Managing product catalog data requires the right tools and processes. It requires a lot of work, too. For brand manufacturers with hundreds or thousands of SKUs, that work can turn into a full-time job. No amount of good intentions will mean the job is done well.

For larger product catalogs, managing product data can be like trying to move a mountain of sand with a spoon. Each grain represents a single piece of data about a product. Once catalogs grow past a certain point, moving and organizing every grain of sand becomes impossible.

The idea of product data management sounds simple enough: store all product descriptions, SKUs, technical specifications, content, images, video, product categories, production details, and compliance information in one place.

Creating one dumping ground for all that data doesn’t work.

What’s required in large catalog management?

The bigger a catalog, the more this is true: product data has to be entered consistently so it's searchable.

Data also has to be updated in real-time whenever product catalog changes are made. Every department needs visibility and access to it, but there should be protections for who can change what.

Most importantly, product data has to be stored in a system that can sort, filter, save, and export data based on search criteria connected to any of the data held there.

Product data management for large catalogs quickly becomes chaotic without the right systems and practices.

Top 5 Practices to Manage Big Product Catalogs

Poor catalog management results in bottlenecks with end-seller channels and partners, reduced product visibility, and increased returns along with lower lifetime customer value. Opportunities are lost and problems are created.

While brands with bigger catalogs are at greater risk of these problems becoming catastrophes, there are also ways that big catalogs can be uniquely positioned for greater growth.

Use these 5 ways to improve product data management for large catalogs.

1.Keep Product Catalog Data Organized

It might seem like a no-brainer to keep product data as clean as possible. This means catalog data has to be complete and accurate inside your product information management (PIM) system.

Keeping data clean is not the same as keeping product data organized. A brand manufacturer with a large product catalog needs both.

Product data in large catalogs must be organized into product families. This is for development and marketing purposes alike.

Attributes and tags are added to indicate roles and authorization flows inside your organization. Data is only organized in a large catalog when every person who touches it knows the catalog management process requirements.

Other ways that product data is organized for large catalogs include:

flagging e-commerce catalog products vs. in-store,
adding sustainability ratings,
specifying manufacturing status,
and more.

2.Organize Products by the Most and the Least Profitable

Organizing product data into multiple buckets and categories gives brands better insight into long-term strategies.

For example, when a small $1 Million brand with 50 products looks at sales data to see which products sell the best, some of that data will only be anecdotal. There aren’t enough products or sales to go from. It takes a much larger catalog to glean real data insights on consumer preferences and product sales.

Therefore, brands with large catalogs can use a product information management (PIM) system to create a new class of attributes: profit margin and annual sales volume. Once these are built into your PIM, you can easily filter the entire catalog down to the best-selling and the worst-selling products.

Other key performance indicators (KPIs) that are important in digital commerce include click-through rates, cart abandonment, and more. Those KPIs don't need to go in the PIM because they change and are reported weekly, monthly, or quarterly. Profit margin and annual sales volume gives a brand the power to filter its product catalog based on long-term profitability instead.

3.Update Your Product Information Management (PIM) System with Real-Time Data

A large brand needs real-time updates to product data, including:

Whenever product marketing materials are updated, the new images and videos are added to the PIM and linked to the impacted products.
When manufacturing details are changed (like product materials, production time, sustainability requirements, and more), these are updated in the PIM.
Even logistics information can be updated in the PIM for brand-wide visibility into lead times, delivery options, and more.

Updates to product catalog information happen throughout the product life cycle. This is not a task any one person (or even a whole department) can own. To give everyone access to product data who plays a part in it (while protecting the fidelity of catalog data), use permissions settings in your PIM.

4.Select the Right Product Information Management (PIM) Software

Many brands with large product catalogs already use product information management (PIM) software. Others have systems to manage product information, but those systems are manual and riddled with human error. Once a brand is dealing with hundreds or thousands of SKUs, manual systems don't work.

Not all PIM software is fit for today’s demand. A brand manufacturer with a large catalog has special requirements. Sorting and creating both static and dynamic lists of products are essential functions in an enterprise-level PIM. The only catalog management solution that will work is one with full customizations of product attributes and built-in templates and channel management.

Segmentation is the name of the game for large product catalogs. With customizable attributes and both dynamic and static lists in your PIM, you can manage product data for every endpoint in one place while ensuring your catalog data is scalable as you continue to add new SKUs.

The next-gen PIM has been celebrated for its flexibility. The PIM software has been shaped by real brands with real needs, and brand-to-brand the structure of the PIM has always matched the catalog.

5.Map and Manage Your Catalog Management Process

Large catalogs always depend on multiple stakeholders. The more stakeholders, the messier product catalog management gets.

Put your product information management process on paper. Map out what happens when and who enters what on each page of the product life cycle. Assign deadlines and contingencies for every checkpoint where any stakeholder can risk pushing the whole process behind.

Other internal procedures will be impacted by your product information management process, too:

What will product development look like with the development team entering specifications information into the PIM? Map that out.
How will marketing workflows change with product collateral stored in the PIM? Map that out, too.

These processes will make everyone's lives easier. They'll also safeguard your brand from pivots or circumstances where a process has to be done faster than usual.

BONUS: Map Out Your Upsell and Cross-Sell Opportunities

Part of organizing catalog management and mapping out your processes includes sorting your products by upsell and cross-sale opportunities. Can you imagine your customer service team accessing the full product catalog and, at the click of a button, answering a customer query with three personalized product suggestions?

In marketing, customer service, and strategic product development, knowing which products are related to other products is essential. That's what cross-selling and today’s consumer preferences are all about: personalizing the customer journey with timely and relevant recommendations.

Large Catalog Management Done Right Builds Trust

The end experience of a well-groomed product catalog management process will define your brand for your customers.

Every brand's goal is to be recognized and trusted by consumers. Product catalog data supports this on multiple levels, starting with search visibility and product discoverability. After consumers find your products, the product data provided must be complete, accurate, and compelling. Before consumers are done shopping, they even get personalized recommendations that feel picked out just for them.

Build this trust by first knowing your brand can trust your own product catalog management. Take action on these 5 practices for large product catalogs today.

Top 5 Ways to Improve Product Data Management for Large Catalogs