PIM System in the Retail Industry – Best Practices
The Product Information Management (PIM) system has become indispensable in many industries, including retail. If you want to manage product information effectively in the era of digitization, PIM is the solution for you. Properly preparing for its implementation and adhering to good practices for using PIM in the retail industry will maximize its benefits.
PIM System for Retail: 9 Principles to Remember
Is PIM in the retail industry governed by its own rules? To some extent. Here’s what you should remember:
1. Data Standardization
Establishing uniform standards for the format, structure, and naming of product data ensures consistency and accuracy across all sales channels. It also facilitates integration with other systems within the company.
2. Customer Focus
The PIM system should focus on providing customers with the information they need to make informed purchase decisions. Therefore, you should implement a single location for product data and related media in your PIM system.
3. Data Cleanliness
Thoroughly cleansing data before migrating it to the PIM system is essential. Why? It helps you avoid uploading incorrect or incomplete information, which could negatively impact the entire product management process, and add more work instead of subtracting it.
4. Roles and Permissions
Limiting the administrator role to a minimum (don’t let it be the default option!) and assigning permissions tailored to the role within the organization ensures data security and helps protect against unauthorized access to information by third parties.
5. Brand Identity Guidelines
Establish clear brand identity guidelines from the start to achieve consistent communication across all sales channels. Also, remember that editing product information should be limited to a select few who understand the language and specifics of the brand.
6. Continuous Content Quality Monitoring
If you care about the highest-quality content on your website, you must regularly verify and update product data. Remember that if you notice any errors, it’s not too late—access to reports will allow you to correct them quickly.
7. Enrichment of Product Data
Product descriptions are not just text! Adding descriptions, photos, videos, and FAQs is an excellent way to enrich product data and facilitate customer purchasing decisions. Also, tailor content to sales channels to ensure optimal user experience.
8. Data and System Integration
Connecting the retail PIM system with the entire company’s IT ecosystem can be quite challenging, even for small businesses, but our experiences show that it’s worth it. Smooth information exchange and streamlining business processes are the foundation of effective action!
9. Task Automation
If you already have a PIM system, it would be a shame not to use it to conduct automated activities in the company. What can you use automation for in the retail industry? This includes updating and gathering data, format normalization, product categorization, supplier data integration, and even adding customer reviews. All of this will save you some time and avoid human errors.
Mass actions also fall under automation. Removing or adding product information for multiple items simultaneously increases productivity and makes managing large amounts of data much easier – it’s a huge convenience! We are confident that such a change will be noticeable for your company.
As you can see, PIM in the retail industry can bring many benefits – if you use it correctly!