Unlock Your Full Potential With PXM

At Akeneo, we’ve long been evangelists for Product Experience Management (PXM), so we were thrilled to see Gartner recognize the movement in a detailed new report entitled Evolve From Product Information Management to Product Experience Management With a 360-Degree Analytics Strategy (Gartner subscription required).

“Organizations need to evolve from product information management to product experience management,” writes director analyst Simon Walker in the report. “In doing so, data and analytics leaders will unlock greater business value through their programs by connecting product information to product analytics to optimize product experiences for customers.”

We couldn’t agree more — and we were thrilled to see Akeneo named in the report as an example PIM vendor. The report explains, “Packaged solutions for PIM provide marketing, commerce and product teams with the ability to create, maintain and draw on a single, trusted and shareable version of rich product content and digital assets for the purposes of multichannel marketing and unified commerce.”

Online merchants have always made an effort to manage product information, including product dimensions, descriptions, and assets such as pictures. But with the advent of PXM, they’re managing how customers consume that information. By fine-tuning every detail, brands can offer not just consistent product information, but a delightful online experience that delivers accurate information while also building loyalty and engagement.

Gartner states that the Product 360 is “a 360-degree view of products connects all trusted product data assets in order to fulfill specific channel requirements.” When someone in Tokyo searches for a machine part, for instance, a well-optimized PXM platform delivers not just a generic list of product information, but a tailored experience: a Japanese-language product description that aligns with the customer’s specific pain points, perhaps, along with videos or interactive tools that perfectly illustrate the product in an appropriate setting.

In other words, where PIM optimizes information, PXM leverages that information to put the customer at the center of the product discovery and sales process. By integrating information from disparate data sources, a robust PXM solution can help brands communicate about their products online in rich, compelling, and consistent ways, without constant intervention or oversight from marketers and sales teams. PXM tools can also incorporate customer-behavior data to further refine the product experience, allowing brands to ensure they delight customers at every possible touchpoint.

That’s crucial in the B2B setting: a recent Akeneo survey found that 56% of B2B professionals view PXM as the key to boosting sales, and 45% believe they could increase their prices if they optimized their customer experience. While B2B brands recognize the power of customer experience, though, many are still struggling to achieve results, with more than half saying they lack dedicated PIM and PXM capabilities.

The tools and best practices needed for success already exist, and companies like Akeneo are ready to help brands build out the PXM solutions they need. So check out Gartner’s report for specific recommendations and insights about what PXM can do for your brand. And, when you’re ready to unlock your full potential, get in touch with Akeneo.

Gartner “Evolve From Product Information Management to Product Experience Management With a 360-Degree Analytics Strategy,” Simon Walker, 5 May 2020