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Page Revision: 2014/05/12 10:38
Drop Management Introduction
PANDORA currently has 7 product drops per year. Each drop consists out of new products, which are being introduced to the sales channels. The introduction of new products via a drop usually also relates to a marketing campaign.
Currently the products and drops are maintained in the ERP solution of PANDORA, AX. The drop description and the related products are functional. Insight into the product details, drop description and related marketing material is unavailable.
To provide consistent communications towards all touch points, drop management functionality can be build in PANDORA Library. This will enable easy access, control and consistent output of drop information, product details of items in drops, grouping have related marketing assets and consistent messaging to touch points.
Access Drop Management area
In PANDORA Library click on the top menu item “Management” and the sub-menu “Drop Management”. The drop management page will open. On the left side you will see all the drops that are available in PANDORA Library.
Process of Drop Management
The creation of drops within PANDORA Library follows a specific process. The following steps occur to create a drop and the associated products into the application:
1. Import AX Drop Information into PANDORA Library – PIM studio via automatic importer functionality
• In the AX application the drop is created, by assigning products to a Campaign. An example for this would be “2013 Xmas”, “2013 MD”, “2013 HS”, etc. Not all products are actually assigned to a Drop in AX.
• Importer uses the AX Campaign as ID in order to find the corresponding drop within the Library. If the Drop does not exist it will create it.
• The importer will assign a product to the Library drop in case it has not been assigned yet. IMPORTANT: If Library does contain a drop assignment for a product already, the importer will not touch it. This is important because we do not want to override manual changes in Library.
• Importer converts the drop information into temporary drop descriptions. In case of a new drop a workflow is started (see below Enrichment of Drop Information)
• Importer creates drop classifications in PIM Studio and Asset Studio using the Meaningful Description and Year. The naming convention is
drop name +
year (e.g. “Mother’s Day 2013 (Drop 5)”)
• Importer assigns products into the classifications
• ADAM rule assigns single pack shots to Asset Studio Drop classifications in the classification folder
drop name ->
single pack shots (e.g. “Mother’s Day 2013 – Single Pack Shots”)
• In case the Meaningful drop description is missing the application will use the AX value (e.g. 2013 Xmas).
2. Create new drop
The PANDORA Library Project Manager & the Gloabl Product Management can create new drops from the drop management window. A new drop can be created by manually entering all the values.
Manually created drops may be enriched in the same way as any other drop. The AX Importer will never touch them. There is no automatic assignment of products.
3. Enrichment of Drop Information in PANDORA Library
This is manual and will be done by the PANDORA Library project manager or the Product Management department.
• The Product Management/ Design department can override the drop information that is retrieved from AX by changing it inside Drop Management.
• The PANDORA Library Project Manager & the Product Management/ Design can assign additional products to the drop by using the Drop - Drop Down within Product Details or assigning Products in PIMStudio.
- Products can be assigned to Drops.
- Single Pack Shots assigned to products inherit this information and are assigned to the corresponding Media Drop Classification automatically.
- Medias can be assigned to the Media Drop Classification manually at any given time.
• The PANDORA Library Project Manager & the Product Management/ Design can assign additional products to the drop selecting/ searching new products from the drop management window.
• The Group Merchant can set the “drop global release date” and “drop global preview date” by using the Drop Management.
• The Local Product Manager can set the “drop local release date” and “drop local preview date” by using the Drop Management.
• The Local Product Manager may Change the “product local release date” or “product local preview date” by using the PIM Details. This overrides the “drop local release date” or “drop local preview date”.
4. Availability of drop information.
• The drop information is available in PIM Studio as a classification
• The drop information is available in the DROP Management area as a classification
• The drop information is available in MEDIA as a classification
5. Product Enrichment Process.
Product Enrichment uses Drops to define Work packages. That means that the enrichment process will usually do batched changes on drops (e.g. set Drop 6 online, etc.)
6. Export to Touch Points.
Export of Drop Information to touch points – Once the drop information is completed within PANDORA Library, the information is available for various touch points. A user can do this either through automated export or manual selection and download.
The Pandora.net website will receive the following Information with every Product. This information is based on the Drop assignment
• Drop Number
• Global Release date
• Global Preview date
• Local Release date (Product Specific if available, Drop specific else)
• Local Preview date (Product Specific if available, Drop specific else)
• Meaningful Description
11.3. Manual Creation of drops
The PANDORA Library Project Manager & the Product Management/ Design can create new drops from the drop management window. A new drop can be created by manually entering all the values and then click on “save”
Manually created drops may be enriched in the same way as any other drop. The AX Importer will never touch them. There is no automatic assignment of products.
11.4. Search for Products
For a specific drop you may want to add new products. Click on the drop you want to edit the products. You see the button at the page “search for products”. When clicked a new pop-up will open where you can search for products (for example by entering a number). If a product is already part of a drop, you cannot select it again. The red icon before the image will illustrate that the product is already in a drop and the specific drop is listed as information to the product.
Click on the product that you wish to add and click on save. The product is now added to your drop.
11.5. Visibility of Drop information (PIM, MEDIA)
Once you have added the Drop and the products to the drop it will be available in PANDORA Library in the following locations:
• The drop information is available in PIM Studio as a catalogue.
• The drop information is available in the PIM as a product section.
• The drop information is available in the DROP Management area as a classification
• The drop information is available in MEDIA as a classification under campaigns.