The quality of data that a customer sees is the online worlds representation of a manufacturer.  The images, description and features that are displayed on websites offers a powerful first impression that can be hard to reverse if it is not presented properly.  All manufacturers spent a great amount of time, effort, and resources to create the best possible presentation of the products they sell, so keeping that presentation correct is critical.  In addition, there is a variety of information that is important in the government world that is not important in the commercial world.

There are many pieces of information that are critical for product to have a proper representation on GSA such as:

- Name and Description
-Extended description and specifications
-Image, multiple if available
-Country where the product is manufactured
-UNSPSCS and FSC Codes (for proper product classification)
-Special environmental codes and information

In GSA there are two main purchasing portals, GSA Advantage and FedMall that show a manufacturers product information to federal customers.  In general, most of the data that has been loaded over the years has been loaded and managed by GSA contractors, not by the manufacturers themselves.  Unfortunately, this has created a rather large problem today; in many listing on these portals, images are missing or incorrect, the names and descriptions have been truncated or altered, Country of Origin has been changed, and in many instances, there is no products specifications or details available which the customer can see.  There are also tens of thousands of listings where a contractor has altered the manufacturer name and/or part number attempting to create a unique listing or offering, what this really creates is duplications on the portals that confuses the customers as to which products are the real ones and which are the altered ones. This creates an unfair representation of a manufacturer and their products in the eyes of the consumer; and in the world of GSA a huge challenge in getting this information corrected.

As a result of these errors, GSA has started a large initiative to correct their data called Verified Product Portal or VPP.  In this initiative, GSA has created an interface where a manufacturer or wholesaler on their behalf can control their listings on GSA, remove or consolidate listings, load corrected information as the default that all contractors will display, even de-authorize those sellers that the manufacturer has not authorized.

GovDirector works with Manufacturers in a variety of ways to assist in the data cleanup process and management going forward.  Our collaborative process is designed to create the best possible presentation for a manufacturer and our team works to solve a variety of solutions so that manufacturers encounter.