How to Make Your PIM Migration a Success

Summarize this article

As PIM (Product Information Management) solutions win over more and more manufacturers and distributors, our PIM consultants are increasingly called on for migration projects. To carry out such a project successfully, you have two options: upgrading to your vendor’s latest version, or switching to a different PIM solution.

Either way, a PIM migration should not be seen as a simple technical version upgrade, but as a chance to challenge all the foundations put in place (catalog structure, contributors, the PIM’s role in the information system…). Foundations that have probably changed significantly since the project was first implemented a few years earlier. In this article, we share a list of key points to watch.

Defining the type of migration: a key first step

Migrating to your PIM vendor’s latest version

If you run a PaaS version, migrating to your vendor’s latest version will keep you at the highest level in terms of technology, features and security. Vendors regularly add new features to their PIM to continuously improve their product. An upgrade lets you benefit from the latest updates to your PIM solution. It also ensures you keep support maintained by the vendor.

But first, we encourage you to take stock of your PIM and its ecosystem.

Why not consider moving to a SaaS version?

Today, most PIM vendors offer SaaS versions. And the benefits are many:

• Automatic updates (bug fixes or new features).
• A platform that follows and complies with the latest security standards.
• No migration costs.
• No hosting costs.

However, SaaS versions do not allow custom development directly in the code or access to the database. Only the development of connectors or external applications, which requires technical skills and potentially hosting costs, can make this possible.

If you currently run a customized PaaS version, it is therefore essential, as a first step, to cover the needs now handled by custom developments on your platform with the solution’s native features. But this is far from insurmountable!

Switching PIM solutions

The last option available to you is to switch PIM solutions. But if you switch, it should be for something better!

First, you will need to draw up your wish list, your gaps, your needs… The goal is to find a solution better suited to your current needs, your growth prospects and, potentially, your budget.

Kick off change management

A question of timing

A successful PIM project is first and foremost about surrounding yourself with the right people at the right time. A migration will require business teams to set aside dedicated time to rethink a number of elements. These may include product modeling, your processes, or even a product’s lifecycle. This workload should not be underestimated. And to avoid unpleasant surprises halfway through, it is best to plan for it upfront.

A tool for business teams

A PIM is a tool designed first and foremost for business teams. It should help them every day. It is a productivity booster that reduces time to market.

Even if your teams are used to working with their PIM, they may sometimes need to automate certain actions, export reworked data, send data to a customer via API… PIMs on the market keep offering their customers new features to make day-to-day work easier. More features, better usability, more connectivity… Business needs evolve, and so do PIMs!

And what about your IT ecosystem?

Data flows need to be thought through and prepared ahead of the migration, whatever its type. Otherwise, they may become the main risk factor in your migration schedule.

This is an important step not to overlook, so as not to “isolate” your PIM. To successfully migrate your PIM, you need to take full stock of your information system and of the various interactions between the PIM and other tools (e-commerce site, ERP, layout software…).

If, after the migration, your PIM can no longer communicate with these tools because of incompatibilities, the migration loses all its value. So you first need to review your entire information system and check what already exists, especially in terms of connectors.

Don’t forget your digital assets

The growing number of digital assets to manage, and the constraints that come with them, can become very time-consuming day to day. As PIM consultants, we have seen a major shift in the role these assets play in the product lifecycle.

So why not take advantage of your PIM migration to consider a version that handles assets better, or pair your PIM with a DAM, its alter ego for managing digital assets?

Perhaps it is time to rethink how you organize photos, technical data sheets, safety data sheets, videos… This need did not exist when you implemented your PIM, but today these two products can complement each other perfectly and help you standardize your data and media and distribute them consistently.

Let’s get the PIM migration started!

Challenge your data model

If you change PIM solutions, your data model will definitely have to be challenged. That’s right! Each PIM solution has its own modeling concepts.

If it is a technical migration, you can keep your data model as is or take the opportunity to rethink it. As a PIM integrator, we strongly recommend stepping back and not hesitating to re-examine your data model.

Since your PIM was first implemented, chances are your product offering has evolved: new product lines, new standards, international expansion, new distribution channels, or even plans to bring in other brands or subsidiaries of the group.

All these factors lead us to say that the data model that worked yesterday is probably no longer suited to today’s needs. You should therefore clean up existing attributes and use the migration to create new attributes and reorganize the overall product structure, particularly with regard to new regulations or new consumer habits (for example, CSR requirements to display a product’s repairability level or its composition, its recycling percentage…).

Review your processes

Just like your data model, your processes may have changed. So don’t be afraid to rethink everything from scratch. Some processes work perfectly and there is no question of changing them. But others may be outdated or deserve to be improved with new features.

We see three areas to consider:

• Collaboration: the new PIM should help your teams work better and faster, and reduce time to market. How? By allowing each contributor to benefit from everyone else’s work.
• User rights and roles management: your team has grown, so perhaps you need to set up approval and publishing workflows? Perhaps the current version of your PIM is also too permissive and you need to redefine each contributor’s scope of rights more precisely?
• Automation: looking back, you realize that you can automate some enrichment processes. This would boost your productivity and free up time for higher-value tasks.

Optimize your data flows

Migrating a PIM solution opens up the opportunity to expand your business to new distribution channels such as print or marketplaces. This means additional outbound data flows. This expansion can be seamless if you choose solutions that offer connectors with your PIM solution.

With the “SaaS-ification” of PIM solutions, among other factors, migration projects often lead to a partial or complete review of how data flows are managed, moving toward a more structured integration architecture. We therefore increasingly see migration projects combined with the rollout of automation solutions such as Make or ESB (Enterprise Service Bus) platforms such as Blueway, which address complex, structured data integration challenges.

As you can see, a successful PIM migration requires a holistic approach that combines a deep understanding of business needs with technical expertise.

In short: in-depth work that goes far beyond a simple software update. Your PIM migration is a great opportunity to reassess and optimize your entire product information management infrastructure. By taking the time to analyze your existing processes, challenge your data model and review your data flows, you will be able to turn this migration into a strategic milestone for your company and its business!

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