The wait is over! We’re excited to unveil not one, but two groundbreaking reports that dive deep into the world of AEC marketing and proposal management:

The 2024 State of AEC Marketing Report:
This report uncovers key trends in the AEC industry, exploring how marketing teams are navigating challenges like brand building, lead generation, and managing tight budgets. It provides actionable insights that can help firms of all sizes thrive.

The 2024 State of Proposals in AEC Report:
Learn how AEC firms are handling the proposal process, from content management to collaboration, and what’s holding teams back. Discover how automation, collaboration, and smarter workflows can lead to higher win rates and better business outcomes.

Sneak Peek:

• 74% of AEC marketers’ time is spent on business development alone.
• Engineering firms submit more proposals than their architecture and construction counterparts.
• Learn why 33% of proposals are submitted outside the Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) and how this impacts success.

Download the reports today and see how your team measures up against the industry!

1️⃣ State of AEC Marketing

2️⃣ State of Proposals in AEC

At OpenAsset, data security and trust are our top priorities. We’re proud to announce that we’ve achieved SOC 2 Type 2 compliance, a leading standard for security, confidentiality, and availability.

This milestone reinforces our commitment to providing AEC firms with a secure and reliable platform for managing digital assets.

🔐 What does this mean for you?

• Enhanced data protection with continuous monitoring
• Confidence knowing your assets are safeguarded
• A reliable partner you can trust to keep your information secure

For more details, you can read our blog post and access the full SOC 2 Type 2 report through the OpenAsset Trust Center.

Feel free to reach out to your customer success manager with any questions.

We’re excited to inform you that our new WordPress plugin is now available, tailored specifically for AEC marketers! This powerful plugin integrates seamlessly with your current workflows, enabling you to enhance your website management effortlessly.

The intuitive plugin interface within WordPress makes it easy to enter OpenAsset fields and keywords. AEC marketers can then sync assets directly to their firm’s website to showcase projects and employee experience with a few clicks. The plugin enables the display of approved and consistent project details, enhancing the firm’s online presence and ensuring that messaging and content are updated across the entire website.

Why You'll Love It:

• Centralized Source of Truth: Keep your project and employee assets consistent and reliable.
• Automated Synchronization: No more manual updates—enjoy real-time accuracy across your website.
• Marketer-Friendly: Update your site without needing a developer.

Existing customers can add the module to their subscription by reaching out to their Customer Success Manager or info@openasset.com.

Additionally, feel free to check out our 50-second video or Help Site article for more information.

We're thrilled to announce the release of Portals: a new offering that makes it easy to share files & contextual project information directly out of your OpenAsset system.

Here's how it works:

• Select the files you want to share. This could be images, documents, videos, or any other file in your OpenAsset system!
• Select which file & project information you'd like to include in your portal.
• Choose whether you'd like the recipient to be able to download the files being shared.
• Generate your portal! You will now have a link with your selected files & information that you can share with others.

You might use portals to:

• Showcase your work to potential clients or partners
• Send specific examples of your work to a colleague at a conference
• Share a recently completed project with the media for an upcoming press release.

Key features include:

• Seamless Sharing: Share assets directly from OpenAsset without needing to download and use another service, and without needing to create and send a contact sheet with further information. Simply choose your assets, select what information to provide, and send!
• Contextual Organization: Portals are automatically organized by project, providing contextual information that ensures a better understanding of the content’s relevance and purpose.
• One Link, No Confusion: You can update the content of a Portal even after sending a link to someone. No more sending multiple links with different versions - no more confusion!
• Great Recipient Experience: Your recipient will open a Portal that’s well-designed and organized. They can browse assets and information before downloading them, and can easily understand the context around individual images.
• Visibility and Control: View and manage your portals through the Portal Management page.

For more information, please check out our Help Site article.

We're excited to announce the release of AI Facial Recognition with the Employee Module!

This new feature, available for clients with the Employee Module as a part of their subscription, aims to streamline the process of finding and organizing employee photos, significantly reducing the time spent on manual tagging and improving overall productivity.

