There are tons of options out there when it comes to buying Product Information Management (PIM). Your objectives and the resources you have available will ultimately determine which solution will be best for you. Therefore, you need to know all the facts about buying PIM before you start the process.
This whitepaper contains everything you need to know about buying a PIM solution. You’ll gain access to a comprehensive template Request for Information (RFI) which will enable you to gather all the facts you need to make a fully informed decision. Overall, you’ll get all the top tips to implement PIM, so you get the most value from all the functionalities.
In this whitepaper, you’ll gain an understanding of:
If you’re dealing with large volumes of complex product data, you’ll need a solution that streamlines and automates these manual tasks. PIM software benefits multiple departments in your business and creates significant efficiencies, giving you more time to focus on creating amazing product experiences.
Do you have a strong team of in-house developers, or are you looking for this expertise to be outsourced? are you restricted to an on-premise solution or can you take advantage of a multi-tenanted SaaS Solution? These are all questions you should ask to ensure you choose the right PIM solution that will enable you to reach your specific goals.
Different PIM solutions will incur different costs in terms of the initial investment, as well as the ongoing associated costs. As such, there’s a lot of information to digest when buying your first PIM. Therefore, it’s key to involve all relevant parties so you know you’ve chosen the right solution.
Brands driving growth with Pimberly:
The primary objective of a PIM solution is to streamline product data and digital asset management processes. Ultimately, this will mean you can create amazing customer experiences across multiple channels and significantly boost your online revenues.
However, selecting a PIM involves input from different departments, as well as determining your PIM purchasing power. Nailing the procurement process and gaining an understanding of the different PIM options available to deploying and testing your PIM are all essential steps you need to follow.
This 6,000-word whitepaper on deploying your first PIM will help you get the most value from the platform. After reading this whitepaper, you’ll be fully equipped to get your PIM implementation project off the ground. A successful PIM system integration means you can quickly reap the benefits of sleek Product Information Management processes. Read our comprehensive PIM implementation guide and overcome the common challenges and get the most from your PIM functionality by: Knowing where to start with your PIM implementation methodology can be a challenge. Moreover, figuring out who to involve at the appropriate stages of your PIM project can also be tricky. That’s why we created this PIM deployment guide to help you properly plan and reap all the benefits of PIM.
~20 min read (circa 6000 words)
Access the How to Deploy Your First PIM whitepaper for free now:
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Collaboration across departments is key in any software deployment process. This is especially true with a PIM configuration that touches different departments across the business. In other words, ensure all the steps are clearly mapped out and assign responsibilities well ahead of time to get the best results from your PIM deployment plan.
Understanding how PIM works is the first step to identifying the value drivers it will bring your business. PIM opens the door to a ton of eCommerce channels, meaning you can significantly increase your online revenues. Furthermore, fully optimized product data means your product listings will rise the ranks to the top of SERPs.
PIM solutions totally transform product data management processes, giving you more time to focus on creating a winning eCommerce strategy. Manage unlimited product attributes to transform customer experiences across all your sales channels. All in all, totally streamlined processes mean you can significantly grow your eCommerce operation and revenues without increasing your headcount.
Brands driving growth with Pimberly:
Access the How to Deploy Your First PIM whitepaper for free now:
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A successful PIM deployment enables you to leverage your product data so you can reach your specific business goals. Create better online experiences with quality digital assets that you can store and manage in an integrated DAM solution. Reach a wider audience by easily setting up multiple channels and see your online revenues soar. Overall, PIM software will quickly provide you with a significant Return On Investment (ROI) when you nail the deployment process.
When you’re looking to build your eCommerce tech stack, there are a ton of things you’ll need to consider. Your specific business requirements and objectives will ultimately determine which solutions you should go for. But, when you’ve got so many different options and functionalities, finding the right software solutions can be a challenge.
