.
How does data flow between DAM and PIM?
In an efficient setup, information flows both ways (bidirectional). Approved assets flow from the DAM into the PIM, so that PIM users can see current product assets. And product data flows into the DAM, helping structure, tag, and organise assets by SKU, category, or product family.
How do you connect a DAM and PIM?
You connect DAM and PIM in the same way you’d connect any two platforms — typically via API, iPaaS, or a native integration built into the platforms themselves. Larger organizations might build a custom integration if their data complexity requires it.
Connecting DAM to commerce platforms
On the other side of the equation are your commerce platforms — whether that’s your own digital properties, Shopify, Amazon, TikTok Shop, or any of the myriad other marketplaces available.
Why connect DAM to commerce platforms?
Because it's the most efficient way to get the right assets in front of customers.
Connecting an ecommerce DAM to your commerce platforms lets you populate product pages directly from your centralised library of governed assets. Pages automatically pull approved photography, video, 360 rotations, etc from your DAM.
Every platform receives the same assets — approved, on-brand, and up-to-date — and when the master asset changes, every storefront reflects it.
How does this benefit your brand?
It significantly streamlines processes, reducing the manual work involved in updating commerce channels. But more importantly, customers see a consistent representation of your products wherever they shop. Whether viewing your website, a marketplace, or a retailer portal, they see the same product assets, presented in the same way.
How do you connect DAM to commerce platforms?
This depends on the tools involved. Some DAM vendors offer native integrations with popular platforms like Shopify. Other platforms use the PIM as the connective layer, with the PIM drawing assets from the DAM and feeding them to the storefront. And, of course, there are APIs, iPaaS, and custom integration options too.
What to look for in ecommerce DAM connectivity
Connectivity is where ecommerce DAM delivers or stalls. It’s the difference between being another siloed storage mechanism, and delivering automated alignment, operational efficiency, and consistent content. So what should you be looking for?
Questions to ask
- Can the DAM connect directly to your commerce platforms? Or does it rely on intermediaries like a PIM or third-party connector?
- How are updates handled across channels? Does a change in the DAM propagate automatically, or does each storefront still require manual updates?
- How are product relationships managed? Is connectivity based on SKUs or other product identifiers that ensure the right assets always map to the right product records?
Features to look for
- SKU-based linking between product data and assets, so connections are not dependent on manual mapping
- API-first architecture that allows flexible integration with PIMs, commerce platforms, and marketplaces as your stack evolves
- Pre-built integrations with major ecommerce platforms — or a roadmap to develop them
- Automated asset propagation, where updates and archiving in the DAM are reflected across connected channels without manual intervention
How Frontify approaches ecommerce DAM
At Frontify, we believe product assets deserve the same governance as every other brand touchpoint.
Most ecommerce setups treat product imagery as operational content — something to be stored, uploaded, and pushed live. But product pages are not just functional sales tools. They are also one of the most important brand touchpoints.
That means the same standards that apply to campaigns, identity, and marketing content should also apply to product imagery: version control, approval workflows, usage rights, and clear ownership.
The real value of a DAM is not where assets live, but how they are controlled. The governance Frontify provides ensures that what reaches your storefronts is current, correct, and compliant.
What commerce connectivity does Frontify offer?
Frontify connects into the wider ecommerce ecosystem through an open API and a growing set of integrations — including with Akeneo, a top PIM platform, and Shopify, which powers millions of storefronts globally.
PIM connectivity
- Akeneo integration: Akeneo is one of the leading PIM systems globally. Frontify’s bidirectional integration means data flows both ways between the DAM and PIM, keeping data in sync across systems. It lets Frontify supply product assets to Akeneo, which Akeneo then populates into storefronts.
- Salsify integration: Salsify is a product experience management platform with PIM and syndication functionality. This integration automatically assigns Frontify assets to the correct Salsify products based on shared identifiers like SKU, and more.
Commerce connectivity
- Shopify integration: The Frontify x Shopify integration syncs approved assets from your Frontify libraries to one or more Shopify stores, automatically updates Shopify when assets are created, updated, or deleted in Frontify, and resizes large assets automatically before delivery. This removes manual upload cycles, reduces errors, and keeps every storefront in lock-step with your DAM (perhaps why Shopify describes DAM as a ‘catalyst for growth’)
- Roadmap: Other commerce integrations are on Frontify's public roadmap and in development, which signals our intent to deepen our direct commerce connectivity.
Media delivery
Once assets are governed and connected, they still have to reach customers fast. Frontify handles delivery through a global CDN, so product imagery, video, and documents load quickly across regions, devices, and channels. A few capabilities matter most for ecommerce:
- Dynamic and static links: Dynamic CDN links always serve the latest approved version of an asset — update it once in Frontify and the change flows to every storefront using that link, in near real time. Static links lock to a specific revision, useful when compliance or legal references need a fixed version.
- Automatic web optimization: Newly uploaded images convert to WebP by default for faster loading, with automatic fallbacks for browsers that don't support it — better performance, no quality trade-off.
- On-the-fly transformation: The media processing API resizes, crops, and reformats assets directly through the URL, so the same hero image can be served at different dimensions and formats per channel without creating duplicate files. Assets can also be converted to JPEG, PNG, WebP, AVIF, or HEIF at download.
- Delivery analytics: Admins get visibility into CDN bandwidth, daily trends, and usage by brand and timeframe — so you can see how product assets are actually being consumed across channels.
Wider ecosystem connectivity
- 50+ pre-built integrations: There are 50+ pre-built integrations between Frontify and other platforms in your creative, content, and commerce ecosystem, including Salesforce Marketing Cloud, Figma, and Adobe Express. This allows product assets to flow through your systems from a single source of truth.
- Open API: Our open API extends commerce connectivity further, enabling custom connections across more complex ecommerce stacks. This means Frontify can power your storefronts, whatever other tools are in place.
