PIM vs. PXM – what are the differences between them? 

Companies running online stores need to get their product presentation just right. You want your customers to “fall in love” with your offer. The reason is apparent – you want them to buy your products without hesitation. With a good PXM/PIM system, you can do so easily. Let’s have a closer look at PIM and PXM systems and see the differences between them. 

To some extent, PIM and PXM systems have a lot in common. They are both about showcasing your products and offering in the best possible way. But PXM (product experience management) is a broader term that comprises more elements compared to PIM (product information management). 

What are PIM systems? 

E-commerce companies use PIM tools to gather, organize, and manage product information. Thanks to their features, you can maintain accurate and consistent product data across various channels, which significantly contributes to improved efficiency when it comes to UX, marketing, and sales.  

Large stores know perfectly what we are talking about. Imagine you run such a store and have tens of thousands of products. To make things more complicated, you pursue the omnichannel model. Your offer is available in your store, in your mobile app, on Google Shopping, and on Amazon. In such a scenario, managing product information manually is close to impossible. With a good product information management system, you can facilitate changing and updating product information in different channels. As a result, streamline the operation of your online store. 

PIM systems (learn more about PIM systems here) can use different data sources to provide you with everything you need to manage your products and then “send” the product information to all the channels that you use. The infographic below nicely summarizes what PIM systems are all about: 

What are PXM systems? 

This abbreviation stands for product experience management. PXM systems expand the possibilities of standard PIM tools and provide users with more functionalities. They primarily focus on organizing and distributing product data. They also encompass the emotional, visual, and contextual aspects of your offer. The goal is to encourage customers to interact with your products and shape the way they perceive your offer. 

PXM tools use rich media content, contextual information, and personalized messaging to create a consistent and attractive product and brand experience. With a good PXM tool, you can drive customer engagement and foster brand loyalty. Of course, just like PIM systems, the PXM tool helps you achieve the best UX and marketing efficiency possible. 

Why do you need such systems? 

Using a PIM/PXM system helps you run your e-commerce business easily and more effectively. With these tools, you: 

• Provide customers with consistent product information: These systems ensure that product information, attributes, and specifications are accurate across all sales channels. 
• Manage content effectively: PIM/PXM systems centralize and organize product data, making it easier to manage and update content. 
• Offer stellar CX: Thanks to rich content, detailed product descriptions, and contextual information, you can enhance your customers’ experiences. 
• Faster time-to-market: With all product data in one place ready to be distributed across channels, you can start selling and implement necessary changes much quicker compared to manual processes. 
• Omnichannel consistency: With PXM/PIM, you don’t have to worry about discrepancies between different sales channels. 

Pimcore: A good example of a PIM system 

Pimcore is an open-source PIM platform that allows you to manage your product data seamlessly. This tool offers a wide range of features for effective product data management. With a user-friendly interface and drag-and-drop features, handling product information becomes efficient and intuitive. 

Pimcore streamlines workflows with clear processes and editorial standards. It seamlessly manages digital assets like images and videos. This extends to automatic omnichannel publishing, as well as data integration with external systems. With Pimcore, you can actually create a hub for your e-commerce content. Plus, there are many more tools available within this platform’s ecosystem, including: 

• Master Data Management (MDM) 
• Digital Asset Management (DAM) 
• Customer Data Platform (CDP) 
• Digital Experience Platform (DXP/CMS) 

They enable you to manage not just product information but your whole website and other communication channels.  

Akeneo PXM Studio: A holistic PXM platform 

With the enterprise solution from Akeneo, you can easily handle and improve your product information processes, no matter how big your product catalog is. Akeneo works well across different sales channels and can smoothly connect with other tools and platforms (via API). The platform’s dashboard is clear and intuitive. 

Thanks to Akeneo, you can make your product data richer and more engaging and organize it in various levels and groups. You can also make your product descriptions more interesting (for both users and Google bots). Akeneo enables you to add pictures and other files to your product information and create links between different products. Moreover, you can do so in many languages and separately for different sales channels. Once you have all the product details ready, you can upload and send them to all the places you sell. Akeneo’s tools help you make different data files and send them directly to the right sales channels. 

Wrapping up 

If you want to succeed in this competitive market sector, you need to up your game and provide users with top-notch experiences. Both Pimcore and Akeneo will help you achieve this goal. And we have good news – our team is experienced with both these tools! And we will gladly help you implement them in your business. Drop us a line to find out more.