Action
Actions are functions in the user interface which can be executed via the action menus.
Action menus
Action menus are part of the tool palettes. The most important action menu is located behind the
icon in the footer of almost every app. The composition of the action menu depends on the context. Thus, different actions are available in the different apps. In some cases, actions may be grayed out. This can mean that the corresponding actions are not applicable in the respective context, or that a prerequisite must be met to apply the action. For example, a prerequisite can be that a checkbox must be ticked. For more information, see action menu.
Active selection
You can select products of your choice and add them to the “active selection” to watch them. The active selection is displayed in the Selection widget. It can be added to a worklist using the action menu or opened in different apps of iPIM Portal using the Activate button.
Attributes
Attributes form the core of the iPIM data model. All characteristics of functions, lists, products, variants, items, digital assets, classifications, imports, exports, reports etc. are defined by attributes. Attribute maintenance is therefore an elementary part of product data maintenance.
Attribute profile
Attribute profile is a collection of attributes that can be used in different places in iPIM, e.g. to limit the selection of shown attributes for specific purposes. For more information, see Attribute profiles.
Category
Categories are used to structure the products and product types in iPIM. Categories form the hierarchical directory structure of a taxonomy (classification). A taxonomy can contain any number of categories. Categories can have any number of subcategories in any number of levels.
Client
To control the product information management of different parts of the company (sub-companies, brands, product families, etc.), the client concept allows you to set up independent access areas with individual rights, roles and user administration.
Color coding
For easier identification, there is color coding for the different levels by which an article and its characteristics are represented in iPIM. The product level are highlighted in red, the variant level is highlighted in green and the item level is highlighted in blue.
Content object
The content object forms another structure in iPIM besides products, variants and items. It links various content information such as attributes, digital assets and texts.
Context
Contexts are data maintenance levels. Product data such as attribute values, texts, prices and digital assets are related to contexts levels. For example, they are only visible in the related context. Another example are attribute values which can differ depending on the context. Possible contexts are, for example, different sales channels, different markets or different target groups. The differentiation between B2B and B2B trade is another possible scenation.
Dashboard
The dashboard is the starting page of all iPIM modules. Its content differs depending on the module. Usually, it is an overview of the most important data that each module provides. For more information see the documentation of each module, e.g. for the Dashboard of iPIM Portal.
Digital Asset
Digital assets are multimedia product information such as images, zoom images, 3D views and product videos. For more information on digital asset maintenance, see iPIM DAM.
ERP data
ERP (enterprise resource planning) data is data that has been imported from the ERP system into iPIM. These can be viewed in the “ERP” tab of the “Product details” app.
Job
A job is a process configured in iPIM that usually runs cyclically in the background of the system. Though, jobs can also be triggered manually. Jobs are configured individually.
Item
An item is the lowest of the three levels through which an article or service is represented in iPIM. While products and variants are only virtual containers, items represent concrete article units in the real world (SKUs). In the case of garments, this may be, for example, the different sizes of each color variant. Each item is uniquely identified by the item number assigned by the system. The item level is represented on the blue layer.
Language settings
Within the iPIM system, a distinction is made between two types of language settings:
- The interface language is the language in which the user interface is localized. This can be set at any point in the iPIM system using the corresponding menu in the title bar.
- The data language is the language in which the data (i.e. attributes and attribute values) are localized.
Product
The product is the topmost of the three levels through which an article or a service is represented in iPIM. A product is a virtual container in which variants and items are grouped. Each product is uniquely identified by the product number assigned by the system. Each product number exists only once. A product in iPIM is displayed on the red layer.
Product data quality (product status)
The quality of the product data is defined by the status lights. When all four status lights are green, it means that data maintenance for the product is complete. The events that control the status light colors are typically defined in the workflow tasks. When the task is complete, the status light colors change. The tasks and status light colors assigned to the status lights are defined individually depending on the use case. There are always four status lights, but the number of color options for each status light is not limited. Thus, each status light can have not only the colors red, yellow and green, but also additional colors for different states such as blue or pink, depending on the complexity of the case.
Property
Properties are configurable properties on master data objects. With their help, it is possible to maintain additional information on master data objects besides the attributes and, for example, to control automatic processes.
Search mode
The search mode is a setting in the “Search” app that defines how the search term should be interpreted. There are three search modes: Comfort, Professional and Standard. For more information on this, see Search modes.
