What Does PIM Help With?

If you have a manufacturing business, you likely have a vast inventory of different products. Over time, as your catalog grows and changes, managing this data can be complex and overwhelming. In some cases, you may wind up with inaccurate information in a variety of places. PIM software can help alleviate this problem and empower you to streamline your business operations. But what does PIM help with specifically? Let's break it down.

What Does PIM Stand For?

PIM stands for product information management. It is designed to keep all data about products in a single, easy-to-access database. The PIM system keeps everything about each product, including dimensions, SKUs, images, and even marketing materials. By centralizing all data, this system allows various users to access and update product information as needed.

What Does PIM Help With?

Most manufacturing businesses have a piecemeal system of data organization. For example, all product details (e.g., dimensions, colors, materials) may be kept in a spreadsheet, while images and marketing assets are kept in a separate drive. In some instances, data could be scattered across different hard drives, servers, and other locations, making it almost impossible to manage.

PIM software is designed to streamline this process so all product information is in a single database. This way, users can look up product details or recover digital assets for those products (e.g., tutorials, photos, or videos) in the same place.

What Does a PIM System Do?

Product information management software is designed to create an accessible database of hundreds or thousands of products. In many cases, the PIM solution will also include digital asset management, meaning you can store assets like videos, photos, tutorials, how-to guides, and more within the system. Because there's only one server, PIM software makes it easier to:

• Update Product Information - Rather than hunt down product listings or assets, a single PIM manager can update the database and it will change all listings automatically. The PIM serves as the single source of truth for each product.

• Provide Third-Party Access - If you're working with vendors or marketing agencies, you want to be able to share product data without sharing any sensitive or proprietary information. PIM software enables you to control access for each user.

• Search for Data - Product listings can use tags and keywords to make it easier to find what you need. No more scrolling through spreadsheets or searching through endless subfolders.

What Is an Example of a PIM?

Once you know the value of a PIM system, you may start comparing different PIM tools in market. However, while there are many PIM software examples, not all of them may offer the same features and benefits for your company. The top 10 PIM software solutions include:

• Inriver PIM

• Salsify PIM

• Akeneo PIM

• Plytix PIM

• Pimcore PIM

• Catsy PIM

• Lumavate PIM

• Syndigo PIM

• Acquia PIM

• PIMworks PIM

While you could sign up for each PIM solution example one by one, the fact is that most of them offer limited functionality. Yes, a PIM can make it easier to manage and access product data, but your company likely needs to do more than that. Realistically, in addition to storing product information, you'll also have to work on marketing and promoting those products. For that, you'll need (at a minimum) a digital asset management (DAM) system.

Digital assets can be everything from photos to PDFs to videos. The best PIM software will incorporate DAM functionality so you can access these materials whenever searching for an individual product or product line. This way, both the marketing and sales teams can find what they need to generate leads and move prospects through the sales funnel.

But what if you could do even more? Lumavate offers PIM and DAM solutions, but the software goes a few steps further. Lumavate is also a digital experience platform (DXP), meaning you can turn digital assets into interactive customer experiences. Additionally, the software has built-in SMS messaging and form-building tools. These tools make it easier to capture users' contact information and promote your products via text messaging.

Finally, Lumavate integrates with over 40 third-party applications. So, it's super easy to streamline the entire marketing and sales process. Product information and marketing materials can integrate with your CRM or various marketing and publishing tools. Better yet, Lumavate is user-friendly and doesn't require complex coding or programming to work properly.

If you're interested in seeing how Lumavate can help your business, start your free 14-day trial. We offer consultations and free onboarding once you sign up. Plus, migration is fast and efficient, so you can start using Lumavate almost immediately.