What is a Minimum Advertised Price (MAP)?
Minimum Advertised Price (MAP) is the lowest price at which a manufacturer or supplier allows a retailer or reseller to advertise a product.
A MAP policy establishes a minimum advertised price for specific products and is intended to help manufacturers protect brand value and maintain consistent pricing across their retail and distribution networks.
MAP applies to the advertised price, rather than necessarily determining the final price a customer pays.
MAP and Product Information Management (PIM)
MAP information can be managed as part of a broader product information process.
A Product Information Management (PIM) system provides a centralized location for managing product information and can include pricing-related attributes such as MAP, MSRP, or other product-specific commercial information.
For example, a manufacturer could maintain the MAP associated with a product in its product data and use PIM workflows to:
- Associate MAP information with the correct products
- Maintain pricing-related product attributes
- Apply validation rules to product data
- Route product information through review and approval workflows
- Keep product information consistent across channels
- Distribute approved product data to downstream sales channels
However, PIM does not replace dedicated price-monitoring or pricing-management systems. PIM’s role is primarily to manage and distribute the product information associated with pricing requirements.
