As a retailer, you have to take in information about thousands of products from different manufacturers and prepare the information for various output channels. That’s why it’s important to select a PIM system that is scalable from the start so it can keep pace with the enormous growth of data in the coming years.

But now the question is how to separate the literal wheat from the chaff where scalability is considered. How can you determine which PIM system is really capable of managing the enormous growth of product data?

One solid approach for answering questions like this: references. Take a look at the practical reality of the PIM world. Visit PIM users with comparable requirement profiles. See for yourself how these companies process and prepare large volumes of data and how they have adapted themselves and their PIM system for constant data growth. Reach for the phone and talk to reference customers. In short: Obtain some practical insight as a solid foundation of information when making your decision. Of course, don’t forget to also talk with potential PIM providers in order to underpin scaling prospects, opportunities and options with reliable data and facts.

In this context, you should also ask how effectively the software is constructed to process a large quantity of data with the least possible resources. If you want to add more products to the system, the database will also have to process more volume in the background. PIM systems designed for a great deal of scalability will not have any problem.

The following questions can also help you to evaluate a potential PIM system in terms of scalability and growth:

• Is the PIM system designed for any product groups/ranges or only for specific industries:
• International operation: Can different currencies and measurement units be processed at the same time?
• How flexible are work flows and release processes? For example, can country-specific regulations or specific rules be integrated?

A significant component of your evaluation should be the matter of integrating your PIM system into existing IT landscapes, for example linking with ERP and/or CRM systems. Ideally, the PIM provider will offer you a variety of integration options for each system that you would like to use. You should also always enquire about the customer situations for which the provider has already carried out these integrations during past projects.

There are a number of PIM manufacturers that have based their marketing approach on the scalability of their products. But these statements don’t always keep their promise. That’s why it’s so important to put scalability at the top of the evaluation list during system selection to ensure that the software of your choice will still perform with a large and growing number of complex products.