It’s official . . . 1SYNC and SA2 Worldsync have completed their joint venture, combining the two organizations into 1WorldSync – representing one global platform for trusted product data. There was a lot of “buzz” in the market immediately following the announcement, mostly boasting the size of the new entity. However, the true benefits that brand owners and other businesses will realize with the development and implementation of solutions to create a better-informed world is at the core of 1WorldSync. So, what does this really mean?
Trustworthy, High-Quality Data
1SYNC’s strengths across multiple industries, plus the global reach and strategic partnerships of SA2 Worldsync create the perfect union for delivering consistent, trustworthy, high-quality product data to successfully manage industry and consumer expectations. Moving forward 1WorldSync will continue the development and global expansion of solutions for Product Data Management and data synchronization.
Benefits for Brand Owners and Retailers
The 1WorldSync numbers themselves are very impressive – 15,000 businesses, over 40 countries, more than 7 million items synchronized. What that means for brand owners and retailers alike is truly global reach and easier access to trading partners and markets. Customers of technology vendors, who were certified solution providers to both 1SYNC and SA2 Worldsync prior to the joint venture, are able to take advantage of the new joint venture today.
Preliminary discussions with 1SYNC and SA2 Worldsync have revealed that there will be a single platform that both organizations will offer to start. Any migration that brand owners or retailers may need to perform should have very little impact on their day-to-day operations. A solution such as LANSA Data Sync Direct, with its long history in the Global Data Synchronization Network (GDSN) and certification with both merging organizations, can provide businesses seamless integration with 1WorldSync
Product Data Management + GDSN Services
The most exciting promise of the new organization will be its focus on providing Product Data Management to complement current GDSN services. As the explosion of demand for additional product data by consumers continues, the need to share different types of product data has become imperative for brand owners and retailers alike. The requirement to provide product images, nutritional and allergen information, warranty, instructional videos, consumer feedback, pricing, etc., is defining the difference between those brands that prosper and those that don’t. In a recent study conducted by GS1, 74% of global consumers felt that it was important that product information they receive be trustworthy.
Considering that a large majority of consumers today receive that information via smartphones or tablets, the possibility exists that product data they do receive is “crowd sourced” and therefore of questionable accuracy. Compounding the problem is the fact that 91% of mobile scans return incomplete product information and 87% of mobile scans do not return a product image at all. That means that consumers are not being provided with complete and accurate product information to make buying decisions.
It’s clear that these market drivers (i.e., the need for more complete and different product data and that is of the highest quality) have never been more critical. It’s essential that brand owners and businesses have the technology in place to directly address these new market realities. Additional data quality capabilities are key – as well as robust standards compliance and the ability to automatically normalize data around such attributes as currency, units of measure and date formats. Also, integration of your own data quality routines accelerates speed to market of critical product information. Finally, businesses need a foundation to adopt the GS1 Data Quality Framework for access to industry-developed best practices for improvement of their data quality.
Connecting to all identified systems and applications, and then mapping that information into a Product Information Management (PIM) solution ensures that your product data is at the right place, at the right time and of the right quality. Regardless of whether these systems are mission critical for the GDSN or required to satisfy increasing consumer demands, product data should be integrated, routed and automatically updated to minimize any disruption to your business.
Are You Ready?
So, as we enter into a new phase of product information exchange, with the demand for trustworthy product information extending beyond supply chain processes through to the customer, 1WorldSync will lead the way in this extensive shift. And for brand owners and businesses it’s imperative that they have industry-certified solutions in place for PIM, GDSN and Product Data Management to meet their needs today and into the future.