With the eCommerce industry set to grow by 50% by 2025, eCommerce sites are going to need to cater to larger volumes of traffic. Without the right systems in place, you risk falling behind the competition. Growth and scalability need to be front and center of your decision-making to guarantee the best possible customer experience. So, when looking at different eCommerce technologies, start by asking yourself the following:
Keep reading to get the full lowdown on the key technologies you should consider when building your eCommerce technology stack, including:
A technology stack is a mix of tools, apps, programming languages, and platforms used to develop a website or a mobile application. In the context of eCommerce, it’s all the systems that facilitate the effective marketing and sale of products online. It’s referred to as a stack as they are often layered, each performing different tasks at the different stages of the buyer journey. Here’s what that looks like:
Technology stacks are made up of the backend which is server-side, and the front-end which is the client-side. In terms of the front-end, most eCommerce businesses opt for a headless approach. This is when the front-end is disconnected from the back-end, meaning it can be updated without interfering with the back-end. As a result, you can make incremental changes and improvements to refine the customer experience to better influence your KPIs.
The two primary software development frameworks are LAMP (Linux, Apache Web Server, MySQL, and PHP) and MEAN (MongoDB, Express.js, AngularJS, and NodeJS). They’re both very different and which one you choose will depend on your business objectives and available resources.
For instance, LAMP is the most well-established open-source framework with a large community that offers support. You’ll need to ensure you have a strong team of developers with different skill-sets to deliver projects using LAMP. The downside is that it’s not very scalable, and it’s relatively low-performance which isn’t ideal for an eCommerce business.
On the other hand, MEAN is a more modern framework and all the tools use Javascript so you’re looking at full-stack web development. In addition, most LAMP developers will have knowledge of Javascript, so building a good team will be easy. MEAN is also much more suited to larger-scale projects, so it’s ideal if you want to build an eCommerce store designed for growth and scalability.
With growing demand and expectations from online shoppers, it’s imperative to ensure the solutions you go for enable you to deliver amazing levels of customer service. Tap into the many benefits of personalization or hyper-personalization with artificial intelligence (AI) tools. You can also think about augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) capabilities so customers can properly visualize your products. Not to mention everything else from marketing, communicating your sustainability credentials, inventory management, and tracking, to payment processing and post-purchase services.
Now, let’s take a look at some of the different technologies you can explore for your eComm tech stack. Once you’ve scoped out your costs, you’ll also need to balance speed with maintenance requirements and identify which labor-intensive tasks you want to automate. Below, we’ve set out nine of the key components of any eCommerce tech stack.
All in all, Product Lifecycle Management systems do what they say on the tin. They help you monitor products as they move through the product lifecycle, from ideation, right through to commercialization. In other words, they oversee manufacturing workflows and enable different departments involved in product creation to collaborate. Important to note that PLM software is only required by businesses involved in the manufacturing of products.
Examples of Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) Technologies:
Product Information Management platforms enable you to gather, store, enrich, and distribute product data from one central hub. Create a single source of truth for all your product information, content, and digital assets required to effectively market and sell your products on and offline. PIM platforms automate up to 80% of manual tasks relating to product data management, which will massively boost productivity. Check out the diagram below to see the PIM set-up, and how it fits in with other tools and solutions:
In addition, working from a central hub enables different departments to collaborate with ease and efficiency so you can quickly get your products to market. Any good PIM solution will enable you to easily reach new sales channels and territories, which is a must in the ever-competitive eCommerce environment. Overall, you can totally streamline large aspects of product data management so you can focus on wider business objectives.
Some of the PIM platforms out there include:
Like PIM platforms, Digital Asset Management (DAM) software enables you to store all your digital assets in a central location. Collect them from any number of internal or external data sources. You can then enrich and distribute them across all your sales channels with ease and speed, ensuring they’re all optimized for the different channels they’ll be published to.
A good DAM system will give you the ability to store large volumes of different file formats. As we mentioned earlier, the use of AR and VR is on the rise. DAM software supports these file types, as well as PDF documents, audio files, images, videos, and much more. As such, you can create totally confident customers by serving them with high-quality assets that enable them to clearly visualize your products.
