Discovery in a sea of data.

Having your valuable content found in the virtual sea of new content being posted, shared, pinned and youtubed everyday is an every important piece of the online puzzle. This is not just about the dark art of search engine optimisation but ensuring that your entire production and distribution process is as efficient as it can be at capture, creation and distribution of Metadata. Metadata is the data about data, the stuff we search for, cast, crew, genre, synopsis, imagine using Netflix, Hulu, iTunes without the descriptive information about each film or TV show or episode.

Sounds simple in principle, however most media clients nod knowingly but have little idea of what actually occurs within their organisation in getting their content to the myriad of digital platforms that they now publish to on a regular basis.  The task generally falls to the marketing or operations department to define what each new platform requires and to coordinate the collection and delivery based on sales and marketing schedules at the end of the production process.

There is generally an overlap in most media businesses in the capture, creation and handling of  metadata, as it is seen as an after thought.  However, iTunes market power and influence has changed this for many publishers of Television and Film content.  The process of getting your content into the iTunes store is about detail and efficiency, Apple have set new quality and delivery standards for the industry on how it wants you to be responsible for the quality of not only your video files but also your metadata.  They understand the value of metadata to search, discovery and consistency and the importance to users and ultimately to the sales process.  Content can be rejected based on poor metadata detail and delivery, impacting key sales widows and promotions.

So getting the workflow correct is increasingly important to any media company to reduce the friction and handling costs of digital asset distribution.  Many new tools and skills are required within the organisation to assist all stages of the media cycle, acquisition, storage and handling and finally flexibility in distribution. Integration into your media production, storage and business reporting systems are key components in streamlining these processes and getting the correct return on the investment of time , technology and people.  However, a well planned project can deliver great returns and efficiencies, some media companies report nearly an 85% cost savings from older linear processes and workflows and greater flexibility in rapid development of new products and services.

Partnerships are key to success including engaging an experienced project manager and panels of vendors and service providers with specific experience in your media sector.