"In 5 Steps to Product Content Syndication: Definition, Benefits, and Tools"

1. What is Product-Content-Syndication?
2. Product-Content-Syndication in industry and trade
3. These advantages come with Product-Content-Syndication with
4. In 5 steps to Product-Content-Syndication
5. These tools help you with Product-Content-Syndication
6. Conclusion

Companies are increasingly being offered opportunities to market their products. Especially in Digital Commerce more and more sales channels are opening up - from their own online shop to social media channels like Instagram or TikTok to the Sales App. Besides their own channels, however, the offer from trade is also becoming increasingly exciting for brands. Whether online marketplaces like Amazon or the online platforms of large retail companies like MediaMarkt and Zalando: The number of possible interaction points between brand and consumer*in is continuously increasing. And the trade is giving its brands more and more creative freedom for their own product detail pages with possibilities like Enhanced Content and Retail Media.

On the one hand, this enables companies to make the Customer Journey much more complex and thus increase the sales potential. On the other hand, it also means a higher complexity in communication processes. This applies all the more so as each touchpoint - whether physical or digital - brings with it its own rules, which must be taken into account in communication design. For this reason, the fact that communication must be fast and flexible today increases the pressure on companies. Marketing, sales, and customer service, in particular, are therefore increasingly demanding effective solutions.

This is where Product-Content-Syndication kicks in. In this article, we provide comprehensive guidance on this topic and explain what major benefits it offers for businesses. In addition, you will learn how to implement Product-Content-Syndication and get to know some of the most important solutions in this area.

What is Product-Content-Syndication?

At its core, Product-Content-Syndication is about distributing Product Content to all intended channels. Since the channel landscape of companies can look very different, there are also various types of solutions on the provider side.

While some providers concentrate on the syndication itself, others offer an end-to-end solution for the entire product lifecycle. Some providers support the delivery of Product Content specifically to online retail, while others have high expertise in the Global Data Synchronisation Network (GDSN) or offer specific solutions for social media. In general, Product-Content-Syndication links the internal digital value chain with the relevant output channels and thus ensures effective distribution of Product Content in (E-)Commerce.

Source: Product Content Syndication Report 2023, The Group of Analysts (TGOA)

Product-Content-Syndication in industry and trade

Especially in the industry and trade scenario Product-Content-Syndication plays a major role. Manufacturers face the big challenge of not only bringing their Product Content into their own communication channels but also sharing it with their trading partners. Trade plays an extremely important role in brand communication - by now, online retailers are more important for a large part of consumers when searching for products than search engines.

Each trade partner typically has its own requirements for the product data and digital content to be transmitted - similar to the own sales channels as well. Frequently, this information is still sent to the trade in Excel spreadsheets, where they are checked and imported after approval. Many manufacturers also use the supplier portals of the retailers to directly enter or syndicate the data.

However, there is another exchange scenario: So-called global data pools such as the GDSN, which are based on standardized communication rules, offer industry and retail the opportunity to provide particularly effective marketing-relevant product data, or to use it. Manufacturers syndicate their Product Content directly into a global data pool, where all their trade partners have direct access and can use the Product Content for their product detail pages and campaigns.

These advantages come with Product-Content-Syndication with

Product-Content-Syndication is the foundation for cross-channel product communication and the link in the data exchange between industry and trade and as such, offers big advantages for both sides. Essentially, the benefits concern the following aspects:

1. Speed: Time-to-market is becoming an increasingly important competitive factor. Whoever launches products early increases not only their sales opportunities but also the potential to position themselves as a brand for exactly this offer. Of course, the trade also profits from product sales and strengthens its role in the supply chain with a fast product launch. Product-Content-Syndication promotes a fast and effective data exchange between industry and trade, and thus directly reduces the Time-to-Market.
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2. Quality: The Product Content not only has to be available quickly. It also has to be of a quality that follows the channel-specific communication rules and suggests a high-quality offer to the consumers. This creates attention and supports brand building in the long run. Product-Content-Syndication solutions ensure the required quality of the data through numerous validation rules and test mechanisms, thus ensuring efficient communication processes.
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3. Automation: The manual effort of data exchange between industry and trade is significantly shortened by automated processes within the framework of Product-Content-Syndication. This enables both data senders and data receivers to reduce their internal costs and use resources more economically.

In 5 steps to Product-Content-Syndication

1. Product data: Product-Content-Syndication is the last step in the digital value chain, the Information Supply Chain. However, the basis for perfect product communication is set much earlier. In Product Information Management (PIM), the product data as well as description and marketing texts are recorded, maintained, and provided. In order for the product messages to later cover the requirements of all communication channels, the quality rules should already be set up in the PIM system and validated accordingly. As a Single Source of Truth for media-neutral product information, the use of PIM systems is therefore worthwhile early on.
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2. Digital content: Product information is only one side of the coin. Today, products can no longer be marketed without high-quality media such as product images, videos, or graphics elements. This is especially true for the fast-moving and overcrowded information landscape in E-Commerce. Digital Asset Management (DAM) ensures effective management and provision of these media content in all desired formats, sizes, and sections.
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3. Product Content: Only the networking of correct, current, and comprehensive product information with the right media content leads to ready-to-use Product Content. Therefore, a deep integration of PIM and DAM is essential for effective and flexible product communication. Many providers therefore offer both software areas in the same solution and thus facilitate the provision of high-quality Product Content.
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4. Channel Management: The Channel Management, a task usually taken over by PIM or Product-Content systems, is responsible for managing the relevant output channels. In order to also take into account future marketing strategies, the Channel Management must be designed flexibly and be able to easily integrate new communication channels.
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5. Syndication & Analytics: In Product-Content-Syndication, it is ultimately about the active syndication of the prepared Product Content into the respective channels. However, the Information Supply Chain is not yet at the end: It is important to measure the reactions of the consumers at the touchpoints to the product messages, to analyze the results and let the derived insights flow back into the digital value chain. For example, by optimizing product descriptions in the PIM or linking alternative product images with a certain channel. Own sales channels like the online shop or the app usually have extensive analytics functions. Special Digital-Shelf-Analytics tools also take over this task for third-party platforms like online retailers and marketplaces and often even allow performance comparisons with competing products.

