Joico

Using Canto Cumulus to deliver digital assets in a way that’s silky smooth and easy to manage.

Challenge

Few companies understand the business of beautiful hair like Joico. Founded in 1975, Joico continues to grow its ever expanding domestic and international market to record numbers.

But with success came challenges: Coping with an exponentially growing digital asset library, and sharing it with global business partners.

Solution

Canto Cumulus enabled Joico sales, marketing and graphic design partners to quickly find and access images from anywhere—24/7—affording them more time to concentrate on other business priorities.

Results and Benefits

• A stunning 95% increase in asset fulfillment efficacy.
• Anywhere access across the globe.
• Wider use of assets to support sales and marketing strategies.

Assets had become unmanageable

When Lilly Taylor arrived at Joico, she knew a proper DAM system was needed.

“They had 3-ring binders filled with CDs and DVDs and I couldn’t find anything.”

It was Taylor’s job to find and deliver the assets Joico employees and business partners needed.

“Finding files was only one problem. A lot times requesters weren’t sure what they needed because there was no visual reference or online library.”

Then there was the problem of delivering files that could sometimes be more than a gigabyte in size.

“We overnighted many CDs and DVDs, but when people need a file, they need it yesterday.”

Even worse, there was no easy way to get files to Joico’s on-the-go sales staff, who could be in an airport one hour, and a different city the next.

Deep conditioning for asset distribution

Taylor proposed the idea of a DAM system to Joico.

“They were receptive to the idea because they had been considering DAM for years, but they didn’t have anyone with the experience to implement it.”

Taylor knew Cumulus would work, because she’d used it at her previous job, but management wanted to keep its options open, so a DAM hunt was on.

Offering easy, training-free use, the Modula4 Web Module is easily branded to suit even the most discerning tastes.

Sliders control thumbnail and preview sizes. Searching is based on categories or keywords, and the Lightbox makes sorting through selections easy.

In the meantime, Taylor began migrating their CDs to a server and utilizing ftp, which was a step forward for some; a misstep for others.

“ftp access wasn’t always a useful alternative for some users who had technological limitations.”

Armed with previous DAM knowledge, Taylor’s search was aided by her knowing the right questions to ask DAM vendors.

“They would say their systems came with everything I’d ever need. But when it came down to it, the cool features weren’t always out-of-the-box.”

After a 15-month search, it came down to two: Canto Cumulus and Extensis Portfolio.

“Extensis was the only other possible player, but at the end of the day, Cumulus far exceeded my expectations.”

Taylor offers an example.

“Although Extensis had a Mac-friendly interface, I wasn’t as enthusiastic about its ability to handle a huge and quickly growing asset library, or being able to convert a plethora of formats on the fly with a lot of muscle.”

Considering Joico’s continued growth, the choice became clear.

“Cumulus was the more robust option, and I knew our images would never outgrow the system.”

The Web Module’s Basket offers users the option to download original files, or on-demand variants in JPG or Powerpoint format.

In addition, all files can be downloaded in a single archive and more.

The “sheer brilliance” of Modula4

Seeing Canto Partner Modula4’s Web Module, Taylor knew she’d found a company that could keep pace with Joico’s aesthetic demands.

“The Web Module interface could be branded for us to create a Web-friendly interface for the more savvy user or the novice.”

In addition, Modula4’s ImageMagick Asset Processor provides on-demand high quality JPEG renderings of EPS vector files, like logos.

Taylor admits that a “deeply complex” system like Cumulus was daunting at first, but Modula4 helped pave her way to confidence.

“They’re like Cumulus counselors—always available and helpful. I don’t know what I would have done without their support and sheer brilliance!”

And when help is needed, the benefits multiply.

“I always learn something new after placing help desk tickets, which is priceless. I’m always so amazed at how well Modula4 knows Cumulus.”

Joico and Cumulus today

It’s hard to not find strong Cumulus ROI at Joico, according to Taylor.

“Once I started using our system, I thought: Wow, I really made the best decision here! Cumulus has never disappointed me.”

Requests for files are down 95% thanks to selfserve Web access, but that’s not all.

“Everyone can now get exactly what they want, because they have an on-screen visual reference.” Joico sales personnel even use Cumulus to help them create new presentations.

“Cumulus lets users create Powerpoint presentation on the fly by automatically inserting a jpeg into the first slide, which is super convenient.”

There’s no question Taylor chose the right DAM system and the right Canto partner to help her increase her company’s Cumulus ROI.

“Overall, the feedback from Joico users is that they don’t know how they functioned before! Cumulus has opened up a whole new level of communication here.”

Plans for tomorrow

Taylor hopes to someday upgrade to Cumulus Enterprise for more granular asset control, and she looks forward to working with Modula4 on Web Module tweaks that will deliver a Web interface that’s even more “pretty and powerful”.