ECommerce Product Data Enrichment converts search to sales

Product data enrichment is about providing vital information of your product accurately. Customers visit your website but within no time they leave the site, as the data available of your product doesn’t keep them engage. The information of your product may not be relevant and satisfactory as per customers need. This is here, the product data enrichment plays its role and helps the online owners to convert visitors into customers.

If a visitor is not satisfied with your product data information, he will be inclined towards your competitors product-where he will get all information about what is he looking for and buy from them.

What is Product Data Enrichment ?

Product data enrichment is all about finding gaps and inconsistencies in product data and rectify them with up-to-date, accurate and relevant information. Product enrichment helps in providing more details of your product like, color, size, descriptions, measurements attributes etc.,

Most eCommerce owners tend to lose customers even before the checkout, as the customer find the product description- inadequate or inappropriate. Customers making online purchases are solely dependent on product data that store owners publish on product pages. Online merchants operating on leading eCommerce platforms including Magento, Zen-cart, X-cart etc., and market places such as Amazon, eBay etc., have successfully reduced the bounce rate on their online stores with the help of product data enrichment service.

How do eCommerce Product Data Enrichment increases sales

#1. Reduce cart abandonment :

shopping cart abandonment is one of the biggest problems online business owners are facing. Cart abandonment refers to that customer behavior, where in a customer browse a website and after satisfaction, adds these products to his shopping cart – but he will never purchase it. 2 out of 3 customers leave the website before using credit card. This usually happens when customers are not satisfied with the product information provided by the website. Wavering thought process makes customer to abandon cart at the last moment. Adding valuable and appropriate product details also enrich their product with required content ensures that customers don’t abandon carts due to wavering thoughts.

#2. Contextual information :

in simple words contextual information means, extra information that helps you understand something better.

Consumer product companies, mostly provide inadequate product information, which doesn’t have the power to compel the customers for repeat visits. The contextual product description will help the customer to understand that by purchasing your product, it will add value to their lives. They can enjoy a higher standard of life. This makes it necessary to write the product copy in a manner where it provides all the contextual product information required. Contextual marketers deliver the most relevant information possible to consumers in the timely manner possible. Contextual information helps you gain greater intimacy with customers and target market segments more efficiently.  

#3. Product page meta data to boost traffic :

There are a lot of things that go into optimizing a website for search engine optimization. One of these is metadata. The primary job of metadata is to tell not only the visitors but also the search engines what a page is about. Customers face difficulties in finding what they want to buy. It is due to inefficient product title description and mega tags. In such cases product metadata needs to be fixed immediately. Title tags and meta descriptions are essential as

  • It is the consumers first digital touchpoint
  • Gets you more clicks.
  • It helps with better rankings.

With better ranking rate and more clicks will ultimately boost the traffic to your website, thus accelerating sales.

#4. Product categorization :

it is clear that if information is not clear, properly categorized, website visitors will rarely continue to try and find the products they want. You cannot avoid product categorization. It is the ground level work. Product categorization helps the user to complete the buying cycle, before leaving the site. If product categorization is not carried out properly, it will result in lost sales. Managing product data is all about validating and fixing errors in product categorization. Developing product taxonomies, fix product descriptions with appropriate keywords and tags and classifying it correctly will help you boost your e-commerce sales.

#5. Cross-selling and up-selling premium products :

up selling is the practice of encouraging customers to purchase a comparable higher-end product than one asked in query. While cross-selling invites customers to buy related or complementary items. Both up selling and cross selling if done properly, provides maximum value to customer and increases revenue without any extra cost. Product data enrichment ensures that, purchaser visiting your website end up finding related or alternative products along with the ones they were looking for and also in the absence of it. This can be fulfilled by exhibiting all related products on a particular page.

#6. Helps in making purchase decision :

Product data enrichment facilitates faster product discovery, accurate search results and rich experience. It ensures the customers visiting your site have no doubts in mind when it comes to making a decision to purchase. Product enrichment helps customer to find right product faster with proper product description and making the buying process smooth and simple – will leave customer with no confusion and end up the cycle by buying the product and with a good customer experience.

#7. Enhances consumer experience :

With answer to all queries that customers have in mind- data enrichment  facilitates online retailers to enhance consumer experience. When customers purchase products that add value to their lives make a big difference to your overall sales number.

Conclusion :

Product data enrichment aims at enriching your product related data with relevant information. It analyzes your data thoroughly, inconsistencies, errors and duplicate entries and enrich product descriptions with keywords to improve the search rankings of your products. Implementing product data enrichment helps you increase your e-commerce sales figures and converts product search to product sales.

