July 14, 2022
The most widely used PIM systems have now reached a level of maturity that makes it much easier to provide a qualified estimate of your ROI if you invest in PIM. Questions like “which solutions are winning the market?” and “what is my ROI?” are common when we discuss PIM with our network. In this post, we outline some of the key factors to consider when calculating the ROI of a PIM investment.
PIM – a Growing Market
Product Information Management, or PIM for short, is a growing market globally. The overall growth of the PIM market is forecasted to double from 2022 to 2027. As an experienced PIM provider, we believe this strong growth rate is due to many companies having far more and far more complex data, which increases the value of PIM systems.
Since PIM is still a relatively new technology in the eyes of the market, many understandably remain cautious about investing in it. Questions like “which solutions are winning the market?” and “what is my ROI?” are common when we talk about PIM with our network.
The increasing volumes of data, the general maturity of users regarding e-commerce, and technological developments mean that PIM is becoming hard to ignore when discussing e-commerce.
What is my ROI on PIM?
PIM is an investment. And before you are sure which solution you want to invest in, it’s—like with any other investment—a good idea to understand the expected return (ROI).
As with many things, it only makes sense if the investment creates value on the bottom line. Fortunately, our experience shows that in the vast majority of cases, this is the outcome when you invest in PIM. But what exactly should you consider when evaluating the ROI of a PIM investment?
There are several parameters worth considering, and some of these are harder to put a price on than others. For example, your data maturity will always increase as a result of a PIM implementation, and the value of this becomes visible only when you leverage the data in new solutions.
Where do you find value in a PIM system?
Product Information Management (PIM) offers many benefits. Imagine what happens if your product data is incorrect, no matter the reason. You might have an unhappy customer demanding a refund because they were misinformed. They might complain to a friend, who tells another person, and so on. This not only leads to lost sales but also damages your brand value—a "value" that is much harder to regain.
Another example could be errors in product data that cause a legal violation. Perhaps you have failed to meet the standards for labeling or safety in your industry. This is exactly where PIM and data maturity help mature your entire process framework and organization.
Take control of your product data with a Single Source of Truth
A PIM system also saves your employees a lot of time by reducing manual data entry.
This is especially relevant if your company needs to transfer all product attributes and information from many different data sources (ERP, Excel sheets, PDF files, etc.) onto the product.
If your data isn’t centralized, every phase — including publishing product data to your sales channels — becomes more costly and complicated than necessary. This affects you in the form of slower time-to-market. With a PIM system, you shift time from manual enrichment to automation and smart workflows that create more value and potential sales for your customers.
How can you calculate ROI on a PIM investment?
Your business is unique, and therefore the way a PIM system delivers value to you is also unique.
Some companies experience significant benefits in one area (e.g., improved processes), while others see them in another (e.g., faster launch of shops in new markets).
Because of this, it can be difficult to give a precise estimate without deeper knowledge of your business. However, in general, there are some benefits that always apply — the extent of these benefits depends on your specific business.
Get a free demo of Perfion, Inriver, or Dynamicweb PIM
We offer a free DEMO of Perfion, Inriver, or Dynamicweb PIM, so you can see which PIM system fits your needs best. After the demo, we can calculate your ROI based on the PIM solution you choose.
When calculating ROI, we look at cost reductions, process optimizations, and increased sales resulting from a PIM implementation.
At PicoPublish, we have over 70 PIM installations under our belt, and we’re ready to help you with yours.