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File naming conventions are agreed rules for naming files consistently, using a repeatable order for details such as project, subject, date and version. They help people recognise and distinguish assets when files move between folders, systems and teams.
HOW IT WORKS
A useful convention gives colleagues enough context to distinguish a file without turning its name into a long description. Keep the order consistent and define any abbreviations in a short team guide.
For campaign assets, a practical starting pattern is:
campaign_subject_format_version.ext
If dates matter, choose a year-first format such as YYYYMMDD and state what the date represents. Keep the real file extension, such as .jpg or .pdf. Test your chosen separators and characters in the systems that will receive the files.
IN PRACTICE
A filename travels with an exported file. Metadata stores additional information about it, such as title, creator, campaign, usage rights and approval status. A good name helps someone recognise a download; it cannot carry the complete asset record.
Asset Bank can populate a configured name field from the filename during bulk upload. Its filename and metadata guidance explains the setup. This does not replace a naming policy or make every filename meaningful automatically.
ILLUSTRATIVE EXAMPLE
A team preparing an autumn campaign has three square photographs of the same product. Instead of files called image1.jpg and final2.jpg, it agrees a pattern that identifies the campaign, subject, shot and version.
autumn26_bottle_front_square_v02.jpg
Here, autumn26 identifies the campaign, bottle_front identifies the subject and view, square identifies the output format, and v02 identifies the revision. A side-view photograph uses bottle_side, making the two assets distinguishable after download.
The team keeps the approval decision and licence details in the asset record. The name helps identify the file; v02 alone does not mean that it is approved for publication.
Takeaway: choose a pattern colleagues can apply consistently and understand outside the original folder.
Include the details people need to distinguish the file, in a fixed order. For campaign assets, that might be campaign, subject, output format and version. Add a date or unique identifier when it serves a clear purpose; leave detailed descriptions and rights information in metadata.
Choose one separator that works across the systems your team uses and apply it consistently. Underscores or hyphens are practical options for shared assets. Test the convention through upload and download rather than assuming every platform handles names in the same way.
No. A version label distinguishes files, but it does not record who changed them or prove which one is approved. Use the naming convention alongside your version history and approval process, and keep the current approved asset clear to users.
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Sources checked: 31 October 2026.
