The Importance of Item Management
The importance of item data management is becoming clearer for suppliers, as retailers begin to demand more. Instant access to product data, is becoming the retailer’s expectation. Retailers — especially online retailers — want to receive their product attributes in a variety of ways, with little consistency across the board, meaning getting item management right is a huge priority for suppliers.
Suppliers are challenged with delivering the information. Already difficult to manage the many requests they receive, the increased demand in information from consumers is amplifying the problem.
When EDI Here meets with a supplier tasked with providing retailers with product attribute data, we often find it’s rarely one person’s responsibility to manage the item information. Rather, it comes from a wide range of people. It could be product managers, brand managers, administrative assistants, finance departments, or people in compliance and testing.
It’s often tedious, manually intensive work, and without cohesive industry standards, every retailer’s requirements can be different. It’s rare to find one person whose job is dedicated to handling item management services, and it’s not uncommon for it to take six weeks for item details to make their way into the retailer’s system.
So how do you get your internal team to see the importance of item management? Accurate and high quality product attribute content ensures happy trading partners, happy end consumers and decreased returns.
Even knowing this, the reality is that most suppliers we meet with are just not equipped for the demand for product attribute information. This is where working with a partner like EDI Here can really pay off. We help retailers and vendors communicate effectively, especially where item data is involved. We can help retailers figure out what they need, and show vendors how to easily provide it.
