PIM vs DAM: The Difference Between Them

Globalization and e-commerce has opened a large arena of opportunities for small and large retailers across the world. Companies are looking to amplify every aspect of their business to be able to tap those opportunities and stay ahead of their competitors. And, there is a multitude of e-commerce solutions that can help them ace the race. But, the struggle is to find the right tools and solution for their business.

Online retailers today are hugely investing in Product Information Management (PIM) system and Digital Asset Management (DAM) system. Newbies who come across these acronyms are often intrigued to know what is the difference between the two and which is better. While both are e-commerce tools with few similarities, they have been designed for very distinctive use.

What is a PIM System?

In simple words, PIM is a system that centralizes and manages product data for companies to help them showcase and sell products across different sales channels. A PIM system handles all the product related data and allow it to be optimized and utilized for product’s distribution across sales and marketing channels. It transforms and facilitates the way products are presented across the company’s distribution channels.

What is Digital Asset Management System?

DAM, on the other hand, is a system that deals with the handling of digital assets of an organization. A DAM system stores and organizes a company’s digital assets, such as images, logos, videos, meta-data, presentations, marketing materials etc. It provides a central placeholder for all these valuable assets making it easy to find, access, and use them for brand promotion and marketing. It is an easy and effective way to safeguard the brand related digital files and maximize their utilization.

PIM and DAM. What are the functionalities of each?

DAM system focus on managing digital files and assets of a company. Wherein, a PIM system provides a centralized management of all product related information. Here, we’ve listed the core functionalities of PIM and DAM to give you a clearer comparison of the two systems.

Key functionalities of PIM or Product Information Management tool:

• Create and maintain product information database

• Create product feeds for varied sales channels

• Syndicate content for different stations

• Manage digital assets and files

• Form a hub between different departments

Key functionalities of DAM or Digital Asset Management tool:

• Categorize digital files and assets

• Collaborate workspaces and departments

• Manage workflows

• Control user access and permissions

• Import and export files

PIM or DAM. What to choose?

When struggling to find the best solution for an organization, one should draw a clear understanding of the company’s specific goals and requirements. As explained above, PIM and DAM are built with a different purpose and provide with very different solutions. So, it’s not about picking one over the other, you need to identify which solution is best aligned with your specific needs.

For instance, DAM might be the right solution if you are a marketing firm, a graphic design company, into photography, or an entertainment business that has a large number of visual assets to be stored, retrieved, and shared. DAM will be highly beneficial for your business if there is a frequent need for you to store and share digital assets across several channels. It can help you build brand uniformity across channels and allow you to effectively use your assets for different social media.

Conversely, PIM system is an ideal solution for manufacturers or retailers of consumer goods who are required to deal with enormous product data. PIM can help you organize and distribute product information for your online sales channels. It can help you streamline and coordinate all departments and avail them with up-to-date product data. It’s also a great tool if you need to use different SKUs in your sales systems. PIM can greatly enhance the efficiency of your sales and distribution processes, reduce time-to-market, and thus foster growth.

Having said that, it’s likely that your company might need a combination of both systems. If that is your best scenario, make sure that both PIM and DAM systems come from the same provider and are well integrated with each other.

Read more at - Syncrasy

Basically, an Engineer and SEO Specialist at Syncrasy Tech. A Tech Enthusiast who loves to write about latest updates on technology. Always curious to read about trends in technology which have curiosity build in them.