Simplifying Product Information Management (PIM) for Building Materials
Table of Contents
Imagine having all your product details in one place where you can easily update and share them. That’s what a Product Information Management (PIM) system does. It helps you keep track of all your product specifications, images, prices, and more, making your life easier and ensuring everyone has the latest information.
Benefits of a PIM
- Less Confusion, More Accuracy: With a PIM, you avoid the mess of scattered data. No more outdated prices or specs floating around.
- Faster Workflows: Update information once, and it’s updated everywhere. Save time and reduce headaches.
- Stay on Top of Regulations: Easily manage data related to environmental regulations, helping your products stay compliant and green.
- Happier Customers: Customers get reliable product information, leading to trust and more sales.
A Real Example
Background
A well known building materials supplier who specialises in a wide range of products, from basic building materials to specialised eco-friendly solutions. The company is facing familiar challenges in managing its extensive product catalogue, which includes the typical SKU profiles:
- Diverse product specifications
- Complex and varied pricing structures
- Increasing (and changing) compliance requirements
Current challenges
The main challenge for our Building Materials supplier is the chaotic, piecemeal management of product information. Data is dispersed across different systems and departments, leading to
- Inconsistencies in product data: inaccuracy, duplicated data, multiple versions
- Outdated information
- Difficulty in accessing the most recent version of product data
- Poor communication with customers and suppliers
- Inefficient forecasting for sales and inventory
- Customer dissatisfaction
- Loss of sales opportunities to competitors
Implementation of Product Information management solution
So, the business takes the plunge and implements a comprehensive PIM solution to centralise and manage its product information better. Key steps in the implementation included:
Data Consolidation: Merging and migrating data from various sources into a single PIM platform.
Standardisation of data: Using a data governance framework to establish uniform data formats and protocols and quality thresholds for product information.
Integration with other systems: Linking the PIM system with its ERP, CRM, and e-commerce platforms.
Training and change management: Gaining buy-in, educating teams on the new system, and adapting internal processes and workflows.
Results
Implementation of the PIM solution leads to:
Enhanced data accuracy and consistency: Inconsistencies are minimised with centralised product data.
Improved efficiency: Time needed to update and retrieve product information reduces considerably, enhancing productivity.
Better compliance management: Tracking and updating of compliance-related data for environmentally sustainable products becomes easier.
Enhanced customer experience: Access to accurate, up-to-date product information improves the CX and overall trust in the brand.
Increased sales: Streamlined product information management generates a faster and more effective sales process.
Best Practices for Managing Product Information
Centralise Your Data
Get your product information in one place. Make sure it's accurate and up-to-date
Standardise Data
Use common formats for your data. It makes life easier for everyone and supports industry standards like BIM.
Choose Flexible Systems
Pick systems that can grow with your business and work well with other tools you use.
Integrating diverse product data in the building materials industry is fundamental for enhancing efficiency and sustainability. By leveraging a PIM system building materials suppliers can navigate the choppy seas of data management, leading to smoother, more efficient, accurate, and sustainable practices.