Top 5 Product Information Management Myths Debunked
The technique of project management already exists over the years but Product Information Management (PIM) is a branch of data management that has come into existence recently. PIM is highly preferred and very useful in business management but there are certain myths about Product Information Management Myths which are very common and as discussed below.
PIM is difficult to implement for the business. It also plays a very large role in business management. PIM doesn’t require organizational changes in management for implementation and PIM is a project which is similar to PLM, PCM, or MDM.
Let us find out more about how PIM is a reality and not a myth.
- What is Product Information Management?
- Why Is Product Information Management Important?
- Business Benefits of Product Information Management
- 6 must Have Features of Product Information Management
- Key Capabilities of Product Information Management
- Advantages of Using Product Information Management Solutions
- 5 Common Product Information Management Myths
- PIM Implementation
- Conclusion
What is Product Information Management?
Products are the most important assets of the business. Product Information Management offers precise and detailed information about the products to the buyers. It offers a quality customer experience which can benefit the business.
PIM consolidates product information in an organized form by creating product catalogs. It allows product information to be displayed on the digital commerce platform for marketing and sales.
What is PIM helps you understand how product information management helps different industries, organizations, and teams to streamline product data-related processes through accurate product data.
To get exclusive insights into PIM and its essential aspects, don’t miss reading Product Information Management – An Exclusive Guide.
Why Is Product Information Management Important?
PIM allows the organization to have a global advantage that can help the business to grow and to earn higher profits.
The well-defined PIM can be useful in –
- In extending the product information across new markets
- To distribute product catalogs over digital business channels
- Customize the products according to the customer requirements and demand
- Create high-quality product experiences across various markets in different languages
- Reduce the manual processes involved while displaying the product information in a systematic manner
- Every process involved in the business regarding product information should be streamlined
- Make use of the technique of automation to boost the business prospects
- To minimize the operational cost of the business and to optimize the earnings
To discover the essence of a PIM platform in your business, check out A Brief about The Role Of Product Information Management (PIM) For Enterprise.
Business Benefits of Product Information Management
Product Information Management Myths also offers several business benefits well-managing product information. It makes the organization work accurately consistently and by offering the latest product information for customized products experience to the customers.
PIM also offers the additional benefits as listed below:
- Enhances sales & minimizes returns
- Offers personalization of the products for next-generation
- Recharges the team members for higher productivity
- Reduces the manual task in product assortment
- Supports Omnichannel marketing techniques
- Expand the business and distribute the products into the new markets
PIM understands the products well and makes changes according to the changing trends and market requirements which will be highly beneficial for the business.
To explore more benefits of PIM development, you must visit What Are the Benefits of PIM (Product Information Management) Systems?
6 must Have Features of Product Information Management
The main features of PIM are listed below.
1. Collection and importance of data
PIM offers a solution of data importing which is highly useful for online shopping and e-commerce business.
Most businessmen collect information about the products available in a systematic form and import the data from one place to another place without having any technical problems or glitches. It can also allow the storage of unlimited data safely.
Collection and importing of the data can help the business to grow faster, quicker, and more consistent.
2. Useful features of product data analytics
PIM can analyze the data in the most meaningful way and can help in creating personalized reports depending on the stored & optimized data. It can help in identifying the weaker sections by managing the data.
PIM also has built-in functionalities analyze and to aggregate product information. Analysis of the data is based on page views, purchase of the listing, and add-to-cart information.
User-friendly modules can make use of product performance and group categories while importing data and monitoring the performance.
3. Easier editing capabilities
PIM system offers multiple editing capabilities that allow the data to be distributed across multiple platforms and in various product categories simultaneously.
The bulk editing options will help the customers to make the required changes in the values and attributes of the products according to the requirements. These editing capabilities will save a lot of energy and time while managing the products.
The editing capabilities are most useful and can manage the products perfectly well.
4. Managing the product categories
Product Information Management Myths can create various product categories. It can manage the data and products. The products defined in various categories are useful for online businesses and eCommerce shops.
PIM can study every product and divide it into different categories based on the segments, various traits, and data posted across various platforms. It can easily manage the new product listings of the products launched.
