For years, Preferred Connection has been the place where our customers can trust that their content is safe, preserved and professionally managed.
Recently more of our customers are asking a new question: “How do we make our preservation repository feel connected to the tools we work in every day?”
One option to achieve this is the newly available Preferred API
Think of it as a bridge that allows your systems to talk to Preferred Connection in a secure, consistent and automatic way. For example, Digital Asset Management (DAM) platforms, Collection Management Systems (CMS) and Collaboration Applications can query, send or sync digital assets and metadata in the flow of work.
This is not about technology for its own sake. It is about making preservation and reuse of digital assets a seamless part of your everyday workflow.
Why a connected preservation layer matters
Most GLAM organisations, media teams and enterprises already live with a mix of systems:
- A DAM, CMS or File Server for day-to-day access and creative work
- On site and Cloud Storage and operational backups
- Preservation and storage platforms for long-term safety and compliance
- Spreadsheets, databases, or internal tools to plug the gaps
Without a standard way for these systems to connect, people end up:
- Copying files and losing metadata or re-entering it by hand
- Maintaining different versions of “the same” record with poor traceability
- Hoping that an item in the DAM, on a hard drive, or SDCard is securely preserved, not corrupted or in an obsolete format
These problems are not solved by introducing yet more systems, they are solvable with a simple, reliable way to connect what you already have.
What the Preferred API makes possible
At a business level, the API changes what Preferred Connection can do in four important ways:
- A single preservation backbone for many tools
Preferred Connection becomes the stable preservation layer behind whichever access tools a customer wants to use now and in the future. If they change DAMs, the preservation layer stays the same. - Automatic syncing instead of manual re-keying
When new content is approved in a DAM, it can be sent straight to Preferred Connection for long-term preservation. Descriptions, rights statements, and tags can stay aligned, so there is one source of truth for each asset, not many. - Smart triggers instead of constant checking
When content is ingested, updated, or removed in Preferred Connection, other systems can be notified. That means less time spent asking “did anything change” and more time focused on collection care and storytelling. - A clear, reusable bridge for partners
Integrators, vendors, and internal teams get one documented way to connect to Preferred Connection. New interfaces, reporting tools or ingest utilities can all plug into the same foundation.
Real-world scenarios
Here are several examples of how customers can use this in practice.
Keep your existing DAM, upgrade your preservation
The organisation keeps working in its familiar DAM. When an item reaches a chosen stage (for example “final master” or “approved”), it is automatically preserved in Preferred Connection. Staff using the DAM can see immediately that the item is safely stored and verified.
Move away from fragile custom databases
Legacy solutions and custom databases can be retired gradually. New, lighter applications can be built on top of the API instead, using Preferred Connection as the trusted repository for assets and metadata.
Make large migrations more predictable
For big projects, the API allows migration tools to push content into Preferred Connection in a controlled way, track what has arrived successfully and report progress clearly to stakeholders.
Build new discovery and access experiences
Once content and metadata flow freely, organisations can design new internal search tools or public discovery sites without duplicating the preservation layer each time.
What it means for customers
- Lower storage costs
Digital assets preserved at lower cost than your active storage, and removed from your ever expanding DAM backup data volumes
- Smaller attack surface
Your finished work archived at time of completion. Air gapped from bad actors, yet still available at any time it’s required.
- Less manual work, fewer errors
Staff spend less time exporting, importing, and re-keying, and more time on higher value activities.
- Confidence in long-term safety
Curators and business owners can see that important material is preserved and monitored without logging into multiple systems.
- Freedom to evolve
Organisations can change or add front-end systems over time without putting their preservation strategy at risk.
- Better value from existing investment
The systems they already own become more useful once they can work together.
Connecting your preservation workflows in real time
The Preferred API is about connection and partnership. It is a strategic step toward a world where preservation is not a separate activity, but part of the natural flow of how organisations create, manage, and share their digital heritage.
If you would like to explore how this could fit into your ecosystem, we would love to connect. Contact us to find out more.
