Return on investment (ROI) is a performance measure used to evaluate the efficiency or profitability of an investment or compare the efficiency of several different investments.
A PIM system can offer a great return on investment (ROI) if used effectively.
Also, the goal of this guide is to help you calculate the ROI of your PIM system so that you can be sure it is providing value for your business. We’ll discuss how to determine the cost of a PIM system and how to measure its impact on your business. By following these tips, you can be confident that your PIM system benefits your bottom line.
Maximizing ROI: Calculating the Benefits of a PIM System
Furthermore, the PIM system is the best answer for dealing with the product range. However, what precisely does it bring? Below is a guideline for determining a PIM system’s ROI (Return Of Investment).
The “product information pressure” increments pointedly for a maker or distributor. Broad and correct product information is getting progressively significant. In addition, clients need a ton of point-by-point data. Moreover, for global deals, product information should be accessible in various languages.
A straightforward calculation shows that 10,000 items with ten attributes in 1 language can rapidly increase if the number of qualities and languages is extended. Those 10,000 items x 10 characteristics x 1 language = 100,000 things with three languages and 30 characteristics for every product suddenly become 900,000 items. Nine times as much!
To keep up with this data, a decent PIM system is imperative – to have the option to work proficiently and keep a diagram. In any case, what if we look at the cost-benefit? To compute the advantages of a PIM, the revenues must be compared with the costs. In addition, the revenues consist of savings in time and costs and the extra turnover that can be generated.
2 Factors
ROI is best calculated with two different factors in mind. The first factor is the extra turnover that the PIM will generate when the quality and quantity of product information have improved, and the second factor is the time and cost savings.
Factor 1: More turnover through PIM
Research shows that more sales are generated through PIM and improved product information. This can be included in the payback calculation.
- A PIM delivers more sales through better product information (better conversion rate) available more quickly.
- More new customers are joining because of better findability.
- More upselling / cross-selling.
- Product information can quickly be supplied to other sales channels (resellers, data pools), generating additional sales.
- Fewer products are returned because of better product information.
- Sales (back office) can spend more time on actual sales.
Calculation example: the conversion rate could increase by around 15% with the above improvements. By submitting for sale on other channels, additional turnover (depending on the number of channels and products) is also generated that can be included. You calculate the yield of the bottom two points: time saved (in hours) x hourly wages.
Factor 2:
To determine the cost savings, we list several performance indicators (KPIs) that can be included in a calccalculatingnt costs and what can be saved using the PIM system.
Time
- How much time (per month or week) is spent adding new products?
- How much time (per month or week) does it take to keep the existing product information current? Think of activities such as mutations of product characteristics, expired items, indicating multiple languages, and relationships between products.
Also, the number of items to be maintained decreases sharply (for example, due to characteristics that are the same in different languages and do not have to be entered separately for each language). Also, keeping the above points up-to-date can be reduced by up to 50%.
Savings
- How much information is already present in other systems, such as ERP systems, and could it be reused? What does this save in time?
- Can product information with accompanying images be delivered digitally by suppliers? What time savings does that yield?
Since product features can be adopted without manual work, input and verification time are saved. Suppose that 1/3 of the characteristics are automatically filled; then the maintenance of those 900,000 items (3 languages and 30 characteristics per product) decreases to 600,000!
Extras
- How much time does it take to enter customer-specific information?
- How much time and cost are involved in translating the product information?
- How much time do sales (back office) spend answering product information questions?
With a PIM, the processing of product information is considerably faster, and time can be saved. The time saved can be converted into an amount: time saved (in hours) x hourly wages.
Media
- How much time do you spend (without PIM) on keeping your online range up-to-date?
- What are the production costs for the catalogue (data maintenance, layout, control time, corrections), and what is the lead time to create the catalogue?
- How long does it take to correctly deliver information to customers and data pools?
- How much time do you save on the above points using a PIM?
The same calculation can also be used for the latter components: time saved (in hours) x hourly wages.
Other Factors
Investment is also required in calculating costs/investment implementation PIM. This item will generally be amortized over several years (3 years).
- I am purchasing the PIM software or subscription.
- The design of the PIM by the supplier.
- Any modifications or renewals of the hardware/infrastructure.
- Input/import/conversion of the product information (one-off).
- Training for the users.
- Associated support and a maintenance contract (not with a subscription).
- Financing costs (interest).
Calculate ROI
As you may have noticed, gaining insight into the payback period (Return on Investment) when purchasing a PIM is not always easy. In particular, because the measurable indicators are not always clear or too little has been measured about the time and costs of the current method.
ROI = (Yield investment – Cost investment) x 100%
Cost investment
Where to begin? To decide whether a PIM system interests your company, you can begin by examining the current working method. Moreover, the optimal PIM system must be selected based on the points for improvement, new wishes, and the available budget. After that, an ROI calculation can be worked out.
Want to learn more about PIM?
If you have any questions regarding Product Information Management, from PIM Selection to Implementation or how a PIM would fit in your IT landscape? Feel free to browse our Knowledge Base of articles on everything PIM related.
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