What Do ERPs Have in Common with PIMs?
Meet Steve. Steve is in week four of his brand's ERP implementation with no end in sight. Instead of getting his team onboarded by the end of one month, now he hopes just to get the system fully integrated with his product catalog by the end of month two.
Where did the time go? Will this be worth it in the end?
Steve recognizes—grudgingly at this point—that the ERP is a necessary piece of his business puzzle. The number of markets his brand is reaching at this point absolutely necessitated this solution.
Yet, he's still bitter. He was sold on this ERP and then dropped like a bad date. The sales guy had done his job, and then Steve was left to integrate the bear of a software on his own. Steve was even more bitter once he had to hire third-party support just to get over the unexpected hurdles.
Shouldn't the ERP company want Steve to be successful on their tool? Why would they leave him to figure it out on his own?
If you've been in a situation like Steve, you know how frustrating it is to be sold on software and then take months to get to where it brings any benefit at all. It's what businesses often face when implementing ERPs. It's also what businesses face when implementing most product information management (PIM) software.
You can imagine what a PIM's implementation can involve. Or maybe you can't imagine—and that's why implementing it on your own is so risky.
It's not uncommon for an ERP or PIM implementation to take three times as long (and cost three times as much) as a brand originally budgeted.
We’re here to solve that in the next 1,000 words.
Troubles You Might Run Into Implementing a PIM
Most PIMs (especially legacy PIMs) throw you for a loop when you try to integrate data that's inherently complex, sullied with human error, incomplete, or spread out across multiple sources.
Other problems that brands run into when implementing a PIM include:
- Without a map of how and where your product information is created, edited, and consumed, having a PIM will fix that eventually but it will be harder to get the initial data into the system.
- Without data properly integrated, teams end up getting far less out of their PIM than they otherwise would have. This problem compounds over time. It’s like eating 80% cooked frozen pizzas every day—it’s never satisfying.
- Any brand implementing a PIM without a data governance map and policy in place is giving data access to people who don't need it. This means the master database of catalog data is almost instantly blemished with new human error.
- Without a smooth-sailing PIM implementation, senior leadership's support of a PIM wanes quickly. This means less investment in time and resources, further stymying its implementation.
Not sure what kind of shape your data is really in? Read about the signs that your product data is in trouble.
Take another look at those problems. Now, the big reveal: a next-gen PIM is designed to avoid all of them.
What PIM Implementation Looks Like in a Perfect World
In a perfect world, a PIM implementation goes beyond a developer telling you how to prepare for PIM integration. It goes beyond the initial launch of your PIM, too. In fact, here's what it includes:
- A comprehensive review of the platforms and solutions you want to integrate with your new PIM.
- In-depth explanations of what features and capabilities will be used in the initial launch, and then which will be used post-launch.
- In-PIM editing of even your most complex or "dirty" product data (something only the next-gen PIM can do).
- Interviews across departments to learn what each team needs access to.
- Practical mapping of data governance that can be applied to the PIM as it's integrated, not as an afterthought.
Technology has been a hyper-acceleration for e-commerce businesses. That hasn’t come without its hiccups, though, especially for early adopters.
With more brands than ever now selling online, we’ve moved into a new standard where the next-gen PIM solves problems without introducing new ones. One of the biggest operational benefits of a next-gen PIM has been the in-PIM product data editing to keep up with the changing data requirements of every e-commerce platform brands sell on. AI insights are a click away, too.
Finally, there’s an implementation process designed for your success, not just a sale.
Implementation of the Next-Gen PIM
In most cases, even a failed PIM implementation doesn't mean that a PIM project stops or that the end result isn't successful. Just like a bad hangover, people get over it.
Still, isn’t it better to get your money's worth right out of the gate?
If you're investing in a PIM, you want the whole experience to be positive. You want to wow leadership with your decision and get every department on board. That means implementing your PIM with a plan. If the PIM provider is ready to partner with you, then you've found a real solution.
We've heard many horror stories like Steve's for both ERPs and PIMs. These stories are common in industries with enormous growth like e-commerce because there are so many fish in the sea that software providers are ready to move onto the next sale.
That's why we built our PIM implementation process like we did. The Amber Engine PIM implementation is as smooth as a velvety cheesecake. Your team isn't a walking encyclopedia of PIM terms, but ours is, so we play an active role. We believe you deserve ease of access to the solutions you sign up for.
All you need to get started with the Amber Engine PIM are the data spreadsheets you have product data on. If you have multiple, and they're messy and spread out across departments, that's something we help you with too.
Then, our process takes care of the following:
- Creating users
- Setting permissions
- Preparing your data for import (including spreadsheets, images, and other assets)
- Importing your data and assets
- Establishing your content rules
- Requesting your channel templates
- Mapping your data to channels
- Setting up exports for all your sales channels
Using a Next-Gen PIM
With a next-gen PIM like Amber Engine, not only is the implementation a breeze, but the software itself is extraordinarily easy to use. It's so easy to use, in fact, that your team will actually be excited to dig deep into its many functionalities.
A next-gen PIM helps your team manage essential and enriched product data. For example, you can store enriched product data including photos and videos right inside the PIM with the rest of your product information.
To sweeten the deal, the Amber Engine PIM even "plays nice" with the new AI-powered tool called Amber AI. Amber is your product data assistant who gives you click-to-deploy insights to optimize your product data like the top 100 listings in each of your product categories.
Coupled with the unique in-PIM editing, integrating Amber Engine into your business could be the best decision you make all year. It will definitely be the easiest implementation process!
Ready to go? Schedule a demo now.