In this article, learn about:
What product information management (PIM) system is
The benefits of using a PIM system
How to find a PIM system that works for you
The supply chain continues to shift more and more into virtual spaces, from ecommerce to agentic storefronts. This shift is not new, but each year comes with a new trend, which in turn adds new stressors for suppliers trying to keep up. But keeping up with trends is only half the battle.
Suppliers are already managing countless products, the data associated with them, retailer requirements, compliance issues, and deduction disputing. Often, a new trend is the last thing a supplier has the time to address — unless it isn’t really a trend, but a tool to help manage everything suppliers are juggling day to day.
What Is a PIM System?
The late 90’s and early 2000’s introduced enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems to supply chain management practices that had previously been handled via manual processes and spreadsheets. But ERP systems were not designed to handle the significant increase in product content — images, descriptions, and attributes — that came with the rise in ecommerce. Enter the PIM system, which was created specifically to help suppliers and retailers manage data associated with ecommerce. PIM did not replace ERP but rather filled a need stemming from these demands.
A PIM system centralizes, manages, and consolidates product data to ensure accuracy and consistency across multiple channels. A PIM system focuses on how suppliers use their product data, specifically when it comes to sharing that data with stakeholders. This can look like any of the following functions:
Organizing and consolidating supplier product data across all channels
Organizing and consolidating media assets for accessibility and compliance
Understanding and organizing compliance information to keep suppliers up to date
What Are the Benefits of Using PIM?
PIM offers many benefits to suppliers, helping resolve ongoing issues of:
Data Fragmentation
For suppliers working with multiple retailers, manufacturers, and other partners, data can very quickly become fragmented. There are variations in item data requirements among retailers and different systems in which to submit this data. If the supplier keeps its data in multiple different channels, the data may very easily get lost or misinterpreted in the process of getting it to the correct stakeholders. This is made even worse if some of the supplier’s existing data management processes are done manually.
When data becomes fragmented, this leads to delays and manufacturing errors, which in turn leads to dissatisfied retailers, compliance fines, unhappy customers, and a tarnished brand image.
Inability To Meet Retailer Demands
When data is fragmented, or data management is done on a spreadsheet or in an outdated system, it becomes nearly impossible to keep up with retailer demands. Particularly in the world of ecommerce, suppliers must provide product specs (with requirements for those specs varying across retailers) in order for their product to be listed on the retailer’s ecommerce marketplace. If this product data is not easily accessible, then the supplier may miss key deadlines, submit incorrect specs, or lose out on prime ecommerce listing options.
PIM provides a first line of defense for suppliers, organizing data in one place, so suppliers know exactly where it is and can access it and send the correct data to the necessary stakeholders in a timely manner.
Inconsistency Across Multiple Channels
By keeping data organized and accessible, suppliers can focus on consistency. For example, suppliers can ensure that documentation such as advance ship notices (ASNs) and bills of lading (BOLs) are submitted on time and according to each retailer’s specific requirements and needs.
When data is disorganized, mismanaged, and fragmented, documentation is regularly submitted late or incorrectly. Using a PIM system can help suppliers get to the heart of the issue rather than losing countless dollars to noncompliance fines.
Increased Costs Associated With Compliance Errors
Some suppliers lose money to retailer compliance fines and deductions as often as every week. It can feel overwhelming to manage all the deductions that occur across multiple retailers and determine whether they’re valid or invalid. Some suppliers find it easier to simply pay each deduction they get because they lack the capacity to find the root cause of the issue. Others dispute every single deduction, regardless of validity, wasting time that could be used to find a more lasting solution.
Many supplier errors that result in deductions are due to mismanaged data. By using a PIM system to consolidate and organize data, suppliers can know the root cause of the deduction when they receive it, whether or not it is valid, and the necessary documentation to successfully dispute it to recover their revenue.
How To Choose a PIM System
There are many companies that offer PIM solutions, but not every single one will be the right fit. To choose the best PIM system for your needs, you’ll need to consider:
The size of your business
The primary problems you are trying to solve
Your budget
These factors will help you narrow down your options when searching for a PIM system. The size of your business will help you eliminate companies that primarily service organizations at different capacities than yours, and the extent of the problems you are hoping to solve will determine how broad of a PIM system you will want. Knowing your budget will help protect your return on investment, ensuring you don’t spend more on a PIM system than you save with its help.
Let SPS Commerce Help
Selecting a PIM system doesn’t have to mean you’re paying for individual services from multiple third parties. SPS Commerce provides suppliers with PIM solutions through its assortment tool, while also offering seamless EDI integrations across all supplier systems.
