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Data Migration from PIM Systems Made Easy

Thomas Kern

October 9, 2026

8 min.

Tips for Keeping Parallel Operation as Short as Possible

When migrating a PIM system, it is necessary to replace the PIM system itself, as well as all existing output channels, interfaces, and functions, in a timely manner to keep the (time-consuming) parallel operation as short as possible. I would like to share from practical experience which approach has proven effective in this regard.

In principle, the process of data migration to initially populate a PIM system does not differ significantly depending on whether it is done from an existing PIM system (“data migration”) or from scratch—that is, in cases where no PIM system yet exists. In both cases, the result must, of course, be the same. However, there are a few details to keep in mind if you’ve been working with a PIM system for years.

Check for optimization potential in the data model, ERP interface, and data exports

First things first: Nothing is so good that it can’t be improved. This also applies to data management with an existing PIM system:

ERP interface

In some cases, the existing PIM system did not even have an ERP interface, which resulted in item master data not being synchronized—particularly the status of products (active for sale, discontinued, blocked, etc.). In other cases, although an ERP interface had already been implemented, it wasn’t comprehensive enough, which also resulted in a lack of synchronization. Often, it’s also the case that many items relevant to product communication don’t exist in the ERP system at all, such as replacement parts or components of product sets.

data model

In most cases, it becomes apparent that the structuring and classification of product data can be optimized. On the one hand, this is because the “old” PIM system lacked certain functions (such as variant and inheritance logic). On the other hand, because over time certain “lessons learned” emerged regarding the (evolving) data model—specifically, how product data could be better structured if the system were to be rebuilt from scratch.

Derivations

When introducing the first PIM system—that is, starting from scratch—you have a one-time opportunity to expand the system step by step, output by output. For example, you start by connecting to the website, the online catalog, or the shop. Next comes the export to InDesign for printed sales documents or PDF documents. Then, trade partners are supplied with data, gradually in various formats such as Excel, BMEcat, ECLASS, and ETIM. Finally, interfaces to portals such as AUSSCHREIBEN.DE, CAD portals, or e-commerce ordering platforms like Amazon and nexmart are added. This step-by-step expansion described above is not possible during a data migration: All existing data exports must be converted promptly. The challenge here is that the converted data exports—especially the electronic ones—should ideally be compatible with the “old” export format so that adjustments and the associated effort can be avoided in the target system.

Use the most comprehensive interface possible to the ERP system

My first tip is to continuously retrieve as much existing data as possible from the ERP system via an interface. After all, not all data originating from the ERP system needs to be migrated from the “old” PIM system! Of course, this applies only to data for which the ERP system has data ownership. Incidentally, it’s absolutely essential to define data ownership for each piece of information: Where should the information be maintained in the first place? In the ERP system, in the PIM system, etc. This information should then be maintained exclusively in that system and accessed from there. The advantage is that you don’t have to process and import data that can be retrieved on an ongoing basis—this saves a lot of work.

Which item master data should be checked for a “comprehensive” ERP interface:

PIM relevance of items—that is, which items are actually necessary for product communication?
Item numbers and designations for identification
(Multilingual) sales texts
Item status, discontinuation date, and successor items for the product development process
Technical data, if available, for the product description
EAN, weight, customs tariff number, country of origin, base unit of measure, packaging data, etc., for logistics
Price data, including validity periods for gross and customer price lists

Optimize the data model

The opportunity to optimize the data model is unique when making a change and should definitely be taken advantage of. The following factors are taken into account:

Your own experience and knowledge of existing shortcomings in the data model. These are often quite common issues, such as the use of selection lists with predefined entries, the correct assignment of data types and the separation of numbers from units, the splitting of min-max attributes, and the labeling of language-neutral content.
A comparison with the capabilities of the new PIM system, such as the use of variant and inheritance logic, class creation with required-field specifications, the assignment of descriptive images and text to attribute values, the formula-based conversion of numbers to U.S. units, and the use of placeholders.

For all derivations, check how they can be adapted

For existing electronic exports, the following questions arise:

First, you must decide whether target systems—such as websites, online catalogs, or shops—will continue to be used for the next few years, or whether a migration, relaunch, or similar change is already planned.
Are there other relevant target systems that could not be integrated so far for technical reasons? For example, configurators, classifications (ECLASS, ETIM), portals, or similar? If so, it naturally makes sense to include these in the planning as well.
From a technical standpoint: Which interfaces and formats have been used so far? What “mappings” are necessary to ensure compatibility with existing integrations after the transition?

The following questions arise regarding the output of printed sales documents or PDFs that are already produced fully automatically using InDesign:

How can the existing templates and placement logic for tables and pages continue to be used? Ideally, they already exist in InDesign.
Where and to what extent does the content of the documents differ from the PIM data? Ideally, all content is already contained in the “old” PIM system and can therefore be easily migrated as well.

Tips for Data Migration

As already described in the section on data extraction, a step-by-step approach is not recommended. All data must be migrated “in one go” to keep the parallel operation mentioned above as short as possible. The advantage of this is that you have a complete overview of all the data, which makes the process more efficient and allows you to identify structural data issues more systematically.

From a technical standpoint, I would definitely recommend Excel for the data migration phase. For the simple reason that you can adjust, optimize, and supplement the data there. Incidentally, the ideal scenario is when the Excel migration files are based on a template (XML Schema XSD), which enables validations and conversions to XML.

However, before data migration can begin, you must verify whether the data can even be exported from the “old” PIM system in Excel format. Based on my practical experience, I can confirm that this has always been the case so far.

Using AI for Data Migration

Finally, I’d like to share my experiences with AI-assisted data migration. In my opinion, AI can only reach its full potential when the source data is already of high quality. Can AI also be used for data optimization? Hmm, theoretically yes, but the question is whether it’s worth the effort!? Data migration typically takes several months on average. So AI might save a few weeks. On the other hand, you have to keep in mind that a correction run is needed, and corrections are often more time-consuming than manual processing. Therefore, I would recommend doing most of the data optimization manually and using AI in the context of data migration—for example, to check data quality and for simple tasks such as separating units from numbers, extracting text modules, and so on.

Conclusion

If you already have a PIM system, it’s very easy to export the data that’s already stored centrally - data that you essentially “just” need to optimize for the new PIM system or, even more simply, retrieve directly from the ERP system. The biggest hurdle is transitioning the data feeds in a timely manner without having to modify the target systems. This requires that the provider of the new PIM system possess the necessary detailed planning, experience, and resources. Only migrate the existing PIM system if you have a realistic, detailed plan in hand that has thoroughly addressed the issues of the data model, the ERP interface, and data exports.