The top 5 PIM trends reshaping e-commerce in 2025

Trend 1: AI-driven automation for PIM

The fact that ‘AI’ features in this top 5 is unlikely to surprise most readers, with AI and machine learning already making their mark on how companies manage their product data.

According to Gartner’s guide, AI and GenAI are having a transformative effect on PIM. It play important roles in making data classification, content enrichment, and error detection in PIM far easier and quicker.

For example, to enrich content, an AI-enhanced PIM system can scan competitor websites, analyze search trends, and then suggest SEO-optimized, contextually relevant product descriptions. This saves time and also enhances product discoverability.

Online retailers that harness AI and GenAI — particularly those with large inventories, like Amazon — are saving countless hours on what were once very repetitive, manual tasks such as writing product descriptions, localizing content, and checking tagging for consistency across sales channels.

Automating these tasks can unlock previously untapped benefits for a brand, such as boosting customer satisfaction levels.

Related article: PIM + AI: The benefits you should know

Trend 2: Product data synchronization for omnichannel

Today’s consumers tend to shop across multiple channels. From marketplaces like Amazon and eBay to social commerce platforms like Instagram and TikTok Shops. In short, they desire a superior product experience.

This shift in buying behaviour has made real-time product data synchronization a necessity rather than a luxury. Industry research has highlighted time and time again that brands that embrace omnichannel PIM solutions enjoy better ecommerce conversion rates and higher levels of customer satisfaction.

It means that it’s more critical than ever that your PIM solution delivers when it comes to omnichannel consistency. A modern PIM system will ensure that updates such as stock availability and price changes are automatically synchronized across all sales channels in real-time — meaning that there’s less chance of frustrating customers and losing sales.

Related case study: Learn how Office Depot enhanced its operational efficiency by using inriver to ensure consistency across its customer touchpoints

Trend 3: A growing need to manage product data like a B2C

The line between B2B and B2C product data management is becoming more and more blurred. As B2B brands are discovering that they have many of the same challenges that B2C organizations have long grappled with.

From keeping product data consistent across multiple digital channels to meeting unabating customer expectations for personalized, seamless shopping experiences; more and more B2B businesses are finding that — without a cutting-edge PIM system in place — they’re steeped in upstream challenges like poor data governance, siloed systems, and excessive manual effort.

Gartner acknowledges in its guide that PIM is becoming a critical technology for B2B vendors that want to remain competitive, meet customer expectations, and achieve operational excellence.

Related article: 3 B2C ideas to enhance your B2B commerce strategy

 
Trend 4: Sustainability and compliance-focused PIM

It would be fair to say that ‘sustainability’ has long since stopped being just a trend. Driven by the fact that consumers now demand greater transparency in these areas, most brands now operate their businesses while being mindful of ESG aspects like product sourcing, materials, and production.

As the Gartner Guide states, “Trust is frequently eroded when there is a disconnect between what an organization claims and what it actually does.”

It means that PIM has a vital role to play when it comes to evidencing a brand’s commitment to operating in a sustainable, compliant way. A PIM system can be leveraged to track and manage a brand’s ESG-related data; providing businesses with clear ‘proof points’ to communicate to customers.

For example, PIM can enable brands to store and then display eco-certifications such as ‘Fair Trade’, ‘Carbon Neutral’, and ‘Organic’) on product pages.

It can also help businesses comply with region-specific regulations by managing product safety, data on materials, and packaging requirements.

This approach provides transparency throughout the supply chain. And it can positively impact sales due to customers feeling more informed in their buying decisions.

Related case study: Read how Lantmännen uses inriver to power a fully circular product journey

Trend 5: PIM integration powering better AR and VR shopping experiences

Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) continue to play their part in transforming e-commerce — particularly in the fashion and home decor sectors. With this, comes the need for ever-richer product data.

As Gartner notes in its PIM guide, PIM systems need to support rich media assets like 3D models, high-resolution images, and interactive content so that brands can provide the enhanced product visualization experiences many customers have now come to expect.

It means that, as a priority, businesses should be investing in future-ready PIM solutions that can seamlessly integrate with AI and customer experience technologies.

Related article: How to build inspiring product experiences with AR and VR

Now is the time to evaluate your PIM strategy and embrace these transformative trends

In its recent Market Guide, Gartner recognized inriver’s PIM system as a solution that drives efficiency throughout the entire product lifecycle. Gartner also highlighted our leadership in sustainability initiatives such as ESG reporting, and we were acknowledged for our readiness regarding the upcoming Digital Product Passport (DPP) legislation.

Make sure that your business is ready for the next wave of e-commerce innovation — request an inriver PIM demo today.