At last year’s ASA Strategic Planning Retreat, volunteers discussed the idea of a “product data library” that could be the sole source of manufacturer product data to help enable distributors to compete against online-first, big-box retailers, and other nontraditional competitors. Subsequently, ASA convened a task group to continue further exploration of this idea.
The task group reported that since there are existing efforts attempting to solve this issue, ASA should not duplicate efforts. Instead, it was suggested that ASA explore the possibility of standardized data set(s) to facilitate a timely, predictable and efficient way to receive manufacturer product data for use by distributors in PIMs, ERPs and eCommerce systems.