The challenge
A consumer goods company operating in 40 countries wanted a way to quickly syndicate accurate product information to its 500 ecommerce partners and distributors—and to confirm that existing listings were up to date. The challenge? Product information was scattered across multiple systems: ERP master data systems such as SAP R/3, as well as SAP EHS, SharePoint systems and even desktops. And attributes, including product titles, descriptions, dimensions, package counts and features, were not consistent across countries.
The lack of a single source of truth for product information created cascading problems. New product listings had to wait until the marketing and brand teams hunted through multiple systems to find the correct information and images. Different descriptions for the same product led to inaccurate sales reports and forecasts. Auditing ecommerce sites for out-of-date information took six to eight months, exposing the company to legal and compliance risks. These challenges would multiply as the company introduced more products in more countries through more channels in more languages. To overcome these problems, the company turned to Cognizant's CPG digital solutions expertise.