Here are some DAM solutions you can look at:
Inventory and order management are two key aspects of making sure you deliver a seamless and satisfying online product experience. They keep track of and update all information relating to stock level, orders, and deliveries. Typically, this information would previously be stored in Excel Spreadsheets, which are hard to keep up-to-date and accurate.
Inventory and order management systems enable you to avoid overstocking and understocking of products. The right solutions will show you which products perform well at different times of the year, so you can maximize sales with data-driven insights. Furthermore, you need a solution that enables you to show real-time stock levels on your online store. The reason is twofold. Firstly, you won’t disappoint customers by offering a product that isn’t available. Secondly, you can create a sense of urgency by letting customers know when stock levels are low.
A selection of inventory and order management systems you could look at:
ERP solutions are designed to help organizations manage a range of business processes. In addition, it also provides the capabilities to gather, store, manage and analyze data from multiple different business activities. These include day-to-day tasks such as accounting, procurement, project management, risk and compliance, and supply chain operations.
While ERPs can also manage data relating to your products, like SKUs, weights, and dimensions, they’re not designed to manage other rich types of product content required to effectively market and sell products online. This is where your ERP will work wonderfully in tandem with your PIM. You can import the data from your ERP to your PIM. From there, you can then add your marketing copy, digital assets, and everything else you need to blow your customers away.
ERP technologies to consider:
Analytics tools are a vital component for any business, especially for an eCommerce business looking to improve the online experience. These tools help you collect, store, and analyze large amounts of data on your customers. For instance, this might include demographics, regions, as well as their wants and needs at specific periods of the year. Whereas others are more focused on Customer Experience (CX) and will help you identify lost baskets due to subtle technical glitches or slowdowns.
Understanding how your customers behave will form the backbone of your eCommerce strategy. Once you have an understanding of their behavior, tendencies, and preferences, you can use this data to attract more customers. Most analytics tools will also provide you with easy-to-interpret dashboards so you can action changes to maximize your performance.
Some of the top analytics tools you can use:
No eCommerce business would be complete without a sturdy eCommerce platform to support its growth ambitions. eCommerce platforms facilitate the sale of products online between merchants and customers. They have functionalities that range from web hosting, marketing, inventory management, payment processing, and order fulfillment.
In other words, your eCommerce platform brings your products to life and enables you to list online so customers can find them. Your eCommerce platform could take the form of an online marketplace, or it could be your own eCommerce website. Remember, the type of eCommerce platform you select will depend on your business objectives, as well as the solutions you already have in place. This is because some platforms may offer similar functionalities as other tools you already have.
A range of some of the leading eCommerce platforms:
In the current eCommerce climate, making sure your products get found wherever customers are looking is one of the best ways of maintaining a competitive edge. Multichannel listing tools enable you to take advantage of the growing number of sales channels. Each sales channel essentially has its own search engine. Just like Google, there’ll be certain requirements you need to meet to ensure your products get surfaced in customer searches.
Multichannel listing tools automate the process of gathering all the variations of your product data for multiple channels. Overall, this means it’s super easy to ensure you meet all the specific requirements of the different sales channels you’re listing on. So, whether you’re listing on Esty, TikTok, or Amazon, you can serve customers totally accurate and consistent product data.
Here’s a range of multichannel listing tools:
To guarantee the best online experience, you need to ensure the entire process is totally seamless from start to finish. This includes the payment process, which is why it’s vital to have robust payment processing systems in place. Around 50% of people will abandon a purchase if they can’t access their preferred payment method, so having a variety of options will likely contribute to lower cart abandon rates.
Some eCommerce platforms offer payment processing services, so depending on how your eCommerce tech stack is set up, you might not need to look at other options. However, if this isn’t the case, you need a means of accepting online payments from your customers. Payment processing platforms enable you to accept payments in different currencies and from multiple sources. This will include credit/debit cards, digital wallets, PayPal, and sometimes even cryptocurrencies. There will also be systems in place that will protect your customers’ payment data.
