Adobe rolls out new automation and collaboration features

Adobe has announced at Adobe MAX new automation and collaboration features across Adobe Creative Cloud and the Adobe product portfolio, helping small and mid-sized businesses modernise workflows while embracing new possibilities with creativity and productivity.

In the digital economy, SMBs must work faster and smarter than ever before, and technology can help, Adobe states. New research from the company found that nearly 70% of SMBs now depend on digital solutions to do more with less amidst labour shortages and 77% say ongoing uncertainty has compelled them to look for new ways to collaborate.

Claire Darley, Vice President, Digital Media GTM and Sales at Adobe, says, "Technology must help SMBs grow, not get in the way. Millions of small businesses rely on Adobe technology, and our new innovations remove complexity, improve collaboration and automate repetitive tasks, so they can focus on creating customer-delighting digital experiences."

Adobe is democratising access to creativity tools on any device, enabling everyone to create content. Advancements across Creative Cloud enable SMBs to move between interoperable apps, leverage the best tool for each task and access fonts and stock photo, illustration, video and 3D assets right within the apps, so they can stay efficient and focus on running their businesses.

New app-specific capabilities include:

• Adobe Express now empowers SMBs, including businesses run by Adobe Express Ambassadors Maia Faddoul, Katie Kortman, Nikki McWilliams and Nelly Ruthenbeck, enabling easy creation of impactful social media posts based upon thousands of beautiful templates, which can be customised within the app or accessed within Adobe Fonts for blank canvas testing. Content scheduling and colour palette recommendations have been added, while new Adobe Acrobat integrations enable SMBs to design visually appealing cover pages, section dividers and more, directly and easily within Acrobat.
• Share for Review (beta) allows users to share a version-specific link to a Photoshop or Illustrator file, then automatically flow reviewers' comments back into the app, eliminating the need to juggle between different tools to address all feedback. Designers can now choose to co-edit a live file with Invite to Edit, or share a specific version of a file with Share for Review.
• AI powered by Adobe Sensei delivers new capabilities across Creative Cloud, simplifying and automating repetitive tasks in After Effects, Photoshop, InDesign, Substance 3D and more, enabling SMBs to efficiently and intuitively bring their ideas to life. Using Substance 3D, Australian architectural 3D rendering and animation company Binyan Studios is developing 3D assets for clients two to 10 times faster than ever before.

Adobe also announced new capabilities for SMBs across Document Cloud and Experience Cloud, spanning applications such as Adobe Acrobat, Adobe Commerce and Adobe Marketo Engage.

• Adobe Acrobat introduced free web-based watermarking, cropping, redaction, OCR, stamping, certifying and page numbering tools to take quick actions on documents. Additional features include branded agreement templates with a company's name, logo and custom URL; conversion of any document into a web form; automated sending of one document to many people for e-signatures; and an option to send payments with e-signed agreements.
• Adobe Commerce enables SMB retailers to easily incorporate Walmart's, PayPal's and FedEx's enterprise-grade solutions, enabling any merchant to offer an omnichannel customer experience.
• Adobe Marketo Engage adds a new, entry-level automation package that helps SMBs automate and scale their marketing efforts, including: quick start templates for emails, landing pages, forms and campaigns that SMBs can quickly edit and launch; cloning ability for campaign workflows; and tokens for emails, landing pages or campaigns will personalise the customer experience and lead to higher conversions.