Reducing Upload Time by 60% For A Multi-Seller Marketplace With eCommerce Product Taxonomy Services

Client Profile

An Inclusive eCommerce Marketplace for a Large Seller Base

Our client was building a user-friendly marketplace for small and mid-sized businesses at scale. Its low-commission model appealed to sellers looking for a more cost-effective alternative to larger platforms. At the time of engagement, the marketplace had already onboarded thousands of active sellers and was preparing to expand further.

Engagement Scope

A Detailed, Universal Taxonomy Structure That Supports Diverse Product Lines

The client needed a structured and well-defined taxonomy for products listed across different categories on its marketplace. The classification framework had to be detailed enough to help every seller place products in the correct category with clarity and consistency.

As part of the assignment, our team also had to review taxonomy structures used by Amazon, eBay, Walmart, Google, and other eCommerce platforms before preparing the final taxonomy model.

Key Challenges

Designing a Classification System with Precise Attribute Coverage at Scale

The project required a taxonomy that could accommodate products from many sellers while remaining structured, scalable, and usable across multiple product lines. It also had to accommodate attribute complexity and help maintain high search relevance across categories.

The main challenges were:

Building a taxonomy model that could accommodate products from different sellers.
Creating category structures suitable for a wide range of product lines.
Preserving keyword relevance across the taxonomy.
Managing a broad range of attributes and product variations.
Defining product-line-specific attributes and validating the most relevant values for every attribute.

Solution Delivered

Taxonomy Development, Attribute Creation, and Catalog Support

Data4eCom assigned a team of six taxonomy specialists to execute the project across three structured phases, each building on the output of the previous one.

Taxonomy Architecture

We analyzed category frameworks used by major marketplaces and aligned that research with the client’s marketplace model. Based on that work, we created a hierarchical taxonomy with four levels:

Main category
Subcategory 1
Subcategory 1.1
Product type 1.1.1.

Our team finalized the taxonomy structure, content inclusion rules, nomenclature, and labeling framework, while also assigning category codes for integration into the client’s backend system.

Attribute Creation

After the taxonomy structure was approved, we created product attributes from scratch. These were organized as follows:

Global attributes including brand, product name, price, manufacturer, and product quality.
General attributes including recommended age, gender, color, and size.
Specific attributes tied to product type, including usage, skin type, ingredients, and hair type.

Catalog Management & Product Uploading

After completing taxonomy and attribute creation, we moved into catalog support. Our team managed product catalogs and uploaded seller product data to the client’s backend system, while continuing to update and maintain catalog information.

60%

Reduction in product upload time, helping sellers add listings faster and with fewer errors.

99.8%

Catalog data accuracy, reducing incomplete and miscategorized listings across the seller base.

Self-Directed Onboarding

Clearer taxonomy paths reduced seller dependence on manual support

Better Discoverability

Improved category structure supported easier navigation and faster checkout

Scalable Structure

The four-level taxonomy supported ongoing category expansion as the platform grew.