Automotive parts makers face a fast-rising bar for product imagery as retailers demand more digital assets in more formats, according to an industry expert.
At the MEMA Aftermarket Technology Conference last fall, Ian McNabb, head of product at Visual SKUs, explained that the days of supplying a single front-view photo for each part are over. Retailers and marketplaces now commonly ask for six to 10 different digital assets per stock-keeping unit (SKU), plus require multiple variants of those files to meet their own specifications.
“We’ve been seeing a massive increase in the volume and the complexity of digital assets,” he said. He added that retailers and marketplaces are requesting anywhere from six to 10 different photos per SKU.
“No longer are the days of one image for a part,” McNabb said. “You need to supply a wide variety.”
Manufacturers are now expected to provide a mix of content that goes well beyond a basic image. That includes different angles, usage shots that show the part in context, packaging photos, installation instructions and material safety data sheets. On top of that, some receivers want 360-degree views, video or other formats, and some retailers are starting to experiment with 3D models of parts rather than traditional pictures.
McNabb said this surge in volume and complexity has made old methods unworkable. Keeping one or two images in folders may have been manageable in the past, he said, but manufacturers with multiple brands or product lines are now dealing with 10 or more assets per part and sending them to 10 or 20 endpoints.
Ian McNabb from Visual SKUs, speaks during the fall’s MEMA Aftermarket Technology Conference
He said teams cannot realistically track all of the required assets, variants and destinations by moving files in folders or relying on shared drives.
“You can’t manage these in folders,” he said. “If you’ve got multiple brands or product lines, it just expands exponentially. And you can’t do that manually. It’s not sustainable in a manual method.”
He warned that when visuals are missing or inconsistent, the impact shows up in lower sales, higher returns and damage to brand trust. Retailers and marketplaces tend to elevate listings that have complete product images and assets, he said, which means parts without the right content may be pushed down in search results or not be visible to buyers at all.
“Every day that a product sits on the shelf without an image is a day that it’s not being converted, it’s not being sold,” McNabb said.
Furthermore, if the assets are not ready when the product launches, manufacturers are already behind.
Another challenge is that receivers don’t all follow industry best practices for digital assets. Instead, each retailer often sets its own rules. Some want a 1,500×1,500 pixel square JPEG on a white background, while others ask for a 2,500×2,500 pixel image. Naming conventions also differ, which adds to the number of variants required for each part.
If manufacturers send the same asset to all receivers, McNabb said, they risk having files rejected and returned or worse, silently ignored and not used, leaving parts underrepresented in sales channels.
He argued that a robust digital asset management system can help by auto-converting and auto-delivering assets and making sure the right versions reach trading partners as required. He said buyers now expect a richer visual experience, including 360 views, video and, increasingly, 3D models, and that rich content has become the new cost of entry for manufacturers that want their products to be found and purchased online.
Image credit: Depositphotos.com
