Walmart eases product content conversion

3/18/2016

Meeting Walmart’s product information requirements is not always easy for its suppliers, but the retailer is providing a new option that may make things a little simpler.



Walmart is integrating with product content technology provider Shotfarm. Walmart suppliers can now use the Shotfarm Switch Marketplace platform to directly connect with the retailer. This means suppliers can work with requirement such as the Walmart Spec program, which details the required, recommended, and optional data attributes suppliers must provide for their products.



Spec qualifications are already integrated into the Switch network to make the process as seamless as possible. Suppliers can drag and drop digital product assets, such as .JPG and .CSV files, into the Shotfarm platform and subscribe to Walmart. Then they map their fields to Walmart’s fields, and can have all content automatically converted and delivered.



Walmart is known for having strict guidelines for how its suppliers must identify and catalog product attributes before they can be listed or sold. While Walmart has not always been known as a supplier-friendly retailer, it has made steps in recent years through partnerships with vendors such as Shotfarm and Salsify to ease the process of properly identifying products.



Considering how vital Walmart sales are to the fiscal health of many suppliers, allowing automated or near-automated delivery of product information is a step that could help a lot of companies throughout the extended retail ecosystem.


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