PIM (product information management) software combines and harmonizes all the information in your product catalogue. The basic data contained in this PIM includes name, unique identifier, the SKU, bar codes, stock, and product origin… For ready-to-wear clothing e-commerce, these details would include the size, colour and materials, while for selling nutritional supplements online, they would include product ingredients, labels, health recommendations, etc.
The omnichannel has become a real challenge for many businesses and their customers are demanding more consistency in their shopping paths. From a physical store to e-commerce, to mobile applications, today’s consumers have definitely adopted many different methods for making purchases. In the past, the consumer-business relationship worked in a linear way. In the wake of digitization, we have a multitude of contact points. Brands have to be in tune with these sales channels if they are to compete effectively in a saturated market.
Aside from the marketing data of your product catalogue, international sales add complexity to the management of product data: descriptions in multiple languages, multiples currencies, duty-free and taxes depending on the country (a particularly sensitive subject in the USA). But also problems related to the transport of your products: conditions of delivery, product returns, packaging formats, and regulatory conditions of transport. The use of a PIM is necessary to synchronize all changes in a particularly complex and important context.
A PIM is able to centralize the catalogue’s technical and marketing information and to spread it throughout third-party marketplaces and websites.
The arrival of multi-channel commerce created a demand for e-businesses: it’s essential to centralize product information and to have enriched data for merchandizing.
The more complex reference and/or products that your catalogue has, the more the use of PIM becomes crucial.
Do you sell in store, online, on marketplaces like Amazon or Ebay or are your products are visible on price comparison sites?
