What Happens When Product Data Becomes a Competitive Advantage? Lessons From Banner Solutions

Behind every great product is great product data

For most distributors, product information isn't something customers think about.

Until they can't find what they're looking for.

Sometimes it's something as simple as a missing specification or an outdated product description. On their own, those issues may seem minor. But for customers trying to find the right product, they can make the buying process harder than it needs to be.

Banner Solutions saw this challenge coming.

As a distributor of commercial door hardware, electronic access control products, locksmith supplies, and security solutions, Banner depends on accurate product information to help customers find, evaluate, and purchase the right products. As Banner's ecommerce business continued to grow, so did the importance of keeping that information accurate, accessible, and consistent.

Because when customers can't find the information they need, they don't see a product data problem. They see a buying problem.

Recognizing the connection between product information and the customer experience, Banner set out to build a stronger foundation for growth.

What followed was a strategic effort to streamline product information management, improve digital buying experiences, and support the company's next stage of ecommerce expansion.

When complexity starts to creep in

Growth is exciting. But it has a way of exposing problems that were easy to overlook before.

For Banner, one of those problems was product information.

Over the years, the company had integrated seven acquisitions, bringing together multiple product catalogs, supplier relationships, and ways of managing product data. Each business came with its own processes, naming conventions, and levels of data readiness.

"We didn't start from a clean slate. Seven regionalized or family-owned businesses with very different product sets had completely different degrees of product data readiness."

— Ben Smith, Chief Digital Officer, Banner Solutions

The challenge became more apparent as ecommerce continued to grow.

Banner manages more than 260 manufacturer brands and over 200,000 merchandised products. Behind every product was a growing amount of information that needed to be accurate, consistent, and easy to maintain.

And the stakes were getting higher.

Customers were increasingly researching and purchasing products online. They expected detailed specifications, reliable search results, and product information they could trust. When information was incomplete or inconsistent, products became harder to discover and more difficult to buy.

Banner knew that simply adding more product data wasn't the answer. The company needed a better way to manage it.

Rather than waiting for every catalog to be perfected, Banner focused on building a centralized foundation that could continuously improve over time. That journey ultimately led the company to Akeneo and a new approach to product information management.

Building a single source of truth

Once Banner had a clear picture of the challenge, the next step was bringing product information together.

Working with Akeneo, the company centralized product data into a single environment where teams could more easily manage, improve, and maintain information across the catalog.

That visibility quickly surfaced opportunities for improvement.

Duplicate products could be identified and consolidated. Product attributes could be standardized. Information that had previously been managed across multiple businesses and systems could be organized into a more consistent structure.

The work didn't happen overnight.

With more than 200,000 products and information flowing in from hundreds of manufacturers, Banner approached the project as an ongoing effort rather than a one-time cleanup exercise.

As Ben Smith put it: "The catalog is never done."

That mindset became an important part of the strategy.

Instead of waiting for every product record to be perfect, Banner focused on creating processes that would continuously improve product information over time. Each update, enrichment effort, and catalog enhancement contributed to a stronger foundation for the business.

The result was more than a cleaner catalog. Banner created a centralized source of truth that gave teams greater confidence in the information they relied on every day and established a framework that could scale alongside the business.

When product data meets the customer experience

Product data may live behind the scenes, but its impact is visible everywhere.

In Banner's industry, customers often start with a broad search before narrowing their options using specifications, attributes, and product filters. When product information is incomplete or inconsistent, products become harder to discover and more difficult to evaluate.

By creating a more structured and consistent approach to product information, Banner strengthened the experiences that customers interact with every day, including:

• Product discovery and search

• Product filtering and navigation

• Product comparisons and evaluations

• Customer confidence during the buying process

The results speak for themselves. Since 2020, Banner has achieved more than 300% growth in ecommerce revenue. Today, between 40% and 70% of orders across its primary customer channels are placed digitally.

While product data wasn't the only driver of that growth, it became an important part of the company's digital strategy.

What started as an effort to better manage product information evolved into a competitive advantage for the business and a better experience for customers.

The final word

For Banner Solutions, better product data wasn't just about improving catalog management. It was about making it easier for customers to find, evaluate, and purchase products online.

By creating a centralized source of truth and committing to continuous improvement, Banner built a stronger foundation for digital commerce, one that continues to support growth today.

Ready to learn more? See how Banner Solutions built a modern foundation for B2B ecommerce with BigCommerce.