Why is my product data not updated when I use the spreadsheet upload feature?
Purpose
To explain why product data, such as category tree, meta keywords and so on, are not being updated when you use the spreadsheet import feature.
Introducing terms and concepts used in this article
Term | Definition |
|---|---|
Category | a class that contains one or more products from your product listing. |
Enterprise resource planning (ERP) | (ERP), a collection of your critical business operating systems, such as product, stock levels, financial, customers, suppliers and so on that run on the same platform. |
Product code | (SKU), the unique code for the product. |
More information
As an Admin of your WebShop or SalesRep, you can update catalogue content by toggling on and off radio buttons in each product's details, which are found in the Product Administration section of Management Interface. Examples of radio buttons include "Status", "Featured" and "Trade only". However, it is more efficient to update this product information using the spreadsheet import feature.
You may encounter some situations where the product data may not be updated; for example, you may ask "Why are my meta keywords not updating?" or "Why are my products are not appearing in the category that I want them to appear in?".
Checks to make
Review your integration. It may be that there is a custom approach implemented where fields should be updated via the ERP export. Typically, this is NOT the case.
Examine the spreadsheet that you have uploaded. Check for spelling discrepancies, spaces after the column titles, and the format of the spreadsheet. The spreadsheet must be XLS or XLSX; it cannot be CSV.
Example
An Admin has attempted to place a number of products in a particular category, but the products were not added.
After examining the spreadsheet, it is observed that there is a space after "Category Tree". The additional space means that the spreadsheet is not uploaded correctly. Likely causes of this are:
you have typed the column title and included a space accidently
you have copied and pasted from another spreadsheet and included an extra space accidently
3. Remove the space, save the file and follow the next steps
How do I bulk update a product's status?
Open Import/Export in Management Interface.
Select the Export tab.
Download a spreadsheet of your existing products, using Custom Product Export.
Update the product's status to Visible, and save your changes.
Return to Import/Export to Management Interface.
Click Choose File under Product Spreadsheet, select your updated spreadsheet and click Open.
Click Update Catalogue. This imports the updated product spreadsheet, and updates the product status.
Troubleshooting tips
Remember:
The columns in the spreadsheet are in a specific order. Do not move any column to another location. Moving columns results in a failed import of your product data.
You can delete a column without affecting a successful import of your product data.
Always use the following status: "Visible" or "Invisible". Incorrect spellings, including not using a capital "V" or "I", results in a failed import.
Remove all white spaces from the start or end of any content that you add since white space results in a failed import. For example, the product code "12345" is processed differently to the product code "12345 " or " 12345".
In particular, should you accidently create a new category by failing to remove a while space (for example, "goods " instead of "goods"), a new category is created, and the product listed on the spreadsheet is moved from the old category to the newly created category. It appears that you have duplicate categories in your WebShop.
Check that there is a price associated with the product. Products must have a price greater than zero for them to be visible.
Check your product name for special characters. Only products using supported special characters are visible.
Check if there are products in each category. An empty category is not visible.
Remove any columns that you are NOT attempting to update
Key points
When using a product spreadsheet to bulk update product data, be sure that
the columns are in the correct order,
you have checked case sensitivity, misspellings and verified there are no white spaces either before or after content in each field.
Other things to check if your product or category is not visible on WebShop:
the product has a price associated with it.
the product name only uses supported special characters
the category has products listed in it.