Consolidation / Consolidating Product Information

In brief: Consolidation means bringing together and cleansing product information from different sources so that each product exists only once in the system. The result is a single, reliable source of data (single source of truth).

What consolidation involves

• Identifying duplicates: finding and merging records for the same product listed under different numbers or names.
• Standardising data: aligning naming conventions, units and values.
• Defining authoritative sources: which system provides the definitive value for each attribute?
• Resolving conflicts: which value takes precedence when the ERP system and the supplier report different weights?

Why consolidation matters

Without consolidation, conflicting information ends up in the online shop, retailers receive duplicate records for the same product, and every correction has to be made in multiple places. This step requires considerable effort, particularly during the initial migration to a new PIM system and for retailers with many suppliers. However, it lays the foundation for all subsequent steps, such as enrichment and distribution.

Example

A retailer imports data from three suppliers that each list the same screw under their own product numbers. Using the GTIN, the PIM system identifies the duplicate records, merges the data into a single product record and retains the supplier numbers as references.

See also

• Collection
• Enrichment
• Master Data Management (MDM)
• Product data quality
• What is ISCM?