IM is rarely at the top of the list of systems a company plans to implement. An e-commerce platform, ERP, CRM or marketing automation tools usually seem more urgent. For a while, product information can still be managed using spreadsheets, shared drives and the knowledge held by individual employees.
The problem begins when the scale of the business starts to exceed what this model can support. The company enters new markets, expands its range, launches additional sales channels, prepares campaigns or needs to adapt its data to new regulations. Suddenly, finding the latest instruction manual, preparing translations or sharing the right images with a partner requires several people and a search across multiple sources.
So when is the right time to implement a PIM system? The answer is not determined by the number of products alone. The complexity of the data, the number of processes and channels that rely on product information, and the direction in which the organisation is developing are far more important.
PIM is not only a system for e-commerce
PIM, or Product Information Management, organises the process of creating, enriching, updating and distributing product information. It can bring together:
- product names and descriptions,
- technical specifications,
- language versions,
- instructions and documents,
- images and other media,
- data required by individual sales channels,
- information about product completeness and status.
A well-implemented PIM system becomes a source of data not only for the online store. It can also be used by marketing, sales, customer service, complaints teams, product departments, technical teams and commercial partners.
The implementation decision should therefore not be reduced to one question: “Do we have enough products to justify PIM?” A better approach is to assess how many people need product data, how often it changes and how much work is currently required to answer basic business questions.
1. You are planning to enter new markets
International expansion is one of the most common moments when the limitations of the existing approach to product data become particularly visible.
Imagine that a company wants to launch a German version of its online store. The e-commerce director asks how long it will take to prepare complete product information in the new language. Without PIM, answering that question often requires the team to establish:
- where the latest product descriptions are stored,
- who manages the attributes,
- which values need to be translated,
- what information is held in separate spreadsheets,
- who will verify the translated content,
- how products added after the first translation project will be handled.
When data is scattered, preparing a new language version becomes a one-off, time-consuming project. As soon as new products are added, the same process has to be repeated.
In a PIM system, the team can add a new language, translate value dictionaries and automate part of the work on product descriptions. Content generated or translated with the help of AI can then be reviewed by the team. This creates a repeatable process that also covers products introduced in the future.
The signal to start considering PIM does not need to be the actual launch in a foreign market. It may be enough for international expansion to appear in a realistic development plan for the next few months or years.
2. Every change to product data requires another spreadsheet operation
A new SEO specialist points out that the product names are not properly optimised. The team needs to add the brand, material, intended use or another important technical feature.
In theory, this can be done by preparing an import file and replacing the names in bulk. The problem is that the recommendations may change again in a few months. One naming formula may be suitable for backpacks, another for electronics and another for furniture.
In a PIM system, naming rules can be saved as automations using values from other attributes. The product name can then be generated according to a defined formula, for example:
product type + brand + key attribute + intended use
The rule can later be adjusted for a selected category or product group. The organisation is no longer dependent on repeated one-off operations performed by a particular employee.
PIM begins to deliver value wherever a company regularly repeats the same product information tasks. The objective is not to define one rule forever, but to create an environment in which standards can be adjusted easily as business needs evolve.
3. Marketing does not know whether products are ready for a campaign
A campaign planned for next month needs to launch earlier. The marketing team wants to find out quickly whether all products have the descriptions, images and other materials required for publication.
Without an organised process, this often triggers a series of messages and meetings. The photography studio, product department, e-commerce team and copywriters all need to be consulted. Some materials may be stored on a shared drive, some in email inboxes and others may still be in production.
A properly configured PIM workflow makes it possible to check product status without searching for the one person who knows the answer. The catalogue view can show:
- which products are waiting for a photoshoot,
- which already have complete media,
- where descriptions or attributes are missing,
- how many products are still awaiting approval,
- whether a selected collection is ready for publication.
After filtering the catalogue by collection, season or campaign, the team receives a clear picture of the situation. It can decide whether to launch early, reduce the scope of the campaign or move the deadline.
If answering the question “Are we ready?” regularly requires input from several departments, this is a clear sign that the organisation lacks a central system for managing the process.
4. New regulations require additional product information
Companies are required to publish an increasing amount of product data. Depending on the industry, this may include instructions, documentation, safety information, composition, origin or usage guidance. Preparing for requirements connected with the Digital Product Passport will create another challenge.
In many cases, the organisation already has the necessary materials, but they are scattered. An assembly guide may be stored on the technical department’s drive, the customer-facing file may exist in several versions, and identifying the current one may require contacting a particular person.
In a PIM system, the company can create an attribute for the relevant document and assign the file directly to the product. Once the data is organised, the system becomes a single source of up-to-date information for:
- e-commerce,
- complaints teams,
- customer service,
- sales,
- technical teams,
- employees preparing product documentation.
It is worth implementing PIM before new obligations come into force. Starting the project only when a regulation already applies means having to clean up the catalogue, implement the technology and adapt legal processes at the same time. It is much safer to build the foundation earlier and later focus on the requirements themselves.
