What is Product Information Management (PIM)?
- 2. What is PIM? PIM stands for Product Information Management. It refers to the process for handling all the data, content, and other material that is needed to market and sell products. PIM also ensures that quality data is created for internal use and multichannel distribution.
- 3. What kind of product information needs to be managed? There is a lot of data that supports a single product throughout its lifecycle. A good PIM process is able to deal with incoming, out-going, and cross-department product information like: Essential product data Taxonomy & relationships Technical Specifications Digital assets Marketing Data Sales Information Design Specifications Channel-specific information Localized information Supplier & manufacturer data
- 4. Tools for PIM Luckily, companies that are keen on digital transformation have it good because there are many PIM software solutions out there. These are tools that enable companies to consolidate and manage their entire product catalog in one place. These can be hosted cloud solutions, bespoke, home-grown, or even deployed on-premise. PIM tools go by many different names: ○ Product Information Manager (PIM) ○ Product Image Manager (PIM) ○ Product Content Manager (PCM) ○ Product Data Manager (PDM) ○ Product Resource Manager (PRM) ○ Item Master Whatever it’s called, the goal is the same. These are tools that serve as a central product database or library that helps standardize information for company wide use.
- 5. Digital Asset Management (DAM) Content Management System (CMS) There is some confusion with all of these acronyms. A DAM and a CMS are not specified for the PIM job. Though they can be used in tandem with a PIM, they are better suited to solve other problems related to digital content. Close... but not quite Compare PIM VS DAM
- 6. What can you do with a PIM system? ○ Centralize and sanitize scattered data ○ Enrich product descriptions and specifications ○ Track progress and product completion ○ Link images, documents and media to products ○ Categorize products and files ○ Manage upstream data and prepare it for sales channels ○ Manage relationships between products ○ Create and publish product catalogs ○ Format product data for multichannel syndication ○ Automate catalog creation and maintenance ○ Find everything in one central database
- 7. What are the benefits of using a PIM? A PIM system is great for companies that need to juggle a lot of product information and sell in multiple channels. The benefits are profound, especially when it comes to productivity. A PIM allows teams to save time, improve data quality and take control of their products. ○ Create rich, consistent content optimized for all your sales channels ○ Sell more with better content and accessible data ○ Expand product offering in a sustainable way ○ Import and sort supplier data quickly ○ Increase customer satisfaction and loyalty ○ Reduce errors and redundancies by relying on a single source of truth ○ Eliminate manual data input and updating ○ Get to market faster than your competitors ○ Reduce overhead and wasted resources ○ Eliminate bottlenecks & data silos
- 8. Who benefits? Sales teams that need up-to-date, accurate product data and material on the go at all times. Ecommerce managers that need to constantly update content plus improve user experience and conversion rates. Customer support representatives who can easily access information about products to ensure accurate service. Marketing teams that need to juggle tons of content to create and modify campaigns across channels. Your customers. They'll be able to buy with confidence knowing your brand shows quality product information they can rely on.
- 9. What types of companies should use PIM software? Companies of all sizes can benefit from using Product Information Management software. However, it becomes an essential business tool when your company: ○ Manages complex product content and relationships ○ Has a high number of SKUs in its offering ○ Sells products through multiple channels ○ Collects data from multiple suppliers ○ Needs accurate product information available for multiple teams ○ Suffers from too many manual processes ○ Expands or transitions product offering multiple times a year