How to Resell PIM Systems the Right Way - Bottlenecks, Challenges & Solutions

How does reselling a PIM System actually work? It should be easy.

Just as oil is important to a machine, data is important to your business operations nowadays. Therefore, it is essential to have all data in one place. This will make it easier to analyze data and make informed decisions. This is also the basis of a unified commerce ecosystem.

However, there are still a lot of companies that store their data in silos, which means they have their own system for storing the data. This makes it difficult to analyze the data because you need to extract it from one system and put it into another before you can analyze it.

If you would like to resell a PIM System, you have to tell this story over and over again. Would you like to know more about the benefits? Read the other articles on this subject. Otherwise, read below how to sell the system.

Other articles about Product Information Management

1. Choosing the right PIM system to resell

The right solution can help your customers to run their business better. Look for a system that works in the cloud and is easy to integrate. It should be possible to store all the product information that your customers has. Furthermore, it should be possible to integrate it with other systems so that customers can get a complete picture of their business operations. The right solution should also be connected to or include functions such as managing research, product development, marketing, sales and support, quality control, logistics, distribution and returns.

So why is Retailgear a great alternative for systems like Plytix, Akeneo, Syndigo and Pimcore? Where these systems mainly focus on one company, Retailgear focuses on an entire industry. So you can offer a joint PIM system to multiple parties. Every company that takes your solution works directly in the same database as the other customers. This makes it more interesting for new companies to get your solution as well. Because they easily save more time this way. Furthermore, each party will also have access to more industry data. Suppliers can also easily join the system and share their product information. In this way you can easily build your own network in which parties can easily work together.

In addition, we also offer a white label PIM Solution, so that you can easily market and sell the software under your own brand.

Regardless of which solution you sell, keep the following points in mind to choose your best solution to resell:

• Is it cloud based?
• Is it easy to integrate with other systems and are there already standard integrations?
• Is there enough flexibility to adapt the system to your own liking?
• What is the future plan of the company behind the software?
• What about support?



2. Challenges, bottlenecks and how to overcome them

Many resellers face challenges when it comes to selling software. They have to deal with some bottlenecks that hinder their progress. We'll cover the most common challenges below.



Lack of knowledge

One of these is the lack of knowledge and expertise in the specific software they are trying to sell. This is where an easy SaaS solution comes in. With a quick integration, resellers can see the potential in this product and set up the needed information to help them sell the software. So it’s important to know what you are getting into before you make the commitment.

This also applies to reselling a PIM system. You first have to gain some product knowledge and then it takes quite a bit of time to find and keep new customers. So you have to believe in the potential and want to go for it. The great thing is, once someone is a customer, they will remain a customer for many years to come.



Finding new customers

Not all businesses are created equal. Some require more time and investment than others to get off the ground. It is very important to invest in a business that has potential for growth and sustainability. Usually, companies want to use software for a longer period of time. That's why they normally won't decide to start in one day. Keep this in mind when finding new customers. It can take several weeks or months before someone starts.

Especially when it comes to a new way of working. For this it is very important that you can clearly explain to the customer what it will ultimately yield and why it is essential to use your software. Only if the customer is aware of how your solution makes his work easier, will he consider using with your system.



Retaining new customers

Often people think that selling the PIM system is the final result. Nothing could be further from the truth. Of course it is a very important part, but actually the sales process only ends when the customer uses it satisfactorily. This can sometimes take a few weeks longer after the signature. The point is that the customer knows how to use the system completely.

This way you are able to retain new customers and make a profit. So draw up a good plan to guide the customer by, for example, calling several times over a few weeks. In this way you confirm to the customer that they have made the right choice, and that you are the right company to deal with.

3. Tips for a flawless sales process

The first step in the process of selling software to businesses is to understand the needs of your potential customer. You need to know what they want, how they work, and what their business goals are. In order to do this, you will need to conduct an investigation into your potential customer’s business. The most important thing is to find out more about their industry and the challenges that they face. You should also find out about their competitors and their customers, because this will help you understand what matters most for them. If possible, speak with some people who work at the company so that you can get a better understanding of how they operate on a day-to-day basis.

To resell a PIM System, it is useful if you already have businesses as customers. For example, if you are a cash register supplier or IT service provider. The next step is to build a landing page or website to showcase your solution. On here you can provide more information about it, so that companies can orient themselves. Make sure that people can contact you for a demonstration.

Than the process begins with the sales team reaching out to key stakeholders. They include the CEO, finance, IT, marketing, HR and retail partners. Each stakeholder is addressed individually and their needs are assessed by the sales team member. The steps in this process could also be divided into an informational meeting or a presentation outlining the customer problem and the solution that you provide.

Because the sales process usually takes a bit longer, it is interesting to keep a good record of all activities and conversations. This way the sales process is not delayed or unnecessarily complicated.



4. PIM software implemenation

The process of implementing PIM software starts with understanding the company's current situation and then deciding on the best solution for it. It is important to decide what are the goals that the company wants to achieve through this implementation. This will help in choosing a right PIM software for them. We have written a separate article for the implementation of new software.



5. Is technical knowledge important?

No, technical knowledge is not important for reselling software. Software resellers do not need to know the technical aspects of the software. They just need to know how to sell it and how to offer support for it. Of course, knowledge of coding is useful for programming extra functionality yourself or offering additional services, such as links with other systems.



6. Example of reselling a PIM System

Now let's look at a practical example of reselling a PIM system. Before offering the system as a white label solution, we sold it to retailers ourselves. The first step is of course building and setting up the network. This is arranged within a few days with our software, but in the beginnin it took us several years to build it.

Furthermore, it is important for the success of the solution that both suppliers and retailers use the central database. However, it is wise to focus on the retailers first. Tell them that you put the general product information of suppliers in the system for them. You only have to do this once and it will be there for everyone immediately. Nowadays there is also the functionality to import this themselves.

You will notice that after 50 connected retailers, more suppliers become interested in joining. Because they get interesting benefits like real-time insight into their dealers stock and sales. Ultimately, you need to invest less in marketing and sales. So especially the first 10 customers are the biggest challenge.