5. Advanced filtering techniques
The advanced feature can offer various techniques. The product catalog can be expanded across multiple channels along with a shopping platform. It is required to find the products which are in demand and are based on specific criteria.
PIM offers various filtering techniques that can help clients to find products based on specific conditions depending on the scale and the type of products.
6. Integrating with other channels and systems
PIM solutions can have the capability to integrate with other channels and platforms related to product marketing and shopping. It allows the clients to access the set of products available in the e-Commerce shops and sites.
PIM software helps clients to make use of various processes and to access product information from various shopping platforms.
PIM software allows every business operation to be conducted smoothly by retrieving the product list, and product description along with image attributes and prices.
Visit Must Have Features of Product Information Management System that unveils the extremely essential PIM features that drive efficiency to your business operations.
Key Capabilities of Product Information Management
- The products are categorized effectively. The categories are based on various types of products and their attributes.
- The product data is defined based on searchable categories. The categories are useful to identify the products.
- Organizational tools can also be used to divide product information into segments.
- The product information can be published on multiple channels and can also be shared for business purposes.
Digital asset Management is a useful feature offered by PIM solution and it can be useful in making the data and information useful and meaningful to be used for business purposes.
These features and key capabilities will make the PIM system highly capable in business management.
Advantages of Using Product Information Management Solutions
PIM system is data management software and it can ensure the accuracy and consistency of the data. It can validate the data, keeps track of custom views, and also manage the versioning and publishing of data.
The set of advantages it offers to the users can be defined as –
1. Performs modeling and offers quality check
PIM software not only manages the data for accuracy and to have a consistent approach but also for data modeling. Data modeling deals with relationships of data sets and their association. It can build connections among various products and can define the classification standards.
2. Effective system integration
PIM solution manages product information by integrating various systems such as ERP, and CRM along with relational database logistic systems, product catalogs, and electronic interfaces of available data. It can also manage personal data systems efficiently.
3. Digital Asset Management
The main aspect of the PIM system can be the Digital Asset Management platform (DAM). The main functionality of DAM organizes various types of media contained and the data formats.
The media content can be video, audio, animation, images, graphics, and also music files. It can also make use of podcasts along with rich media content.
4. Syndication of product data
PIM software can deliver product information to various shopping networks. These shopping networks can be namely Amazon, Rakuten, Instagram, Google, Facebook, and many others. The product data can also be published over social media channels depending on the needs, requirements, and interactions.
The products can be customized according to market trends and customer needs. The syndication of data can also be useful in publishing and distributing the product catalog over digital channels.
5. Offering support to suppliers and vendors
PIM system is highly capable of supporting not only the business enterprise but also the entire organization including suppliers and vendors. The PIM system can make return management quick and efficient.
These portals accelerate, automate, and streamline mutual relationships. PIM helps in consolidating demand forecasting, operation efficiency, supply chain operations, and other common functionalities.
PIM systems also offer management techniques that can be a part of business operations & business management techniques.
6. Customer experience & ROI
PIM systems can offer product information by managing the data and streamlining various activities involved. PIM offers a customer-centric product experience. Unstructured data when passed into PIM can be transformed into a consistent format along with higher accuracy.
It also offers higher flexibility while managing the marketing and sales department to make use of the available data. It will certainly offer a high-quality user experience by offering eye-catching campaigns informing of discounts, festival sales, and clearance sales.
7. Quick and accurate marketing techniques
PIM techniques can be used to fully create data hierarchies and suitable structures while empowering the departments. It also helps in having better workflows and higher operation and efficiency.
PIM implementation allows the products to reach the market efficiently without any delay. The product launches can be faster and also can offer competitive marketing strategies in the marketplace.
The products can reach consumers depending on the preferred channels and the various digital platforms. These techniques will certainly engage the customers with a variety of products and can have business advantages.
These are the advantages of the PIM system and this will help in promoting extending and expanding the business prospects. Every feature discussed is helpful to all types of businesses and can allow the making use of advanced techniques to be successful in the market.
Interested in exploring more PIM advantages? Don’t miss reading What Is Product Information Management (PIM): [Purposes + Goals + Advantages].