Taxonomies
A taxonomy is a directory structure for organizing products. The directory structure of a taxonomy consists of categories and associated subcategories, which can be created in any number of levels. There are three different types of taxonomies.
- Primary taxonomy: The core is the primary taxonomy. This is used for master data maintenance. There is always only one primary taxonomy. Every existing product is contained in this taxonomy, whereby each product only appears in one category. Multiple category assignments are not possible.
- Secondary taxonomy. Secondary taxonomies offer the possibility to map the existing products in a modified directory structure. This can be, among others, a standard classification such as eTIM. The use of such a secondary classification facilitates, for example, the import of large amounts of data from suppliers who work with a standard classification.
- Sales taxonomies: These are used to distribute product data to different sales channels (e.g. Amazon, eBay or other marketplaces). In a sales taxonomy, products can be classified in a category structure that corresponds to the category structure of the respective sales channel. A separate sales taxonomy can be created for each sales channel. Within a sales taxonomy, products may appear in several different categories.
Text configuration
Text configurations are text parts that are created by linking different attributes and are used to generate texts.
Types
Types are used to define objects and attributes and to control workflows. Typing is freely definable and configurable in iPIM in its technical-semantic or channel-specific meaning. Examples of typing options are: Media types for multimedia assets, text types for advertising texts, relationship types for product relationships, item types for product hierarchies, attribute group types for grouping attributes, event types for tasks in workflows and partner types for business relationships.
User
A user is an individual who is authorized by the system (with the help of log-in credentials) to use and carry out certain tasks in iPIM.
User Role
The user role groups a set of rights that allow to carry out certain tasks in the software. For example, this can be the right to create texts and assign digital assets. Different user roles can be assigned to a user. For more information, see Users, user roles, and user rights.
User right
A right is permission to perform a specific task in the software. For example, this includes the right to see an attribute, the right to see prices, etc. Rights are assigned to user roles and user roles usually contain multiple rights (permissions).
User role types
User roles are the middle level of iPIM‘s three-level rights system. User rights can be grouped into user roles. User roles in turn can be assigned to user roles. There are four different role types: “Standard” is the default role type. “Standard (including worklists)” extends the “Standard” role type to include access to worklists that are shared with all users. The “Standard” role type has access only to the worklists created by the respective user. In a user role of the “Toolbox” type, app rights can be grouped so that they appear in the Toolbox area of the left-hand sidebar for quick access. In a user role of the type “Workbox” the different tasks of a workflow step can be grouped.
Variant
The optional variant level is middle of the three levels through which an article is represented in iPIM. Variants can be used to represent different characteristics of a product, such as color. Each variant is uniquely identified by the variant number assigned by the system. A variant in iPIM is displayed on the green level.
Version
In iPIM, different versions of product information can be created and published for the different sales channels and classifications. The different versions are used, for example, to address different customer groups, such as B2B and B2C customers. The versions are maintained and managed in the taxonomy.
Widgets
Widgets are applications whose functions can be used across apps and modules in the iPIM system. They are installed as apps, but cannot be launched from the app overview. Instead, they are generally available in the iPIM Portal and, depending on the context, also beyond it (e.g. the “Upload” widget in the iPIM DAM (Digital Asset Management) module). For more information, see Widgets.
Workbox
A workbox is a virtual container for grouping products to be processed at a workflow process step.
Workflow
Workflows are predefined and ordered individual work steps/tasks. In iPIM, worklists are an important part of the workflow. They specify the necessary work steps depending on the composition and selection of the products. The workflows can therefore be individually configured and adapted to the company’s workflows. Individual roles (and thus the users assigned to the roles) with specific rights can be assigned to the different workflows. For more information, see Workflows and iPIM Workflow.
Worklists
A worklist is a list of products. Worklists are an essential part of many everyday workflows. Among other things, they show the user which tasks are open for which products or items. For example, they indicate whether attributes need to be edited or released or wether digital assets need to be added. A distinction is made between static and dynamic worklists:
- Static worklists contain a defined group of products. These are usually manually assigned to a worklist. Static worklists can be private or public.
- Dynamic worklists are based on the results of a search with search parameters stored in a search favorite. They are constantly modified and updated as product data changes.
For more information on this, see Worklists.