Who needs a Product Information Management (PIM)?
Identifying the pain and meeting the challenges of executives responsible for purchasing a PIM.
FOR C-LEVEL
Are you tired of throwing more people at a problem you can solve with processes and software?
By improving processes and matching them to the “benefits” of technology (not the features) we can help make your more productive. This usually means increasing capacity with the talent you have – producing more – and therefore, creating more sales opportunities.
Is your team not being held accountable because there’s a lack of understanding responsibilities across silos?
When you lack workflows, there’s a good chance you lack defined responsibilities. Sometimes things slip through the cracks, but more often than not – it’s the opposite … there are so many people watching those cracks, there’s no way something will slip through. You’re overly responsible, or, even worse, you’re enabling it. By dissecting and re-building these processes, you’ll create clarity, collaboration, communication and pride.
FOR I.T.
Is the need to keep alive your Legacy/ERP keeping you from having a Best In Class MDM / PIM solution?
Do you know how hard it is to switch a business system?! Of course, that’s why system changes can be terrifying. However, with the right MDM for PIM, using simple integration and a bolt-on mentality, you’ll have a best-in-class solution, and you can continue to use your legacy for a long time.
Does your eCommerce/WCMS have a shorter life than your ERP – or where your product information is?
Switching your data from one system into another – especially the complexities around product attributes, can be cumbersome. With a PIM, you can keep the product information stable and just re-integrate that data into a new eCommerce system. You’ll find that’s a lot easier, and in many cases the connectors are already built.
FOR MARKETING
Are you tired of managing content for eCommerce and Print catalogs separately?
Redundant entry, duplicate content, two people doing the same things, but doing it differently. This doesn’t have to be that way. With a single UI and one central source of the truth on product data, you’ll immediately become more accurate, more efficient and faster at what you do.
Print is not dead and you know it … so why is it that your data solutions don’t reflect that?
We’re tired of listening to eCommerce providers talk about how their products are multichannel or omnichannel – “show us the print” we say. There’s subtle and not so subtle nuances involved in still keeping print as a key channel. How do I access the data? How does the high-res work in the cloud. Ask those questions the next time you’re in a conversation with a WCMS provider.
FOR ADVERTISING/CREATIVE
If you have a large catalog, how long does it take you to put together your index?
Are you kidding me? It takes you two weeks at the end of a cycle, holed up in a room with 10 people waving their hands and hollaring “page 234!”? How about let’s run an export and import that data – oops, we’re done.
Does your creative team struggle to find images (the right one, the most recent one), pricing (market specific, catalog specific, customer specific), and related content – then keep it updated when it changes?
“Finally,” the graphic artist says, “I can design and not spend half my time just looking for things. And, I don’t even have to proof the page any more. This is fun!” Well, it might not be that simple, but we’ve seen page production increases that would boggle your mind.
FOR MERCHANDISING/PRODUCT MANAGERS
Are your product suppliers providing you with the best data; and are they delivering it to you effectively (accurate and usable)?
Exactly where is the earliest point of entry for product information? Well, many times that’s with the supplier themselves. If they’re entering it – then let’s capture it!
Would getting your product to market faster increase sales and opportunities in those markets?
Sorry – was that a rhetorical question? When workflows are optimized, vendors are involved, proofing is collapsed and data is more accurate, the consequence is dramatic: product-to-market faster. You’ll be a step ahead of your competition.