National Buying Group (NBG) has hailed the early successes of its new Product Information Management (PIM) system, which has been developed with the support of NBG Partners and Suppliers.
Following a testing and development period with selected NBG Partners and Suppliers, the buying group officially launched PIM with access for the whole of NBG via its internal platform, The Hub, to “centrally collect high quality, accurate and timely product and pricing information from Suppliers”.
Previously, Partners used an active NBG price list or contacted Suppliers regarding individual products and manually uploading information. However, PIM is designed to “save valuable time for both Partners and Suppliers with product information instantly available and in a well organised format”.
Partners are now said to have access to more structured, detailed and up-to date product information, live data, collateral and images to support the promotion of products.
Suppliers also benefit from NBG’s dedicated PIM team and the ability to create a product and pricing catalogue to seamlessly share product information with all NBG Partners at once. PIM also allows Partners full access to Suppliers’ product ranges, giving them the opportunity to offer more to customers and increase sales.
Supplier Knauf Insulation, which has over 40 years’ experience in the insulation industry and is part of the multi-national manufacturer Knauf Group, was heavily involved with the PIM project. Knauf Insulation worked closely with NBG on the development and delivery of PIM, said to be a “first of its kind system” in the independent builders’ merchant sector, helping NBG Partners and Suppliers to sell products more efficiently through access to real-time product and pricing data.
John Gaunt, Commercial Manager at Knauf Insulation said: “The NBG PIM system is going to revolutionise how members can manage and handle their data. We feel that a strong PIM system will lead to better product information being available from manufacturers’ right through to end consumers, whilst providing richer content and ensuring supporting documents are always up to date, wherever they appear – which can only be a positive result for everyone involved.”
The PIM system enables accurate data to be loaded directly onto Partner’s existing systems, reducing potential invoicing and ordering errors and increasing operational effectiveness. The catalogue of product intelligence collected from PIM is also used in NBG Partners’ back-office systems and websites to provide enriched product information including everything from size and weight to material and pricing.
Managing Director at NBG, Nick Oates, said: “One of NBG’s main aims is to Build Strong Brands that work collaboratively. Our PIM system is beginning to make a difference to the way that Partners and Suppliers work together to make the most of deals and sell products to customers.
“The development of PIM is testament to NBG’s commitment to developing progressive technology solutions to improve their Suppliers and Partner experience. PIM is having a significant benefit to the whole group by streamlining the solutions previously used.
“We look forward to hearing further feedback from our Partners and Suppliers who are making the most of the PIM system and how we can build on this feedback and continue to improve the NBG experience for all.”
For more information, visit www.nationalbuyinggroup.com
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