The Underestimated Costs: Why Not Implementing a (Modern) PIM System Can End Up Being Very Expensive

Many medium-sized industrial companies still vastly underestimate the importance of PIM. Many decision-makers think: “Our Excel spreadsheets, our ERP system, and the data and expertise within our individual departments are really enough—we’ll save ourselves the investment; after all, it’s worked in the past!” However, our experience from numerous discussions with customers, partners, and prospective clients shows that the exact opposite is true: The hidden costs of “carrying on as before” usually turn out to be significantly higher than the cost of implementing a Product Information Management system.

In this post, I’d like to show you openly and in detail where money, time, and opportunities are being wasted. This issue has become particularly urgent due to the Digital Product Passport (DPP), which is gradually becoming mandatory for many product groups. Anyone who isn’t prepared now risks having to deal with very costly - and perhaps even frantic - “rework” later on.

What factors lead to expensive, ineffective, and unproductive work?

1. The daily madness: Time (and patience) wasted due to a lack of data integration

It all starts with something seemingly trivial: Your employees in marketing, sales, and product data management spend a large portion of their workday gathering, copying, adapting, and repeatedly verifying data.

Typical examples from everyday life:

• Technical data is pulled from the ERP system, updated in Excel, adjusted again for the catalog, and reformatted yet again for the online shop.
• Images and documents are scattered across different folders, versions, and formats - always in search of the current file.
• For each new language, everything has to be compiled all over again and sent to an agency or translator.
• When changes occur (new price, updated approval, new feature), the updates must be manually applied across all channels.

This quickly adds up to the workload of several full-time employees—depending on the company’s size and the complexity of its assortment. On top of that, there are constant inquiries from the sales team (“Which piece of information is correct now?”), endless rounds of corrections for catalogs, and frustration throughout the entire team.

With a modern PIM system like crossbase, you enter the data once, centrally, and correctly. After that, it’s automatically current and available everywhere—whether for print, the website, marketplaces, or the Digital Product Passport. This isn’t just a small efficiency boost; it transforms your entire daily workflow.

2. Lost revenue due to incomplete or inconsistent data

Customers make decisions extremely quickly these days. If important technical details are missing, images are blurry, descriptions are contradictory, or there’s no way to compare products, the potential buyer is gone.

Specific consequences that we observe time and again or that are reported to us:

• High cart abandonment rates in online shops
• Reduced visibility and fewer opportunities in tenders and on marketplaces
• Less cross-selling and up-selling because relationships (accessories, replacement parts, variants) aren’t presented transparently
• Negative feedback from customers and partners, as well as longer sales cycles due to follow-up questions and uncertainties
• Lost international orders because country-specific requirements, standards, and approvals are not accurately illustrated

3. Growth becomes a hindrance

With increasing product variant diversity, new product lines, or the expansion of international activities, an “Excel-based” system or an outdated PIM system can quickly “collapse.”

Typical problems:

• Confusing product structures (parts lists, configurations, relationships)
• Country-specific requirements (standards, approvals, languages, prices) are difficult to manage efficiently
• Time-to-market for new products takes too long
• Integration of acquired products is not possible

A modern, scalable PIM system grows with your business. You model complex relationships once in a central location and can then deploy them across all channels in a flash. This makes your company significantly more agile and future-proof.

4. Regulatory risks and the Digital Product Passport (DPP)

Now things are getting interesting (and expensive, if you do nothing). The Digital Product Passport is a central element of the EU Green Deal and the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR). Starting around 2027, many products will be required to carry a digital passport containing comprehensive lifecycle information.

This includes, among other things:

• Detailed material and substance composition
• Carbon footprint and environmental data
• Information on repairability, durability, and recyclability
• Origin, supply chain, and disposal instructions
• Technical documents and certificates

This data must be accessible and current throughout the entire value chain—for manufacturers, retailers, consumers, and recycling facilities.

Without a centralized PIM system, the following risks arise:

• High retrofitting costs shortly before the deadline
• Liability and compliance risks due to incorrect or incomplete information
• Disadvantages in tenders and with sustainability-conscious customers
• Time-consuming manual compilation for each product passport

A good PIM system serves as the central data hub for the DPP. You enter the information in a structured manner and can make it available automatically. crossbase provides the necessary features for this—flexible attributes, robust classification options, and clean API interfaces.

5. “Technical debt” and high IT costs

Over the years, many companies have built up a veritable jungle of systems: ERP systems, various shops, Excel files, agency tools, separate media databases, and so on. Every new requirement (new marketplace, new website, new country) leads to new interfaces and a great deal of effort.

The result: high maintenance costs, dependence on external service providers, and a constant risk of inconsistencies and outages.

crossbase takes a different approach: a unified database as the foundation, with integrated modules for PIM, MAM/DAM, translation management, fully automated print workflows, and more. This drastically reduces interface issues (!) and makes operations more predictable and cost-effective—whether you’re working on-premises, in a private cloud, or as SaaS.

6. The biggest costs: Missed opportunities

“Counterintuitive,” but true: The most expensive things are actually the things you don’t do:

• No fast, automated creation of high-quality catalogs and data sheets
• No truly effective product finders or configurators for your customers
• No AI support for content creation and optimization
• A weaker position on sustainability issues and in competitive bids
• Slower response to market changes and customer requests

While you’re still struggling with manual processes, your competitors are gaining a real edge with modern technology.

Why many industrial companies choose crossbase

crossbase isn’t just PIM software - it’s a true all-in-one solution developed specifically for the needs of the industrial sector. In addition to traditional PIM, it offers powerful features for media data (MAM/DAM), translations, print automation, e-commerce integrations, and much more.

The following features are particularly valued:

• The clear illustration of complex product structures (variants, parts lists, relationships, approvals)
• High data quality thanks to a single source of truth
• Strong support for international markets and multilingual capabilities
• Preparation for requirements such as the Digital Product Passport
• High levels of automation for print and digital
• Personalized, reliable support and transparent costs

Many customers in mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, and other industries report how much more streamlined and efficient their processes have become as a result.

Carrying on as usual is the most expensive decision in the long run

The hidden costs of not using a modern PIM are high - and they will continue to rise due to the Digital Product Passport and increasing market demands. A successful PIM implementation typically pays for itself relatively quickly through time savings, increased revenue, reduced risks, and new opportunities.
This is also clear, and it’s a point I’d like to raise here: Many decision-makers are all too familiar with this - the fear of choosing the wrong (PIM) solution or launching an expensive project that ultimately fails to deliver the desired results often leads them to do nothing at all. After all, their own reputation is at stake.

So they stick with the status quo - even if it costs money every day and leaves employees frustrated. This is exactly where structured measures come in: A thorough potential analysis, clear requirements workshops, benchmarking visits to comparable companies, and a phased implementation strategy significantly reduce the risk. This transforms an uncertain gut decision into a well-founded, fact-based investment that quickly pays for itself.

Would you like to take a look at your current situation, with no obligation? We’d be happy to analyze your current processes and identify specific opportunities for cost savings, as well as a realistic path forward - including preparation for the DPP.