Source: Product Content Management Life Cycle, The Group of Analysts (TGOA)

These tools help you with Product-Content-Syndication

Depending on which data recipients and communication channels you serve and how your Product-Content-Management is currently set up, the following solutions are worth a look.

Akeneo

With Akeneo PIM data exports can be individually tailored to different data recipients. The system ensures quality-assured product data that can be shared directly with retailers and marketplaces.

These Information-Supply-Chain areas are covered by Akeneo:

• Product Information Management (PIM)
• Product-Content-Syndication (marketplaces and retailers)

Atrify

Atrify is a GDSN data pool with a focus on the FMCG and Healthcare sector and was taken over by 1WorldSync in May 2023. In addition to data exchange via the GDSN, Atrify offers a range of Product-Content-Management solutions and services.

These Information-Supply-Chain areas are covered by Atrify:

• Digital Asset Management (DAM)
• Product-Content-Syndication (marketplaces, retailers, and GDSN)

BYRD – theplatform

BYRD – theplatform is the Product-Content-Life-Cycle-Management solution from GDSN expert BAYARD. With its own data pool and plenty of industry experience, BYRD supports both industry and trade with its comprehensive solution.

These Information-Supply-Chain areas are covered by BYRD:

• Product Information Management (PIM)
• Digital Asset Management (DAM)
• Master Data Management (MDM)
• Product-Content-Syndication (marketplaces, retailers and GDSN)

Contentserv

Contentserv enables the direct data exchange between manufacturers and their retailers, among others via marketplaces and commerce platforms like Amazon, BigCommerce, Magento, Salesforce, Commerce Cloud or Shopify.

These Information-Supply-Chain areas are covered by Contentserv:

• Product Information Management (PIM)
• Digital Asset Management (DAM)
• Product-Content-Syndication (marketplaces, retailers and social media)

entitys.io

entitys.io offers a cloud-based PIM solution that was specifically developed for the needs in B2B and therefore specifically supports the area of supplier and data onboarding.

These Information-Supply-Chain areas are covered by entitys.io:

• Product Information Management (PIM)
• Master Data Management (MDM)
• Product-Content-Syndication (marketplaces and retailers)

inriver

inriver offers a SaaS platform for the area of product information management and focuses on the entire value chain from data onboarding to their distribution and evaluation of product information at the touchpoint.

These Information-Supply-Chain areas are covered by inriver:

• Product Information Management (PIM)
• Product-Content-Syndication (marketplaces, retailers and social media)
• Digital Shelf Analytics (DSA)

Pimcore

Pimcore is an open-source platform for product content management and integrates with over 2500 sales channels, including Google, Amazon, Alibaba, Facebook and Instagram.

These Information-Supply-Chain areas are covered by Pimcore:

• Product Information Management (PIM)
• Digital Asset Management (DAM)
• Content Management
• E-Commerce
• Product-Content-Syndication (marketplaces, retailers and social media)

Productsup

With its Product-to-Consumer platform and a strong network of complementary technology partners, Productsup already supports 900 global brands in syndicating tailor-made product content into every channel - including social media and the GDSN.

These Information-Supply-Chain areas are covered by Productsup:

• Product-Content-Syndication (marketplaces, retailers, social media and GDSN)
• Analytics

Salsify

Salsify offers Product-Experience Management solutions for manufacturers and retailers and supports data exchange between both areas with its own GDSN data pool.

These Information-Supply-Chain areas are covered by Salsify:

• Product Information Management (PIM)
• Product-Content-Syndication (marketplaces, retailers, social media and GDSN)
• Digital Shelf Analytics (DSA)

Syndigo

With its Active Content Engine, Syndigo offers an end-to-end ecosystem of complementary software solutions for the entire digital value chain- up to their own GDSN data pool.

These Information-Supply-Chain areas are covered by Syndigo:

• Product Information Management (PIM)
• Master Data Management (MDM)
• Digital Asset Management (DAM)
• Product-Content-Syndication (marketplaces, retailers, social media and GDSN)

Conclusion

Product communication is becoming increasingly complex - this applies to both manufacturers and retail. At the same time, expectations of the speed of processes and the quality of product content are rising. With a growing product range or new target markets, this task cannot be accomplished without suitable infrastructure. In addition to modern technologies such as AI to increase the efficiency and quality of data processes, it is, first of all, important to build a fundamental system architecture that covers the entire digital value chain .

Product-Content-Syndication is playing an increasingly important role here and ensures that the Product Content prepared in the PIM and DAM is effectively, context-specifically, and reliably delivered to all output channels and data recipients. The provider market is as heterogeneous as the requirements of the companies are individual. This means for the system selection that there first needs to be a very clear picture of the current as well as future communication strategy.