Check out some of these payment processing platforms
Yes, there’s a lot to digest. And yes – subscription fees can soon build up. Like we said, your business and visions are unique, so it’s likely your eCommerce tech stack will be too. To add to that, it can be a case of trial and error. Before committing to certain solutions, it’s always good to see if you can test them out with a free trial.
Most importantly, you need to clearly define your objectives, where you want to go, and how long you want it to take. When choosing a platform, you can also consider reaching out to peers in your industry. This will give you an idea of the tools that are most suited to your industry. You can also check out reviews from dedicated software sites like G2 and Captera.
All in all, there are always going to be tools that have similar functionalities to the other ones you’re looking at. So, it’s well worth doing the research as it can end up saving you a pretty penny! Building your eCommerce tech stack is the first step in enabling your business to thrive and achieve eCommerce excellence. Pretty exciting, right?
When you look at the definitions of Product Information Management (PIM) and digital transformation, there are loads of cross-overs. As digital transformation gains more traction from businesses of all sizes, more investment will be geared towards future-proofing. So, it’s unsurprising that 50% of IT spending will be dedicated to digital transformation initiatives by 2024.
When embarking on or refining your digital transformation journey, technology will be front and center of your thought process. Of course, every business has its different requirements, so the same will apply to your tech stack. Therefore, choosing solutions that are right for you will be key to any successful digital transformation strategy.
In eCommerce, it’s even more important to carefully consider your tech stack as it directly impacts your overall success. This is where the discussion about PIM and digital transformation comes into play, so let’s dive in!
Product Information Management (PIM) provides businesses with a central repository for all product data needed to effectively market and sell products online. PIM connects with any number of internal and external systems enabling you to gather, store, manage, enrich, and distribute product information and digital assets from one central hub. Overall, it enables eCommerce businesses to create a single source of truth and to ensure accuracy and consistency across all sales channels
PIM is fast becoming an indispensable tool for eCommerce businesses looking to scale and grow. With PIM, you can totally streamline processes and automate up to 80% of manual tasks relating to product data management. In other words, this gives you more time to focus on wider business objectives, such as improving the customer experience.
PIM gives you the power to nail a super-effective omnichannel strategy and create consistently amazing product experiences across all channels. Moreover, you can incorporate hyper-personalization into your eCommerce strategy by linking with Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools to make intelligent product recommendations.
Digital transformation is the process of leveraging digital technologies to create or change business processes. One of the main objectives of an effective digital transformation strategy is to improve efficiencies, drive innovation, and add value. Streamlined processes lend themselves to a future-proofed business, which is essential in any fast-paced environment such as eCommerce.
Many manual processes hinder growth and don’t favor scalability. For example, managing product data in spreadsheets or across multiple disparate systems is incredibly time-consuming and labor-intensive. To add to that, it often leads to human error and inaccuracies. This negatively impacts the customer experience you deliver and may deter customers from shopping with you again.
In short, digital transformation changes the way you operate and alters the way you engage with team members, customers, and technology as a whole. It’s all about future-proofing your business, all while improving the employee and customer experience. While technology is clearly a vital element of any digital transformation strategy, people will always play an integral role in driving change.
Digital transformation focuses on improving internal processes to in turn improve employee and customer experiences. This is also one of the main benefits of having a solid Product Information Management system in place. So, it’s no wonder the two go hand-in-hand.
To conclude, PIM enables you to boost operational efficiency, reduce costs, speed your time to market, and improve the customer experience. All of these factors are intrinsic to digital transformation initiatives, so it’s no wonder more and more eCommerce businesses are adopting this technology.
For IT teams, managing multiple disparate systems can soon impact business performance if the right integrations aren’t in place. This especially applies to IT teams in eCommerce when system integration is critical to sales being processed.
Pimberly is a powerful SaaS Product Information Management (PIM) that can quickly be rolled out across the business. Pimberly is a SaaS-based PIM, so our PIM experts offer continued support. From implementation and integration to going live and ensuring optimal business performance at all times.
