Brandfolder: Driving Business Value Through Strategic Asset Management
Digital asset management isn't just about organizing files — it's about enhancing team productivity, maintaining brand identity, and creating scalable solutions that drive business growth.
The Challenge
When three creative teams within Cisco's security organization merged to form the Cisco Secure Brand Marketing Team, we faced a critical inflection point. My role expanded from managing 5 designers to leading a team of 12 across multiple time zones, while simultaneously supporting a dramatically larger brand marketing organization. This consolidation coincided with the launch of a new sub-brand: Cisco Secure.
The merger exposed operational inefficiencies that directly impacted our bottom line:
Teams spent an average of 5 hours per week searching for assets across disparate storage systems, resulting in approximately $150,000 in lost productivity annually
30% of design work involved recreating existing assets that couldn't be located
Knowledge silos between teams led to duplicate asset creation and inconsistent brand representation
The creative team spent 25% of their time on basic asset requests that could be automated
We needed a sophisticated digital asset management (DAM) system that could:
Create a centralized hub for brand assets serving both our design team and the broader marketing organization
Bridge the gap between Cisco's core brand, security marketing assets, and newly acquired sub-brands like Duo
Enable marketing teams to access branded templates independently
Establish a unified system that could adapt to organizational changes while maintaining accessibility
Scale efficiently as our organization continued to grow
The Solution: Brandfolder
Building on Duo's successful implementation and proven track record across Cisco's sub-brands, Brandfolder emerged as our strategic choice. While the platform selection was straightforward, success would depend on a carefully orchestrated implementation strategy.
Here is a video walk-through of the completed Cisco Security Brandfolder homepage page.
Strategic Planning and Procurement
As Senior Design Manager, I led the evaluation and procurement process, working closely with Brandfolder to understand available feature packages and options. This involved a detailed assessment of our needs, package comparison, and navigation of Cisco's procurement processes. My role extended to managing the entire purchasing cycle, from initial vendor engagement through contract finalization and payment processing.
Implementation and Migration
The implementation phase demanded a strategic approach to ensure successful adoption across our diverse user base. I assembled a focused team of three operations-minded designers to develop our implementation framework. Together, we tackled the complex challenges of content organization, establishing naming conventions, and creating intuitive access pathways for different user groups.
Our technical implementation included crucial enterprise security measures, including Single Sign-On (SSO) integration, ensuring the platform met Cisco's stringent security requirements while maintaining easy access for authorized users.
Training and Change Management
Understanding that different teams would use Brandfolder differently, we developed a multi-faceted training approach. This included comprehensive documentation, specialized training sessions for designers and marketing partners, and clear guidelines for different user roles. The training program focused on technical functionality and helping teams understand how Brandfolder could transform their daily workflows.
A sampling of pages from the PDF how-to guide I wrote, designed, and published for the Cisco Security marketing team using Brandfolder.
The Impact
The Brandfolder implementation delivered substantial business value through both quantifiable metrics and strategic benefits:
Outcomes
Search Efficiency: Reduced average asset location time from 5 hours to 45 minutes per week per team member
Asset Reuse: Decreased duplicate asset creation from 30% to less than 5% of design work
Cross-Team Efficiency: Increased asset sharing between teams by 85%, resulting in a 40% reduction in redundant design requests across departments
Design Team Impact: Reduced time spent on basic asset requests from 25% to 8% of designer time through self-service templates, freeing design hours for strategic design work
Strategic Business Benefits
The implementation transformed our operational landscape in several key areas:
Centralized Asset Management
The unified repository eliminated the fragmentation that had previously plagued our asset management. Marketing teams gained instant access to approved assets, while designers could ensure brand consistency through controlled templates and asset versions. This centralization reduced duplicate asset creation and enabled consistent brand representation across global markets.
Scalable Infrastructure
As our organization grew, Brandfolder proved invaluable in supporting our expansion. The platform was efficiently scaled to support an increase in our user base without performance degradation or additional resource investment. This scalability proved particularly crucial as we integrated new teams and brands into our organization.
Enhanced Collaboration
The "grab-and-go" template functionality transformed our workflow, enabling marketing partners to independently access and customize branded assets while maintaining brand guidelines. This self-service capability improved marketing team agility and freed our creative team to focus on higher-value strategic projects.
A video walk-through of the template feature in Brandfolder that my team set up for custom grab-and-go marketing assets.
Key Takeaway
The Brandfolder implementation transcended traditional asset management to become a strategic business driver. By addressing fundamental operational challenges while creating a framework for scalable growth, we delivered measurable improvements in productivity, brand consistency, and market agility. This foundation continues to support Cisco's evolving needs while delivering ongoing returns on investment.
The project's success demonstrated how strategic technology implementation and thoughtful change management can transform operational challenges into competitive advantages. As Cisco continues to grow and acquire new brands, this scalable solution ensures they maintain operational excellence while driving business value.