ProductHub FAQs

ProductHub helps businesses organise, improve and share product information. It brings details such as product identifiers, descriptions, images and specifications into a structured record.

The aim is to reduce repeated work. Instead of rebuilding the same information for each request, your business can maintain approved facts and reuse them where supported.

Better records help customers and trading partners understand what you make, supply or sell.

ProductHub is for businesses that need clear, useful product information. The current Foundation Membership programme focuses on brand owners, including smaller businesses managing their own products.

Manufacturers can improve the information they provide. Retailers and distributors can benefit from more reliable information from suppliers as access expands.

Visit Who It’s Forto see the current rollout, or contact us about your business.

Product information management, or PIM, is useful when keeping product details current becomes hard work. Business size alone does not decide whether you need it.

You may recognise these signs: • Staff enter the same details into several systems. • Customers or trading partners receive conflicting information. • New listings wait for missing images or specifications. • One person holds most of the product knowledge.

Start with the problem you need to solve. A focused improvement can matter more than a long feature list.

Spreadsheets are useful for collecting information and managing simple lists. Problems grow when several copies need to stay aligned.

ProductHub focuses on maintaining structured product records that can support reuse. The aim is to give product information a clear home and reduce conflicting copies.

A spreadsheet can still form part of your process. The key is deciding which record is approved and how changes reach the people using it.

ProductHub focuses on product information. Your other systems handle tasks such as orders, payments, stock movements and accounts.

These roles can work together. For example, a product description belongs with the product record. Available stock and selling price belong with the relevant seller’s offer.

You do not need to assume a full systems replacement. Confirm the data flow and supported connections before deciding what should change.

A useful record identifies the exact product and answers practical questions about it. Depending on the product, that may include: • Brand, model and product identifier. • Description, category and intended use. • Size, colour, material and other variant details. • Product and packed dimensions, with clear units. • Images, instructions and relevant documents. • Pack quantity and included items.

Choose the details your customers and trading partners need. Confirm which fields and file types your ProductHub setup supports.

No. Start by bringing together the reliable information you already have. Then identify the gaps that prevent a useful listing or partner handover.

Focus first on product identity, the correct variant and essential details. Ask suppliers for missing facts, or check the actual product where practical.

Keep unknown information visible as a gap. Guessing a weight, ingredient or specification can create more work later.

Yes. Existing spreadsheets can provide a starting point for ProductHub onboarding.

Before importing, check column names, product identifiers, units and duplicate records. Separate product facts from temporary prices and stock quantities. Keep leading zeros in identifiers.

Confirm the current import template and supported fields before preparing a large file. Testing a small, representative sample helps reveal issues before they affect the full catalogue.

Keep each distinct variant and pack clear. A shirt in a different size, or a carton containing several units, may need different identifying details.

Do not attach one variant’s image or measurements to another. Record whether information describes an individual item, a multipack or a shipping carton.

Confirm the required product structure before importing. This helps customers and trading partners identify the exact item being offered.

Product information describes the item itself. Examples include its brand, model, materials, standard pack contents and dimensions.

A seller’s offer describes a particular sale. That includes price, available stock, location, condition and delivery or collection terms.

Keeping these separate makes product facts easier to reuse. One retailer’s clearance price or damaged carton should not change the description of every unit of that product.

Assign someone in your business to review and maintain the information you provide. A structured system supports that work, but does not remove the need to check facts.

Use reliable sources, such as approved specifications, packaging and supplier documents. Record where important details came from and when they were checked.

When information conflicts, resolve the difference before sharing it as an approved fact.

No. A barcode can carry an identifier that helps match a product. The identifier alone does not supply every description, image, measurement or technical detail.

A successful match also does not prove that all linked information is current or complete. Check the exact model, variant and pack before reusing details.

Treat identification as the starting point. Build the useful product record around it.

Use content you own or have permission to use for the intended purpose. Confirm any limits on sharing that content with other businesses or publishing it elsewhere.

Check that each image and description matches the exact product and variant. Keep evidence of stock damage separate from standard product images.

Permission to access a record does not necessarily include permission to republish every part of it.

Update the approved source record first. Then identify which people, files and connected channels need the revised information.

Check that each destination received the change. An update in one system does not guarantee that every external copy has changed.

Assign responsibility for this process. Keep seller prices and stock levels on their own update schedule, alongside the systems that manage them.

Good product information is useful for its intended task. Check five things: • Complete: the required details are present. • Accurate: the facts agree with reliable evidence. • Consistent: the fields describe the same product and pack. • Current: the information reflects the relevant version. • Traceable: the source and reviewer are known.