Unlike open-source and on-premise software vendors, we take care of all aspects of the PIM deployment. Open-source is a PIM for software developers, and on-premise means you’re responsible for the storage and maintenance of all hardware. However, with a SaaS vendor, this is taken care of so you can avoid integration costs and implementation-related disruptions. Because the Pimberly architecture is on AWS and MungoDB, it supports unstructured data. As such, team members can upload richer data that enables them to create super high-quality product experiences.
With Pimberly’s API, you can integrate with any number of internal and external legacy systems. Whether you need to connect to your Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system or eCommerce platforms such as Magento or Shopify, it’s super quick and easy. Our user-friendly interface is easy to navigate, even for team members who have no PIM experience. Furthermore, we offer plenty of training so your teams can get the most from the platform and get onboarded in a flash.
Pimberly’s AWS PIM solution has robust in-built security features, so you won’t need to worry about mitigating operational and commercial risks. Furthermore, our SaaS model means we carry out regular updates so team members will always be working on the latest most powerful version of the Pimberly PIM. In addition, we support Single Sign-On (SSO) and Pimberly has a high level of encryption to ensure maximum protection.
Team members can access everything they need, from anywhere and at any time provided they’re using a secure web browser. As such, you know all operations will run smoothly at all hours of the day, from anywhere in the world. Pimberly also provides a full audit trail of all changes in product data and digital assets. So, there’s a record of everything and you can ensure governance and compliance with best practices at all times. All in all, Pimberly’s SaaS enterprise-class cloud solution is the fastest, safest, and most accessible option on the market.
As Pimberly is a SaaS platform, you won’t incur any costs relating to hardware or hosting. We also provide a disaster recovery service so, if there is a worst-case scenario, we’ll have you completely covered! While open-source represents a small initial investment, you’ll need a talented team of expert developers to maintain and upgrade the solution. SaaS PIM solutions cover this, so you won’t need to recruit a specialist team which will considerably lower your overheads.
On-premise requires a hefty initial investment in hardware and experienced developers to maintain it, keep it secure, and run updates. This is why cloud-based SaaS solutions are the most cost-effective PIMs for IT departments.
Our PIM experts offer continued support once your platform is live. This means you won’t have to allocate any resources for training or maintenance, giving you more time to focus on wider business initiatives.
We update the platform every 2-3 weeks, so you know your team members will have all the latest tools and functionalities. As a result, your team members can create rich product experiences without your team’s input – we’ll take care of it for you! There are also portals that enable your customers and suppliers to self-serve, offering further time savings for the IT department.
Pimberly has the best-in-class intuitive and powerful no-code workflow engine. Users are empowered to create complex automation routines and reporting with ease, which would typically sit with the IT department. Pimberly’s integrated Digital Asset Management (DAM) offers a central hub for all digital assets. Plus, we provide a Content Delivery Network (CDN), which means your site can cater to high volumes of traffic without site speed being affected.
Despite the re-opening of physical stores, a lot of consumers are sticking to their online shopping habits. With that in mind, now seems the perfect time to say hello to the future of online payment methods.
With digital commerce on the upward trend, nailing the payment experience should be front of mind for all online businesses. Getting your customers to the checkout point of the buyer journey is obviously the end goal. Making sure you’re not losing them when they’ve got there is an exercise in itself. The payment methods you have on offer will hugely influence your customers’ final decision.
Around 50% of consumers will abandon their carts if their preferred payment option isn’t available. This is why it’s so important to offer a range of online payment methods to cater to the different needs and requirements of your customers. Regardless of whether you serve B2B, B2C, or D2C customers, make sure you’re offering a seamless checkout process. For it to be a seamless process, it needs to involve as few steps as possible.
In this blog, we’re going to take a look at some of the emerging online payment methods that are taking the market by storm.
