A Comprehensive Guide to eCommerce Product Data Management

Author

Ines Maione

Ines Maione brings a wealth of experience from over 25 years as a Marketing Manager Communications in various industries. The best thing about the job is that it is both business management and creative. And it never gets boring, because with the rapid evolution of the media used and the development of marketing tools, you always have to stay up to date.

ECommerce businesses today have an influx of data coming their way daily. Data is a critical aspect for businesses today since it can help them analyze customers’ behavior, develop products, and understand changing trends. However, handling a large amount of data can be challenging.

That is where eCommerce product data management comes into play. It is critical for every eCommerce business today. Companies having eCommerce stores today have massive product data, such as inventory, description, etc.

The eCommerce product data management or PDM system allows them to get all the data in a single place. An extensive PDM system also structures the data, making it user-friendly and accessible for users navigating the online eCommerce store.

So, what is eCommerce product data management? How does it work? And what are some of the benefits you can get from this system? We’ll discuss everything in this article to give you a comprehensive idea.

Table of Contents

• What is eCommerce Product Data Management?
• How does eCommerce Product Data Management Work?
• Why Is It Important For Your Business?
• Benefits of eCommerce Product Data Management
• Is it Beneficial for Your eCommerce Business to Hire Product Data Management Services?
• eCommerce Product Data Management – The Bottom Line

What is eCommerce Product Data Management?

A product data management (PDM) system consists of a tool or platform that can collect all information about an eCommerce business’ products in one place. The system makes it easy for a business to handle critical data, assist workers in managing and sharing information, etc.

In other words, the PDM converts the data available for essential purposes into valuable information. This way, different teams and groups can easily share, collaborate, and use the data to move forward with the business plan.

Most people confuse the PDM system with being the same thing as Information Management (PIM) systems. That is not the case since the PIM systems deal with product information for marketing purposes. The PIM system’s purpose is to store, organize, alter, and access the data to increase sales.

How does eCommerce Product Data Management Work?

The primary purpose of the PDM system is to act as a database that stores all the essential products for an eCommerce business. The type of information you store will vary depending on your business operations. However, the product data that you store in the PDM system includes:

• Product numbering system information
• Product Information from suppliers
• Product Features
• Product Descriptions
• Inventory Levels
• Instructions and information from the manufacturer

Apart from your information, you can also add product data from the supplier or manufacturer into the PDM system. After you integrate the PDM system with an extensive software system, it will automatically link and sync with your e-commerce customer portal.

As a result, it will instantly update the inventory levels if you fulfill an order or any customer returns their products. Also, the PDM ensures that the data it provides to customers is accurate and organized when they search for product information.

In addition to customers, employees can also benefit from the PDM system to check inventory levels, go through product specifications, etc. If your PDM system syncs with the eCommerce store, you can update the product information in the PDM. It will also change the information and update the details in the product listing.

Why Is It Important for Your Business?

Once you implement eCommerce software for your business to link the PDM system with your company’s ERP data, you can enjoy various benefits. It can save you and your employees from going through the hassle of sorting and sifting through unorganized data.

You can streamline the user experience, allowing you to increase sales and enhance the brand image. Let’s move on to the advantages your eCommerce store can get by adequately using the PDM systems.

Tip:

Are you looking for a reliable partner to help you manage your product data? Look no further than clickworker! We offer a comprehensive and secure service that can help you manage, store, process, and analyze all your product data. Our experienced staff will work closely with you to understand your specific needs and create tailored solutions that help you achieve your goals. With our innovative services, you can rest assured that your data is safe and secure, while also being managed in the most efficient manner possible.
Take the first step towards taking control of your product data management. Get in touch with clickworker today and experience the difference!

Product Data Management Services

Benefits of eCommerce Product Data Management

If your eCommerce business can leverage the PDM system properly, it can enjoy a wide range of benefits. And these benefits aren’t just limited to one stakeholder; customers, business owners, and employees can also benefit from them.

• Automates the Processes

Automation is a driving force for many businesses in various industries. But for the eCommerce industry, it is an integral element since their entire operation depends on automation. While the eCommerce industry is becoming lucrative, it is essential to automate processes to maximize efficiency and get a competitive edge.

That is where PDM plays a critical role since it can efficiently organize product data, allowing you to automate most processes. Since the entire inventory has an accurate record, you can set up automated orders for new items the levels fall below a particular threshold.

Also, if you plan to offer new products, the descriptions will be automatically added. You don’t have to manually go through the time-consuming process of adding product features and specifications. Also, the employees can quickly set up the product listing and add the features and specifications since the details are already in the PDM system.

• Enhances the Customer Experience

Customer experience is one of the most critical things for a business today, especially for eCommerce stores. With so many options available today, customers can easily switch and move to a different brand. Therefore, you want to ensure you provide them with an optimal experience.

You can ensure that your website gets all the appropriate, organized, and correct product details through PDM systems. This will ensure that the customers know what to expect from the product and have answers to all questions.

Thus, it will improve the overall customer experience since they won’t have to look around for information. However, it certainly doesn’t mean that customers wouldn’t return your products. Nevertheless, it will significantly impact the customers’ experience.

