Professionals in creative fields – be it marketing, content creation, or website design – tend to work with hefty media files.

These can be anything from a high-definition video for an ad campaign to an extensive portfolio of raw photos from a photo shoot or layered Photoshop files rich with design elements (to name a few).

These files often exceed the 15GB of free storage space available in Google Drive, so what is there to do when you have to share them? Your client or business partner is waiting impatiently on the other side of the world, and you’re out of ideas on how to share your work. Do you compromise and start saving your files at a lower quality?

Luckily, there’s no need for such drastic measures. There are other ways to make sure your files reach their destination, even if they “weigh” more than the recommended file transfer. We put together a few tips to help you streamline the file-sharing process without having to compromise on speed or quality.

Why Is Sharing Large Media Files So Problematic?

Before we talk about tools and tricks, let’s have a look at some of the factors that may stop you from sending out unusually large files. 

Knowing these factors will help you understand what type of file-sharing solution best applies to your needs, so make sure to read them until the end.

• Bandwidth limitations: Sharing large files consumes substantial network bandwidth, which in turn causes the speed of your transfer to drop significantly. However, this tends to happen over consumer-grade (or residential) Internet connections. You can usually solve this by getting a business-grade connection.
• File size restrictions: Many email and messaging services set limits on the size of attachments. This is in the interest of maintaining the service accessible to everyone since sharing large files can be taxing on the system.
• Upload and download times: Lengthy upload times can (and will) lead to bottlenecks – the larger the file, the longer it will take to upload it to a server or cloud service. If you manage to upload it, there’s another hoop to go through – the download (which happens on the recipient’s side). If download speeds aren’t optimal on their end, the process becomes even more protracted.
• Security concerns: A quick Google search will give you a wide range of solutions for sharing large files, but you also have to consider their security. Transmitting large files via unsecured channels opens up risks associated with data breaches or interception by unauthorized parties.

How To Speed Up Your Media File Sharing

When you try to design a collaborative workspace (as an enterprise or as a solopreneur), you need access to reliable file-sharing tools and platforms. Additionally, it doesn’t hurt to have a few tricks up your sleeve for various unexpected situations. 

So, here are 3 ways you can speed up large file sharing without worrying about quality or security.

1. Optimize your files before sharing

Did you know you can compress a file without losing any quality? 

This is done via lossless compression, which algorithmically eliminates redundancies in a file’s data without discarding any of the original content. Unlike lossy compression, which permanently removes bits of data deemed non-essential (often resulting in quality degradation), lossless methods ensure that the file can be restored to its exact initial state.

Try Adobe Media Encoder or Handbrake – both of these tools support lossless compression.

2. Choose the best platform for media file sharing

The good news is that there are plenty of reliable platforms and apps that support sharing large files without a hitch. So, if the ones listed below don’t work for you, don’t despair, there’s more where that came from. 

If you’re looking for fast sync speeds and ease of use, Dropbox is a good option, but it offers only 2GB of free storage space. Google Drive, on the other hand, offers ample storage and seamless integration with workspace apps. It’s also effective for real-time document editing and works well across devices.

For a user-friendly interface and quick transfers without having to create an account, try WeTransfer. It allows transfers of files up to 2GB for free and up to 20GB for the plus version.

Each maintains quality post-transfer, but actual speed can vary based on specific network conditions. Choose based on your priorities – be it space, sync speed, or user interface simplicity.

3. Leverage content delivery networks (CDNs)

For companies, Content Delivery Networks (CDNs) are an efficient solution for speedy content distribution, including large media files. CDNs reduce latency by caching content on a network of servers globally placed closer to end-users. When a user requests a file, the CDN delivers it from the nearest server, minimizing distance and potential delays.

Popular options like Cloudflare and its alternatives provide additional security features and robust analytics while ensuring content reaches users quickly. Amazon CloudFront integrates with other AWS services seamlessly and offers a pay-as-you-go model that can scale with your needs.

By using CDNs, you avoid congestion typical of single-server setups, ensuring faster delivery times without compromising on quality.

Conclusion

At the end of the day, it’s important to know that sharing large media files is not as complex as it seems when you first start looking into it. Plus, using the tips and tools we recommended above, you should have a breeze finding the right solution for your needs.