PIM implementation

PIM implementation (Product Information Management, based on Akeneo or a similar tool) is a central product information base: you maintain attributes, descriptions, images, prices and translations in one place, and the system distributes them across channels — the site, marketplaces, feeds, print catalogs. We set up the data model (categories, attributes, product families), import from your sources (1C, ERP, spreadsheets, supplier price lists), product data quality and completeness rules, export to the needed channels and roles for the team. The point is to put things in order: one source of truth instead of a dozen spreadsheets and the mismatch where the site shows one price and the marketplace another. Unlike DAM (see the “DAM implementation” service), which stores and distributes media files (photos, videos, layouts), PIM is responsible for the product data itself; the two are often implemented together. And it is not an accounting system: unlike an ERP (such as 1C — a widely used accounting/ERP system — and similar), which manages stock, prices and bookkeeping, a PIM holds descriptive product data — attributes, texts, relations, media links; prices and stock it usually receives from the ERP as a source rather than computing them itself. Importantly and honestly: PIM pays off at scale. If you have dozens of products, a couple of attributes and one sales channel — it is using a sledgehammer to crack a nut: a regular admin panel or a spreadsheet will cope, and we will say so directly. PIM is needed when there are hundreds and thousands of products, many attributes, several channels and maintaining it all by hand already hurts. Also honestly about money: our work is the implementation; the platform itself may cost separately. Akeneo has a free Community edition (with limitations) and paid Enterprise/cloud ones — the choice and its cost we will discuss for your situation. And about the result without illusions: PIM puts data in order but does not create it for you — the quality of the data depends on who fills it in and how; garbage in stays garbage out, so we set up completeness control rules. Picture this: you change a product description once in the PIM — and it updates itself on the site, in the feed for the marketplace and in the advertising export. The base price starts from 150,000 ₽; this is the floor for a basic setup on Akeneo Community. Projects with many channels and complex integrations are usually estimated individually and cost more — it depends on the number of products, sources and channels.

• Product data is scattered across spreadsheets, 1C and the admin panel — there is no single source of truth.
• The site shows one thing, the marketplace another — the product information is out of sync.
• Adding a product to a new channel means retyping everything from scratch by hand.
• Product data is incomplete and without quality control — you lose sales and barely pass marketplace moderation.

• A data model: categories, attributes, product families, locales and translations
• Import from your sources (1C/ERP, spreadsheets, supplier price lists)
• Product data completeness and quality rules (required fields, validation)
• Export to channels: the site, marketplaces, feeds, print catalogs
• Roles and permissions for the team (who is responsible for which data)
• Setup of the platform (Akeneo or a similar tool) for your infrastructure
• Integration with the site and existing systems
• Team training and documentation for working with the PIM

• One source of truth — product data in one place
• Cards are in sync across all channels — you change it once, it updates everywhere
• A new channel connects faster — the data is already structured
• Product data completeness and quality are under control — fewer losses and moderation rejections

• An audit of your data, sources and channels, and we design the model
• We set up the PIM, the import, quality rules, export to channels
• We integrate, train the team, launch and support the start

• Do we definitely need a PIM, or is the site admin panel enough?

  If you have few products, few attributes and one sales channel — an admin panel or a spreadsheet will probably do, a PIM would be excessive, and we will honestly say so. A PIM is justified when there are hundreds and thousands of products, many attributes and several channels: then manual maintenance is more expensive and more error-prone than a system.

• How much does the Akeneo platform itself cost?

  Separately from our implementation work. Akeneo has a free Community edition with limitations and paid Enterprise/cloud versions. What fits and how much it will cost depends on the number of products, users and the features needed; we will choose it for your situation and budget, and you can start with a minimal edition.

• Will the PIM put our data in order by itself?

  A PIM gives structure and rules, but it does not fill the cards in for you: if the data is incomplete or has errors at the input, that is how it will spread across the channels. So we set up completeness and quality checks, but the discipline of maintaining the data stays with your team — the system greatly eases it but does not replace it.