A filled field is not proof of accuracy. Review both what the record contains and how those facts were established.

It means preparing and maintaining approved product facts so they can be reused. The aim is to avoid recreating the same description, measurements and images for each request.

Different destinations still have their own requirements. You may need to map fields, adjust image formats or add channel-specific details.

Reuse depends on available connections and permissions. Confirm the route for each destination and check that updates arrive correctly.

The available route depends on your platform, account and the information you need to exchange. A connection may involve a supported integration, an approved data file or additional setup.

Before choosing a workflow, confirm the destination, required fields, update frequency and any extra costs.

Tell us which systems you use, so the supported options can be checked. Do not assume that every platform has a ready-made connection.

Possibly. Start by identifying the work your current system already handles and the gaps that remain.

For example, your team may maintain good records internally but repeat work when sharing them. Assess whether ProductHub can help with that specific task through a supported workflow.

Keep a clear owner for each type of information. Two systems editing the same facts without agreed rules can create more confusion.

ProductHub’s role is to support product information. Your business remains responsible for its offers, stock and customer relationships.

Reusable product records can support selling channels and connected services. Those services have their own access, listings and trading terms.

For example, a clearance listing needs the seller’s price, stock and condition details alongside the product facts. Managing a product record does not automatically publish an offer or create a sale.

Clear, structured information gives search tools and AI systems better material to interpret when they can access it. Consistent identifiers, categories and specifications reduce ambiguity about the product.

That does not guarantee a search position, recommendation or sale. Access, indexing and each service’s own rules still matter.

The practical starting point is reliable product information. Check any AI-assisted content before publishing, especially where a generated answer adds new claims.

ProductHub and GS1 serve different roles. ProductHub focuses on managing and sharing product information. GS1 provides standards and identifier services through its member organisations.

A ProductHub subscription should not be treated as a GS1 licence. Confirm the identifiers and licensing your business needs with the relevant GS1 member organisation.

ProductHub’s GS1 licensing service is currently listed as coming soon. Check the GS1 licensing page for its status.

A suitable 2D barcode can identify a product and, with an appropriate link, connect people or systems to online information.

The barcode and the information behind it need separate attention. A successful scan does not help much if the destination contains missing or outdated details.

Start with an accurate product record. Then confirm the barcode, link and content requirements for your intended use and trading partners.

No. You can begin organising descriptions, identifiers, images and specifications using the packaging and systems you already have.

Barcode or packaging changes are a separate project. Plan those changes around your products, trading partners and relevant standards.

Improving your records now gives you better information to use when a packaging or channel change is needed.

Using a product information system does not, by itself, establish compliance. Requirements depend on the product, market and intended use.

Well-managed records can help you organise required facts and supporting documents. Your business still needs to verify the evidence and meet the applicable requirements.

Confirm the scope of any validation service. A format check or identifier match does not verify every product claim.

ProductHub’s current public rollout starts with brand owners. Retailer access is listed as the next stage, with other roles following.

Retailers and distributors can contact ProductHub to discuss their needs and check available access. Describe your suppliers, product range and the information you need.

Confirm the supported workflow before planning an integration or replacing an existing process.

Bring a small sample that reflects your real products. Include some complete records and some that need work.

It also helps to know: • Where your product information is stored. • Who creates, checks and updates it. • Which customers or channels need the information. • Which task causes the most delay or repeat work.

Choose one result you want to improve. That gives the discussion a useful focus.

The work depends on your records, product range and chosen workflow. A small, prepared set needs less work than a large catalogue with missing information.

Agree the scope before starting. Confirm who prepares files, checks facts, maps fields and tests any connections. Also confirm the onboarding and support included in your arrangement.

Begin with a manageable product set. Use that first step to establish the process before expanding.

See the pricing page for the published plans and product limits. Check the currency, taxes and included services when confirming your arrangement.

Consider the work around the subscription too. Data preparation, additional setup or a particular connection may affect the overall cost.

Discuss your product range and required workflow with ProductHub. Confirm any extra work and charges before proceeding.

Foundation Membership is ProductHub’s programme for early participants, with a current focus on brand owners. Members help shape the platform through practical use and feedback.

Participation is by application. Check the Foundation Membership page for the current offer, eligibility and application process.

Confirm the features available when you join, the support included and the terms that apply after any introductory period.

Measure a task before and after introducing the new process. Useful measures include: • Time spent preparing a product for a new channel. • Repeated data entry avoided. • Missing details resolved before a partner request. • Corrections needed after sharing information. • Time spent answering product questions.

Use the same task and a comparable product set. Allow for setup and learning time. Judge the result against your own starting point.