Tips for prioritizing Product Content Enrichment

People are adopting online shopping like never before and the global eCommerce market size is expected to grow very high in the coming years. Current technology trends and accessibility have made it possible for every business to create an eCommerce platform in no time and start selling. As the demand for online shopping is increasing, it is necessary to see that your eCommerce site is functioning well enough.

Sometimes you may find that the content on your product page is inconsistent, lacks certain important information or deficiency in description. The product content is not optimizing your search engine ranking. Comparatively, with other websites, you may find that your website is lacking visual content, multiple product images etc. This is the time that you have to improve the quality of your online product content. If you are dealing with hundreds of SKUs (stock keeping units), the resources at your disposal may not be sufficient to enrich product data for every single product you a stock or sell.

Here are the ways to prioritize your product data enrichment for a better search engine ranking and enhancing your customers experience –

#1. 80/20 rule :

It is also known as “Pareto’s principle”. This rule is applicable in many fields like sports, health care, business etc. Applying it to the business world, the 80/20 rule suggests that 80% of your company sales come from 20% of your customers. In the sales and marketing sector, you can use the 80/20 rule as a guide with highly effective business solutions.

The main question, that most of the businesses are facing is – how to identify 20% of their main customers in order to make a marketing strategy, to achieve 80% of the result with minimum cost. Your online site may have hundreds or thousands of contacts on your product list. Keep a close watch on which customers made a recent purchase, who are frequent buyers, which ones were generous in their purchases. Which products are more in demand? Identify the 20% of your products that drive 80% of your eCommerce sales and make these products fully enriched.

#2. Customer focus:

It is important to know, which user behaviour will end up the cycle by purchasing your product. Many eCommerce websites are launched only for such selected customers who are generous in their purchase. In such cases, you can enrich those products content that is more applicable to those customers. By focusing on the products they purchase, you can increase the value of your eCommerce site and also enhance user experience.

#3. Enrich core product :

The essential products which define your brand and provide value to your eCommerce website, such products are best to choose and enrich the product content of those core products.

#4. New product launches :

When you are planning to launch a new product, make sure that your new product has relevant, current and high-quality content. Enrich your new product page with engaging and informative content, because in digital marketing ‘content is the king’.

#5. Seasonal products :

If your Online store is dealing with seasonal products, make sure that during that season your product page should be enriched with the rich and current content of the product. Since it’s a seasonal product, every season new feature will be added to your product. For example ceiling fans, refrigerators. These products are out every season with some newly added feature. Make sure you highlight your product page with that particular feature.

#6. Gated eCommerce :

If your website is accessible by only restricted or selected customers than those product pages should be enriched with relevant and informative content. For instance, I-phones are launched every year with some newly added version, so your content must have that current feature of your product, so that you can target the gated customers.

#7. Gap filling :

Identify weak points of your product content. Sometimes your product content has an insufficient description of your product then you have to enrich your content with relevant and current information about your product. For instance, if your product page is without images than you can add product images and can make it more engaging.

Pull up:

Prioritizing product content aims to boost more sales and increased revenue. Google analytic helps in identifying products with low online conversion rates. Once you identify the products – you can enrich the content of those products, helping you to increase conversion. Similarly, PIM also helps you in improving the quality and consistency of your product page, by enriching the content with more images, visual information and current eye-catching trends. Engaging content will attract buyers and convert them into online sales.

What is Product Information Management [PIM] for eCommerce

ECommerce businesses can have a massive amount of product data, including descriptions, measurements and inventory. A product data management system organizes and regulates this product data making it uniform and easily accessible.PDM system also makes it users friendly and available to customers as they browse your website.

Product information management is commonly known as PIM. It is a process of collecting and managing all the needed information from descriptions to images and more- about a given product in one central place. As updating of product information is possible through PIM, the efficiency of product information can be increased. PIM also facilitates to add new products to your online platforms. It ensures that your customers have to access to the right information about your products when they are ready to purchase.

Information stored by PIM :

PIM solutions store all the required information on the product, including description, taxation, composition, technical information, hardware versions and other types of information. It also store rich media files such as images, videos. The list of product information management tool depends on the particular business needs and can vary significantly.

When to use PIM :

  • There’s a need for data rich information.
  • You have multiple suppliers and source of distribution.
  • PIM is very useful when price and product catalog has to be updated frequently. 