Also, adding relevant details about the products can increase the conversion rate. Customers are more likely to go through the checkout if they can get all details for the product in one place. In a nutshell, the PDM systems can ensure that you can deliver a better customer experience. Eventually, it will nudge them through the sales process.

• Helps With Data Management and Collaboration

Another great benefit of using a comprehensive PDM system is that different departments can collaborate on specific projects. For instance, if the product description is vague and lackluster, the technical team can share it with the marketing department.

The marketing department can work its magic and add words to attract customers. Apart from collaborating, having data in a single central database makes it easier for departments to access the relevant information. They can all access the data without being dependent on each other.

Employees can check the PDM system if they want a quick detail about a product or to change something about the product data.

• Improves Productivity and Cycle Time

One of the best things about the PDM system is that it can help increase overall productivity and efficiency in handling data. You can easily store data and details about a product from many sources, such as product manufacturers or suppliers. Since you already have all the information in the system, you won’t start from zero when listing your products.

There is a good chance that you have all the crucial details you need for product listing. The system will give you details about the materials that go into the manufacturing process, its measurements, and other critical information.

Though you might have to tweak and make some slight information for a user-friendly product description, you’ll have the main structure in place. As a result, it saves you the time and effort of making a product page from scratch. It also speeds up the product cycle since you can quickly make the product listing active online.

Most importantly, your employees can now spend time on improving customer experience rather than data entry. They can work on search engine optimization (SEO), add relevant content to the product’s page, and use tactics to engage and attract customers.

• Reduces the Chances of mistakes

Doing things with manual processes leaves the door for human errors wide open. But, there is less chance of mistakes in an automated process. With the PDM system, you can clearly understand the product’s specifications and materials instead of trying to figure them out manually.

The system will import all the details from factual sources, such as the manufacturer or the supplier’s guide. As a result, it reduces the possibility of a mistake in the product description.

The accurate and comprehensive product description lets customers know what they’re ordering. Therefore, you would have to deal with fewer product returns. Moreover, you can keep an accurate record of the stock numbers since the PDM system syncs with your inventory system.

This way, you can know about the inventory levels, and the PDM system will update it on the e-commerce site. Doing so will save the customer from frustration when ordering a product only to discover that it isn’t in stock.

• Speeds Up the Product Listing

Regardless of your industry, getting your products to the market is crucial. It will ensure that other brands don’t get ahead of you and take a big chunk of the market share. If your product is sitting in inventory, waiting for a listing, you’re losing money.

You might have a lot of things on your plate, which is why it would lead to a delay in the product listing. On the other hand, your competitor enjoys the advantage of being in the first market.

So, to be the first to introduce the product into the market, you must have the product description ready. The PDM system will ensure that you have a product description as soon as the inventory is in transit. This way, you can quickly get the product listing up and running once you have the product in stock.

The PDM system makes it easy to get the product to the market since you don’t have to go through the daunting task of finding information for product specifications.

• Makes the Product More Searchable

Lastly, an accurate and detailed product description will increase the searchability of your products online. Therefore, it can assist you with your SEO efforts without having to do anything special or out of the box. 

If you have a product description that includes all the relevant information, it will probably show up at the top of search engine results. It will help you attract customers to your products easily and quickly.

You can quickly develop a detailed product description with a robust, comprehensive PDM system. Products with thorough descriptions get more brand exposure from users, which leads to more traffic and higher sales.

Is it Beneficial for Your eCommerce Business to Hire Product Data Management Services?

Now that you have a clear idea of what eCommerce product data management is and what benefits you can get from it, you might wonder whether you should do it yourself, let your team handle it, or outsource it. An important thing to note is that eCommerce product data management isn’t just about implementing the system; there are other things that you need to take care of as well.

Since your team already has a lot on their plate to deal with, they might not be able to handle eCommerce product data management efficiently. So, it is best to hire a reputable service to help you out with it.

Choosing the proper eCommerce product data management services is vital, but you must figure out what services you need. There is a chance that you might only require assistance with a few things to achieve optimum product data management. Or you might also require their services to implement the system from the start.

Either way, you can ask yourself the following questions to know whether getting an eCommerce product data management service would be a wise decision:

• Is your requirement for product data management service only for one brand?
• Does your business require a dedicated team to handle the product data management system?
• Will you need product data management assistance for only a few hours a week?
• Do you have branded products or non-branded ones?

Answering these questions will give you a better idea about your requirements. You can then find the relevant services for product data management that cater to your needs accordingly.

eCommerce Product Data Management – The Bottom Line

With each passing day, businesses have to deal with a growing amount of data. Therefore, they need a robust system to manage, organize, and handle it accordingly. Also, using that data to provide a better customer experience is vital.

So, if you want your eCommerce business to grow and gain a competitive edge, you need to have a comprehensive PDM system. It will allow you to automate the processes, making it easier for your team to handle and manage the data.

Also, providing relevant and accurate information about the product can improve the customer experience. They can get all the product details from one place, increasing the conversion rate and overall sales.

Moreover, an effective PDM system can streamline data management and collaboration. You’ll also notice an improvement in productivity and product cycle time. And lastly, it will reduce the chances of mistakes when manually entering data.

If you don’t have an idea about your eCommerce product data management or need assistance with it, then you can take the services of a reputable provider for your business.