5 Common Product Information Management Myths
PIM system is highly sophisticated and very effective in managing product information and also executive the business operations effectively. But there are certain myths about PIM which need to be discussed here.
Myth 1: PIM is full of complexities file managing a business.
Reality: PIM Myths is mainly useful in managing content as a part of business operations. PIM is mainly designed to offer techniques to manage sales marketing and merchandising products.
The main advantage of PIM is about empowering the business requirements and enhancing the customer base. There is no need for a technical background to implement and manage PIM.
Myth 2: PIM is useful for large-sized business enterprises only.
Reality: Earlier PIM software was mainly utilized for managing large-based organizations. But with the help of multi-channel commerce techniques, PIM can be utilized for smaller business enterprises also.
The working of the PIM system remains the same managing the data and product portfolios. It can promote brands and products with equal integrity for either a small or large business enterprise.
Myth 3: PIM doesn’t need organization change management because it is not enterprise software.
Reality: PIM is software that can support sales marketing and merchandise departments. It can help the products to move faster into the market.
Most users think of PIM as a technology and not a technique. PIM system like any other software can manage the people and the processes. So, it is required to have change management while implementing the PIM system.
Myth 4: PIM is considered a project.
Reality: PIM Myths can be implemented in terms of a project or several projects together. But it is a program that can be used for creating and managing the data for business requirements. PIM can be executed step-wise in form of a project.
It can be divided into several steps and each step is interconnected with the other. PIM can be divided into a set of modules namely governance, data management, and process management.
Myth 5: PIM works similarly to PLM, PCM, or MDM
Reality: PIM techniques appear to be identical to customer-centric commerce solutions. The procedure PLM deals with product innovation and can offer data sources for PIM. Master Data Management (MDM) is managers’ corporate data across various domains and can offer data sources for PIM.
PCM receives the data from PIM and it can offer higher data with higher capabilities to the websites. PIM can play a very important role in product data management and remains at the center of the entire process.
PIM syndicates and manages the data and enhances the data quality with the help of aggregation techniques. It indicates that PIM will remain robust and cannot be replaced by PLM, PCM OR MDM systems.
These are the set of myths that have created confusion in the minds of the user but this confusion can be eliminated with a meaningful explanation that proves PIM is the most useful advanced technology used for a variety of business operations.
PIM Implementation
PIM system can be implemented in four steps as given below:
1. Data reconciliation
The business architecture should be evaluated by cheating the data points available for every product in the catalog. Organizations that work without Product Information Management Myths find it difficult to reconcile the data due to multiple instances of the data types. And it will make the process of product management difficult.
It is required to have one source of product data along with clear business architecture that can streamline tasks with at most consistency.
2. Unify the process of product information
Building an application along with the architecture can take a longer time. The duration is dependent on the size of the catalog and the list of products we identified. The entire process is dependent on internal proprietary inputs along with third-party APIs. APIs can enrich product data.
During this phase, it is required to define
- How can the application define the required product attributes for PIM?
- Which type of structure is most effective?
- What will be the data frequency required to move the data?
3. Data modeling
To model data flow and satisfy stakeholder needs, application architecture and business architecture should be used. It can also be called physical and logical architecture.
Logical modeling can set a relationship between the products available in the catalog. The products can be either combined in a group or can be sold as individual units.
Physical modeling structures can deal with a short version of data points. It can have a description in a limited format for mobile or it can be in the form of a translated experience.
4. Review the process & retire the apps
It is the final stage that can be useful in building a technical architecture with the help of multiple systems. Some of the apps should retire. The review of the entire system will help you in understanding every process clearly.
Visit Do’s and Don’ts to consider while Product Information Management Implementation to get a better understating of different aspects of PIM implementation and which ones to consider and which ones to avoid.
Conclusion
Product Information Management Myths can be useful in integrating the entire work process. It can streamline the available data and product information by converting it into a meaningful format. The product information gets accurate and consistent and can be useful in expanding the business globally.
PIM system offers useful techniques of product management and it can be useful for online business and also for eCommerce activities.
Product Information Management systems have become part of successful business operations, and they can be well-supported by digital marketing techniques.
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