When not to use PIM :

  • If you use one platform or one distribution channel.
  • Number of products your store is dealing with is very less.
  • If you are working with one or two manufacturers.
  • If your product doesn’t need rich data description. Less information of the product gives a clear picture to your customer. 

Key take aways :   

  1. PIM facilitates your brand awareness and provides excellent customer experience which in turn increases your sales and revenue. 
  2. Having a quality PIM platform is a major step towards creating omni channels consistency.
  3. PIM is a part of master data management.

Benefits of PIM for your eCommerce business :

#1. Establishes a single source for product information:

PIM exports the primary records of your products quickly to your eCommerce website, market place and social media shops. Any corrections, updates, or adjustments made in records, will automatically be done by PIM across all platforms and sales channels.

#2. Go to market faster :

whether you’re launching a new product or sales channel , you are in the market is determined once you start generating revenue. Automatic workflow reduces the need for manual data entry. Allowing team to launch and maintain new products and sales channel faster.

#3. Improves quality and consistency of product data : 

Incorrect or incomplete product data will not only reduce your sales but also the user’s experience. PIM facilitates you to edit, add and review data in one system you will improve the quality and consistency of your product data. Any changes made in the PIM system can be published across your eCommerce platform. Your accurate, up to date information will help you build brand image of your product.

#4. Creates more effective marketing strategies :

customers experience which the co provides is as important as its products and services. In this era customers using multiple channels, it is important that customer experience across different channel should be unified. PIM by establishing one source for your product data will allow you to enhance the user experience, by providing accurate and current information of your product at every step of the purchasing process.

Conclusion:

PIM centralizes product information for all other business applications. Product data pushed through PIM to multiple storefronts and sales channels providing the richest shopping experience possible. You can add selected products directly to your eCommerce from your PIM system and reuse product data and attributes from your PIM system in your eCommerce to save valuable time and money. Thus PIM can help grow and optimize your eCommerce business.

Which solution is best for managing your Product Data?

The growth and long term success of e-commerce business depends on effective product data management solutions. Product data management [PDM] is a structural approach to help control, access and share large quantities of crucial data, that provides significant value to your business. It is important and tedious to maintain and manage this product information.

What is data management ?

Data management is the process of collecting, storing and using data efficiently, securely and cost effectively. The main objective of PDM is to collect and connect data from different sources and use it efficiently during decision making.

Effective data management is a combination of best practices, processes procedures with the help of effective tools, to control and manage data resources effectively. Today’s data managers need a system that is versatile enough to meet all of their employees access needs with full data security.

Tools for effective data management:

#1. Users tracking and analysis tools :

Customers surveys or interviews are valuable tools in their own way. They will tell you only what your customers say and think and help you analyze what those customers actually do

      But the users tracking and analysis tool  intelligently  gives you an insight- how your user or your website visitors are actually engaging with your product and your content. Tools like pendo or amplitude can uncover important realities about what is good or inspires your users and what is not. Companies like Accenture use Amplitude and companies like Atricem use the Pendo tool.

#2. Road mapping software tool :

Road mapping tool is used for project planning, progress tracking, activity coordination and team collaboration. This software is a must on any list of product management tools. Best example for a road mapping software tool is product plan. 

 Product plan is a great tool for managers who prefer to create an overview of their project. It allows us to create road maps quickly and easily. It communicates plans for future work to the team and builds up a consistent and standardized work process. 

#3. Customers survey tools :

Through customers survey tools  you can send the survey out to your customers and easily track and analyze the results. For gathering quick answers to important user questions, these tools are extremely helpful.

Web based survey tools like survey monkey or type form, have so many types of pre-formatted questions that whether you want to offer multiple-choice questions, drop down lists or just open comment fields. These tools help you to do surveys in minutes. Even emails, online surveys are easy, convenient and inexpensive that it can be tempting but they may upset your UX if not executed properly.

#4. Recording app for customer’s interview:

When you speak on the phone with customers for some queries, it’s always a great idea to record a call. You never know when a customer will offer a valuable insight like why they are using your product. Tools like, Go To meeting or zoom makes it easy to record those conversations and references them later.

Go To meeting provides a fast, easy and reliable professional online meeting solution that enables customers to meet face to face and communicate virtually. Zoom brings teams together in a frictionless and secure video environment. This platform provides video meetings, webinars on all devices. 

#5. Team messaging tools :

With the outbreak of pandemic, a lot of people started working from home. These business messaging tools helped teams to stay in touch and stay productive even if they can’t come to the office. When your product data starts giving trouble or gets underway, you will want an easy and immediate means of communicating. There are certain tools that allow easy and centralized team communication. Slack and confluence are best examples for team messaging tools.

