How PIM drives omnichannel success for e-commerce apparel brands
December 18, 2024For apparel brands, PIM could be more than the next trend - it could be the timeless software solution to the demands of omnichannel commerce.
The apparel e-commerce sector has transformed substantially over the past two decades. Fashion is more accessible today, helping brands reach global audiences and giving customers endless choices at their fingertips. In the last decade or so, social media has reshaped how people discover trends and connect with brands.
Success in this competitive landscape increasingly depends on brands adopting omnichannel strategies. This prioritizes seamless, engaging, and consistent product experiences across every touchpoint. Customers now expect high-quality, detailed product information – whether they’re shopping on an e-commerce site, scrolling through social media, or visiting a physical store. Meeting these expectations is critical for building trust and loyalty.
This is where Product Information Management (PIM) software becomes an indispensable business tool. By centralizing and synchronizing product data, PIM empowers brands to deliver a unified experience, no matter the channel. For digital fashion brands, mastering omnichannel engagement isn’t just a trend – it’s a necessity for long-term success.
The power of PIM software’s single source of truth
Apparel brands often manage vast amounts of data. This includes everything from dye production information and transit details to market-ready product descriptions, images, and videos. When scattered across systems, this data becomes difficult to keep consistent across internal channels, let alone as part of an omnichannel strategy. PIM software helps apparel brands manage all this data.
A PIM solution is a brand’s single source of truth – the place where all product data is accurate, complete, and ready for consistent distribution to all channels. Consistency isn’t just a nice-to-have in an omnichannel world: it’s essential. Customers rely on accurate product information to make their buying decisions. Providing inaccurate or misleading information is a guaranteed way to lose a potential customer forever.
5 ways PIM powers omnichannel success for apparel brands
There are a number of ways PIM systems enable brands to create consistent messaging across every digital touchpoint to ensure every customer knows exactly what they are paying for. Here are just five:
1. PIM enables you to outrun the competition
Fashion is a trend-driven industry, where speed is everything. Brands need to launch new collections and styles quickly to stay relevant. A PIM solution slashes time-to-market by automating tedious tasks, eliminating manual errors, and streamlining the distribution of product information.
For omnichannel brands, this is a gamechanger. Manually updating information and ensuring consistency across channels is hugely time intensive. Now you can instantly adjust product details, upload new images, and roll out updated descriptions as soon as products are ready. This agility ensures you meet seasonal demand while still reacting to new trends as they appear.
2. PIM lets you give customers exactly what they want
Shoppers gravitate to brands that offer experiences that reflect their individual tastes, needs, and preferences. Omnichannel strategies that work need personalization at scale. PIM solutions enables it by managing detailed product attributes like color, material, and style, making it easier to match products to the right customers. It can also fuel your recommendation engines, delivering tailored suggestions based on customer behavior, purchase history, or popular trends.
3. PIM helps you tell better product stories
In a crowded market, brand storytelling is a powerful way to stand out by giving your customers a way to connect with your brand and the product they are buying. A PIM system enables fashion brands to combine detailed product information with brand storytelling, creating a narrative that resonates with shoppers. PIM systems integrate with digital asset management (DAM) platforms, allowing you to pair data with high-quality visuals like lifestyle photos and product videos.
4. PIM takes the work out of syndication
Keeping your product data accurate and compliant across the digital shelf takes is an ongoing challenge for omnichannel brands. Luckily, with a PIM system you don’t have to do it manually. It enables effortless syndication of product information across channels with a single click. This omnichannel approach ensures that customers see consistent, up-to-date product details. Automated updates reduce the risk of errors as any change, like a new price, updated image, or seasonal promotion, appears instantly across all platforms.
5. PIM simplifies compliance
Apparel brands face stringent compliance requirements, from labeling regulations to retailer-specific guidelines. Failing to meet these standards can lead to costly retail chargebacks and strained relationships with retail partners. PIM software simplifies compliance by centralizing required data and specifications, keeping them accessible and up to date.
With PIM, you can leverage automated templates and distribute compliant information seamlessly to retail partners, reducing costly errors. When compliance is easier to manage, your teams can spend more time protecting your brand’s bottom line and strengthening your retail partnerships.
6. Make your sustainability credentials loud and clear
A growing number of consumers, as well as governments and industry bodies, want to know where materials come from, how your products are made, and what you are doing to reduce their environmental impact. PIM systems provide the transparency needed to track and share sustainability information at every stage of the supply chain. You can easily include details about sustainable materials, eco-friendly practices, and fair labor sourcing in product descriptions.
inriver: The PIM that powers omnichannel success for apparel brands
A PIM system doesn’t just centralize data – it turns your product data into a strategic asset in an increasingly omnichannel world.
The inriver platform offers the most flexible PIM software on the market. Built on the foundation of a fully adaptable data model, the inriver PIM solution is the perfect engine for any omnichannel strategy. Alongside the single soruce of truth for market-ready product information, the inriver PIM has API-based syndication and digital shelf analytics technology built in, giving you all the tools you need to succeed in today’s omnichannel world from a single, intuitive platform.
For more insight, watch Carhartt’s Director of Global Digital Operations, Anna Cole, in conversation with inriver experts here to discover how the global workwear giant uses data to drive revenue, reduce returns, and create seamless customer journeys.
want to see the inriver PIM in action?
Schedule a personalized, guided demo with an inriver expert today to see how the inriver PIM can get more value from your product information.