5. Sharing product data with partners takes too long
The sales team receives a list of several hundred products from a commercial partner. The partner needs product data and main images on a white background so that the range can be published in another sales channel.
When media are stored in folders, sending the files is not necessarily the biggest challenge. The more difficult part is matching the correct image to each SKU, checking whether it is current and preparing a complete set.
In a PIM system, the team can search for the relevant products in bulk, display the appropriate media attribute and export links to the assets. The partner receives exactly the materials they need. The data can also be made available through a regularly updated feed.
The way media are structured is also important. A single gallery containing every product image may not be enough. Greater flexibility is provided by separate attributes such as:
- main image,
- detail image,
- lifestyle image,
- packaging image,
- marketplace asset.
This allows the system to understand what each asset represents and enables users to retrieve the exact type of image required by a particular channel.
6. Customers cannot find products using important criteria
Sales representatives and customer service teams are often the first to notice gaps in product data. They are the people customers contact when they cannot find a product using an important parameter.
One example is a fashion store where the customer wants to display only linen clothing. The material composition is stored in a long text field, however, so it cannot be used to power a precise filter.
Adding the filter to the e-commerce platform alone does not solve the problem. The platform needs a source of structured values. In the PIM system, the company can create a “primary material” attribute, assign specific values to products and send them to the online store.
Extracting data from existing descriptions can be partly automated with AI. A well-designed attribute model is still necessary, but populating a large number of products does not need to involve manually analysing every record.
These seemingly small changes can significantly improve product discovery, filtering and conversion. This is why PIM projects should involve not only e-commerce and IT, but also sales representatives and customer service teams. They have direct access to customers’ questions and difficulties.
7. You want to prepare product data for AI-powered discovery
Customers are increasingly beginning their product search without entering an online store and browsing its categories. Instead, they describe their needs in an AI tool:
“Which backpack will work as cabin luggage?”
“What wine goes well with a particular dish?”
“Which jacket is suitable for light rain and a long walk?”
In this kind of conversation, there is no traditional category menu or set of filters designed by the store. The tool has to understand the product based on the available information.
Product data should therefore include both structured parameters and content that explains the context. The value of an attribute matters, but so does its name. The word “steel” alone may be ambiguous. An attribute named “body material” gives the value the correct context.
Precise parameters should remain the foundation. They can then be expanded with information such as:
- intended use,
- recommended applications,
- target audience,
- situations in which the product is suitable,
- compatibility with other products,
- customers’ most common questions,
- limitations and conditions of use.
Marketing descriptions alone may not provide enough concrete information. At the same time, a list of technical parameters does not always answer the customer’s real questions. Both layers are needed.
PIM provides a foundation for this model. The organisation first structures its categories and attributes, and can then use them to generate more detailed content, use-case descriptions or answers to common questions.
When is the best time to implement PIM?
The best time is shortly before the system becomes essential.
It is not worth waiting until expansion is delayed by missing translations, a regulation has already come into force or the marketing team discovers that half of the collection has no current images. At that point, the organisation has to implement the technology, clean up the data and deliver an urgent business project simultaneously.
It is worth starting the conversation about PIM when the company:
- is planning to enter additional markets,
- is expanding its catalogue or number of variants,
- is launching new sales channels,
- regularly prepares product data for partners,
- struggles to control information completeness,
- needs to adapt to new regulations,
- is developing a strategy for AI-supported search and sales,
- is seeing a growing number of manual product data operations.
The number of systems through which the information flows also matters. PIM delivers the greatest value when it is integrated with other parts of the ecosystem, such as ERP, the e-commerce platform, marketplaces or media management tools. Simply launching the system without designing the data flows may not produce the expected change.
Does every company need PIM?
No. An organisation with a few hundred products, one language and a well-functioning process may be able to manage product information effectively using simpler tools for a long time.
If the team knows where the data is stored, the catalogue changes infrequently and the company is not planning expansion or additional sales channels, implementing PIM may currently be unnecessary.
The number of SKUs alone is not a reliable indicator either. A few hundred highly complex products with multiple variants, documents and attributes may require a more advanced solution than tens of thousands of simple product records.
Before selecting the technology, it is therefore worth carrying out an analysis covering:
- catalogue structure,
- data sources,
- roles and responsibilities,
- the product enrichment process,
- distribution channels,
- the business development plan,
- required integrations,
- the quality and completeness of existing data.
Only on this basis can the organisation define the project scope, select the right solution and prepare a realistic implementation estimate.
PIM should be implemented with the next stage of growth in mind
The decision to implement PIM should not result from market fashion or the assumption that every growing company needs such a system. It should respond to specific problems and future organisational needs.
The most important question is therefore not: “How many products do we have?” It is:
Will our current approach to product data management allow us to deliver the changes we are planning over the next few months and years?
If international expansion, new regulations, marketplace development, process automation or preparing data for AI will require further manual operations, the involvement of multiple employees and last-minute data clean-up, it is worth acting earlier.
A well-designed PIM system prepares the organisation for growth. When a new market, channel or obligation appears, the team can focus on achieving the business objective instead of having to build the foundations of product information management first.