The range of payment methods you provide can play a key role in setting you apart from the competition. eCommerce platforms host a wide variety of payment systems, so take advantage and make sure you’re offering exceptional customer service. Here are the ones to look out for:
The buy now, pay later trend can almost be considered as a marketing tool, not just a payment method. Understandably, it’s massively popular and can help you reach new customers. Payments made with BNPL are set to reach $1tr by 2026 so, if you’re not offering it at checkout, you may want to reconsider.
There are many advantages for businesses and buyers alike. Customers can buy higher-priced, better-quality products that are built to last without being hit in the pocket right away. The “try before you buy” aspect is also really appealing to customers, and it’ll help reduce return rates.
Our customer, Ellis Brigham, has been using Klarna to open up new avenues in terms of its customer base. There’s been a surge of millennials shopping with them, which is a new demographic. Because they have a lower disposable income, being able to spread payments over a period of time is much more practical.
This goes to show that BNPL payment methods can be a huge driver for growth. You can attract a wider audience, achieve higher basket values and better conversion rates by giving customers more flexibility.
Buy now, pay later methods also represent a massive opportunity for B2B businesses. With the B2B eCommerce payment market reaching $4tr, it’s time to start transitioning from old to new.
Because business buyers are often spending larger amounts, there’ll be a bigger need to spread payments. They also want the same sort of payment service they’d receive as a consumer. One that’s easy, seamless, and straightforward.
Digital currencies have been causing a racket in the online payment arena for quite some time now. Cryptocurrencies are racing ahead, seemingly undeterred by the recent crypto crash. Younger demographics are mainly driving the investment mania in digital currencies. With that in mind, it’s likely they’d appreciate having this as an option to complete purchases.
While there was a lot of stigma surrounding the aspiring global currency, a lot of businesses are embracing it. From small local restaurants to large multinational B2B traders, they’re accepting cryptocurrencies as a legitimate source of funds.
The rising popularity led Shopify to take the leap towards enabling its customers to accept multiple cryptocurrencies via their platform. Coinbase Commerce has built plugins for other major eCommerce platforms too, so this is clearly a trend that’s set to continue.
The advantages of accepting cryptocurrencies are vast. The transaction is completed quickly, the processing fees are low, and you can accept payments from all over the world. On top of this, you won’t have to deal with any chargebacks either.
It’s important to note that the value does fluctuate as it’s not tied to any tangible assets, but it remains a viable option if you’re looking to broaden your payment horizon.
Over half of all eCommerce transactions take place on mobile these days, which is unsurprising given the amount of time we spend on our phones. In 2020, around 1 billion consumers are said to have made purchases with mobile payment apps.
Services like Amazon Pay, Apple Pay, eBay Managed Payments, and Google Pay are all massively popular. By 2024, eWallet payments are set to account for 51.7% of total worldwide eCommerce transactions.
Their popularity is unsurprising given how easy it makes checkout. Native in-app payment processing means customers don’t have to jump from one site to another. This makes for a slick and easy online experience, especially with biometric verifications which enable you to complete a purchase without having to enter any details whatsoever.
Cart abandonment on mobile stands to be one of the biggest issues you’ll need to overcome. Customers are using a smaller screen, so the process needs to be totally frictionless. If you encourage the use of eWallets, you can see your conversion rates increase threefold. It’s also a really secure payment method, so your customers will have total confidence in the transaction.
Dynamic pricing is a great way of maximizing sales. Make small changes to the cost of your products depending on any number of variables you choose to determine. You can do this with PIM by creating API keys to whichever data sources you want to use as a basis for your variables.
For instance, connect your PIM to a weather app and increase the cost of umbrellas when it rains. Alternatively, you can base it on market trends to make sure you’re getting your products in front of the right people at the right time.
Every one of your customers is unique, and so are their needs and preferences. Offering a variety of online payment methods means you can extend the reach of your products. Making the shopping experience easy is also a great way to keep customers coming back. Remember, if a customer’s been on your website and previously submitted their details, they shouldn’t have to do it again. Make sure you have an auto-fill capability, and always offer guest check-out.
Here are some other areas of consideration:
Keep buyers coming back and encourage repeat purchases with a seamless and satisfying customer experience.
