The Magento Akeneo link: product data in one place.
When the same product information has to appear in the shop, the catalogue and on a marketplace, it does not belong in the shop.
Short answer
Akeneo is a PIM, a system for product information: descriptions, attributes, translations and images for all your products in one place. A link to Magento publishes that data to the online shop automatically. Jevana sets up the link, maps the attributes from Akeneo to those in Magento and makes sure a change in the PIM shows up in the shop without manual work.
When a PIM makes sense
For a shop with a few hundred products in one language, Magento itself is a perfectly good place for product data. A PIM then only adds a system.
It changes with thousands of products, several languages, data that comes from suppliers or a second channel next to the shop. Then you want one place where a product is completed and approved before it is visible anywhere. That is what Akeneo was made for.
Who manages what
| Data | Akeneo | Magento | ERP |
|---|---|---|---|
| Description and attributes | In charge | Receives | No role |
| Translations | In charge | Receives | No role |
| Images and documents | In charge | Receives | No role |
| Categories | In charge, or Magento | Receives, or in charge | No role |
| Price and stock | No role | Receives | In charge |
| Orders | No role | In charge | Receives |
What we set up
The translation between the two
- Families in Akeneo to attribute sets in Magento
- Option lists and units that mean the same on both sides
- Variants as a configurable product
Publishing
- Only complete products go to the shop
- Changes at a fixed rhythm or straight after approval
- Images converted to the formats the shop uses
Control
- A log per product
- An alert when a product is rejected
- A first full import on staging
Questions
What is the difference between a PIM and an ERP?
An ERP manages the business side of a product: purchase price, selling price, stock and supplier. A PIM manages the content: the description, the attributes, the photos and the translations. An online shop needs both. In a link the ERP supplies price and stock, the PIM the rest, and Magento combines them into a product page.
Does every Magento shop need a PIM?
No. For a manageable range in one language and one sales channel, the Magento catalogue is enough. A PIM pays off with many products with many attributes, with several languages or countries, with product data that comes from suppliers and has to be edited, or when the same data also goes to a marketplace or a printed catalogue.
How soon does a change from Akeneo show in the shop?
You set that. The link can run at a fixed rhythm, say every hour, or react straight away to a change in Akeneo. With a large catalogue a fixed rhythm is calmer for the shop, because Magento updates its search index and cache after every import. For a price promotion that must start on time, you use Magento's own scheduling.
Can existing products move from Magento to Akeneo?
Yes. At the start we export the existing catalogue from Magento and import it into Akeneo, so you do not start again. After that the direction turns round and Akeneo is where you make changes. It is also the moment to clean up attributes: duplicate attributes and option lists with three spellings of the same colour.
Goes well with
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Magento and bol
Your Magento catalogue on bol, with stock that is right and orders arriving in the same flow.
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Magento and AFAS
Magento linked to AFAS Profit: debtors, items, stock and orders through the AFAS connectors.
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Magento B2B
Selling to businesses with Magento: prices per customer, account ordering, quotes and several shops in one back office.
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Custom modules
Modules that do what no existing module does well, built so the next upgrade is not a project.
Tell us what you run.
An introduction costs nothing. You talk straight away to one of the two people who will actually do the work.
or email info@jevana.systems