Digital Advertising Company Consolidating Frame.io and Dropbox

The company operates within the digital advertising sector, managing a large volume of ad assets for approximately one hundred companies. Their team relies heavily on media review and approval workflows to deliver ads to their companies efficiently. Due to the high volume and complexity of their projects, they require a robust system that supports version control, feedback tracking, and easy company collaboration.

Currently, the company uses Frame (Frame.io) as their primary platform for reviewing, uploading, and managing all advertising assets. Their workflow involves organizing media into “live” folders for active projects and separate storage for archived projects that might need to be revisited after delivery. They utilize version stacking to track feedback history and asset versions, assign statuses to assets (e.g., in progress, needs review, approved), and share assets publicly or privately with companies who can view and download files directly.

Although Frame.io serves as a reliable workstation for managing ads, the company has identified some limitations and cost concerns: - **Version Stacking Limitation:** Frame’s version stacking provides a clear history and feedback trail, which is crucial for company transparency and internal review. The company is hesitant to switch unless Shade can address this effectively. - **Cost Concerns:** The company finds Shade’s pricing and package offerings more attractive compared to their current spend with Frame and other storage solutions like Air (likely a typo for Airtable or Air) and Dropbox. - **Integration Gaps:** Shade does not currently support direct integration with Air or Dropbox, requiring manual download and re-upload of assets. - **Storage and Access:** Managing a large company base means the system must handle extensive storage needs and ensure easy access control and sharing capabilities.

Shade offers a similar folder and file management structure, allowing the company to organize projects and assets intuitively. While Shade does not support version stacking in the same visual way as Frame, it enables version management through folders—each version of an asset can be stored in a separate folder to maintain history and feedback trails. Shade’s platform enhances the workflow with several key features: - **Advanced Search:** AI-powered natural language search enables users to find media based on dialogue, metadata, or visual elements like "jersey numbers" or "players in a huddle," improving speed and accuracy in media discovery. - **Company Collaboration:** Companies can leave feedback without requiring a full account or invitation, simplifying the review and approval process. - **Access Controls:** Detailed permissions allow the company to track who has access to specific files or folders. - **Local Editing Support:** The ability to mount cloud storage as a local drive enables seamless editing and streaming of media assets. - **Cost Efficiency:** Shade offers competitive pricing compared to Frame and Air, potentially lowering the company’s operational expenses.