Slack is a channel based messaging platform. With slack, people can work together more effectively, connect all their software tools and services and find the information that they need to do their best work-all within a secure environment. Confluence is a collaboration tool that helps teams to collaborate and share knowledge, data efficiently.

#6. Flow charting tools :

Creating a customer journey map is helpful in giving your company a clear view of your customers full experience with your company. Journey maps focus specifically on UX of using your product. It shows all the main points of the visitors, from the first visit to your website till purchasing and using your product.

Flowcharting tools like Microsoft Visio and OmniGraffle help in mapping out the specific aspects of users’ experience with your product. These flow-chart tools help you to uncover insight and helps you to develop your future strategies through your product road map.

#7. Product management tools :

Product management tools help to simplify the tracking and documenting details. For example Trello is visually appealing and is known for its fun use of cards, lists and boards. Trello is easy, free and flexible to manage your projects in an organized way. Gantt chart is an open source software that allows its users to identify problem areas in the workflow. Another PM tool is Jira. It’s excellent for team collaboration. This tool helps you track and monitor the entire product creation process. Jira can be used on a server, a data center platform and in the cloud. Other popular project management tools include Microsoft project, Pivotal Tracker will help you to execute on your road map and keep your backlog organized.

#8. Presentation software tools :

Tools like PowerPoint, Google slides and keynote can all be used to create presentations. You can make your presentation more engaging by including images, creating movements. Vision decks for example can be a powerful way of communicating your product vision to your clients/customers and earning their buying decision.

Conclusion :

While there are many tools out there to handle different products management requirements, the choice of product management tool/software depends upon your specific needs. Product management users must use the right product management tools and product management software. There are many product management tools and product management software that you can try first, before moving on to paid ones.

Product data enrichment—best practices for B2B and B2C SaaS

Product data enrichment is about providing clear and complete information of your product. Customers visit your website but within no time they leave the site; as the data available of your product doesn’t keep them engage. The information of your product may not be relevant and acceptable as per customers need. This is here the product enrichment plays its role and helps the online owners to convert visitors into customers.

 Usually we come across the websites sharing a product with only text description or photo. Product enrichment helps by providing more details of your product; like color, size, measurements, product related accessories etc.,

Advantages of Product Data Enrichment

  • It helps the customer to understand the product completely with all updates.
  • Aids in increasing the engagement time with the visitors and converting them into customer.
  • It helps in the decision making power of the buyer.
  • It creates a reliability image of your product in the eyes of the buyer.

The Best Practices:

Data enrichment is a critical part of master data management, allowing users to have confidence in the information guiding their actions.

       Data enrichment facilitates faster product discovery, accurate search results and rich experience. Online stores have to enrich their products with the required content that includes relevant images, product descriptions and videos.

  • Category details : This simplifies search and sort products in the correct categories.
  • Certification : Labeling products with the correct certification will help users find product easily.
  • Size detail : For fashion products enrichment can be done by adding size details; which will facilitate easier decision by the customer.

       We can add relevant tags or information to products or catalogs to help users find relevant products easily. Such activities help Online Store in different ways like :

  • Customer can find the right product faster.
  • When products are labeled with correct values, they replace the fake products in search ranking.
  • It also improves customers experience and wins customer loyalty.

Higher Search Engine Ranking:

 When product catalogs are filled with rich product descriptions, it gets easier for search engines to sort and rank, these products higher. And so these search engines depend on alt tags, attribute values; and also other relevant information for ranking a product higher in search result.

Global Standards:

 ECommerce owners should make sure that no fake products are pushed through their platforms. So, Brands like Adidas and Nike are going behind market places that allow sellers to sell fake products. With product enrichment online stores can easily identify real products and label them with the necessary tag and display genuine products on site search result.

Influences Conversions:

The main motive of product enrichment is to provide good customer experience. If the product has all the details clearly laid, then surely the visitors will convert into loyal customer.

Boost Sales and Revenues:

The study shows that one in three customers are likely to never shop from a store after just one bad experience, which means a decline in sales and revenues. Also Data enrichment improve customer experience which leads in boosting sales and revenues.

Product Discovery:

Product discovery is the event where customers find their desired product. A faster product discovery can make or break a customer view point towards your store. This will also add on to revenues.

Pull Up:

ECommerce stores will continue to innovate; and bring in facilities to impress customer because of increased online competition. Product enrichment will play a vital role by offering quality customer experience; and quick pleasure for ECommerce success.