The Employee Module in OpenAsset is designed specifically for AEC firms to efficiently manage their employee data and images. This module facilitates the storage, organization, and retrieval of employee photos and information, making it easy to generate resumes and bios for proposals.

The newly integrated AI Facial Recognition feature takes this functionality to the next level by automating the tagging of images, ensuring all faces are correctly identified and associated with the appropriate profiles. This automation significantly reduces the time and effort required for manual tagging, streamlining the entire process and boosting productivity.

For more information, please check out our Help Site article.

You are now able to take control of the precise ordering of images (or any file) within projects! This is useful if you’d like to tell a story with your project images such as from design, to construction, to completion. Or, you may want to give your users a virtual walkthrough of a building by grouping images based on the space (lobby, stairwell, etc).

Administrators have access to this feature and you are able to grant access via Groups.

This can be used to order images on your website via our Wordpress plugin and in documents generated by OpenAsset if document templates are set up to use it.

Read more here!

The new Asset Metrics dashboards provide essential metrics on your volumes of Files, Projects and Employees stored along with metadata quality. Refine your system to your own targets and monitor improvement. For example, understand the number of Projects with keywords or completed fields, then take action to improve them.

You can access the dashboards if you are an Administrator or if you have been granted access. The dashboards can be found via the Settings (cog) menu. If you would like to understand more about any of the metrics that you see, click the “?” icons to be taken directly to an explanation in the help site. Or go directly to the help articles for Files, Projects and Employees.

You asked and we answered. OpenAsset has now expanded our supported file types to include Excel and Audio files!

XLS, XLSX, and CSV Support

OpenAsset will now allow you to store XLS, XLSX, and CSV files in your system. These documents are handled in the same seamless way as Word and PowerPoint files, with the added convenience of automatic conversion to PDF. Now, you can view these files within the OpenAsset file info page, preserving their original page layout. The thumbnail even displays the first page, making document access a breeze.

Audio File Support

OpenAsset's Audio File Support will enable you to upload, store, and listen to audio files directly within OpenAsset. With support for WAV, MP3, AAC, FLAC and other file types, you can conveniently manage the files in your preferred format. Storing audio files in OpenAsset will ensure this content is organized and accessible alongside your other assets.

Learn more about OpenAsset's supported file formats here.

We are excited to announce the launch of a new Homepage for your OpenAsset system, which will present your Project Portfolio in a visually stunning and engaging layout. Your new OpenAsset Homepage will:

• Showcase your firm’s Projects, Employees and Albums in one convenient location.
• Connect users with the incredible projects your firm has built.
• Provide easy access to key information and training resources.

Want to learn more?
We have recorded a series of short videos to help users get the most out of their OpenAsset Homepage:

• a showcase of the new Homepage design watch here
• a tutorial to guide system administrators through the configuration process watch here
• a workshop in which we highlight some ways our clients have configured their OpenAsset Homepage watch here

System Administrators can learn more about configuring the Homepage here.

We are excited to announce the launch of an updated Unanet CRM Connector, the seamless integration provided by OpenAsset. Users can now access project relevant imagery and relevant data at any time and from any workflow, ensuring optimal efficiency and productivity. With the new functionality, users can select images in OpenAsset and push them into their respective project or personnel record in Unanet CRM.

• Enhanced Image Integration - Effortlessly incorporate images from OpenAsset into Unanet CRM, ensuring seamless integration and access to visual assets within your project sheets and employee resumes.
• Customizable Image Selection - Choose and send the most relevant images from OpenAsset to Unanet CRM, maintaining a clean and organized system. Tailor the image selection to align with specific projects or personnel, optimizing the representation of your workforce.
• Simplified Workflow - Unify your image management and publishing processes by leveraging the integration between OpenAsset and Unanet CRM. Save time and effort by seamlessly connecting visual assets with your project and personnel data.

What do I need to do now?

System Administrators must activate this new functionality in system preferences and apply group permissions before it is available. You can find full instructions for this process on our Help Site.