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Add export channel

Add and set up an export template in Productsup to distribute your data to popular systems.

Introduction

An improved Add Exports page lets you search for export channels by categories or keywords and add exports in bulk. You can also set up your custom exports.

The following exports categories are available to you:

  • Search engines

  • Comparison shopping

  • Shop systems

  • Marketing and advertising

  • Marketplaces

  • Social media

  • Retailers and distributors

  • PIM systems

  • Classification standards

  • Custom-built

  • Data pools and product databases

  • Order Sync

  • Other

If the export channel you are looking for is not on the list, contact your organization manager or support@productsup.com to add it.

Add export

To add a new export channel, follow these steps:

  1. Go to Exports from your site’s main menu.

  2. Select the ADD EXPORT button in the top right corner of the placeholder.

    Add export button

    Tip

    Select the close icon (X) in the top right corner to return to the Exports page without saving any changes.

  3. Enter the export channel's name or part of it in the Search field or browse the channels selecting among the categories.

    Search and categories

    Tip

    Select See all to unfold a complete list of export channels.

  4. If necessary, sort the results by popularity or alphabet. For that, select See all and choose a sorting option from the Sort by drop-down.

    Sort exports by popularity

  5. Select a necessary export channel in the list to open its description.

    Export channel description

    Note

    Not all export channels have descriptions yet. The Productsup team is working on adding them.

  6. You can select one or several export channels:

    • To select one export channel, hover the pointer over the necessary export channel and select Add.

      Add button for export channels

    • To select several channels, tick the corresponding checkboxes next to the channels. Confirm the choice of the selected export channels with the Add exports button at the bottom of the page.

      Exports adding in bulk

      Tip

      If you don't want to proceed with the chosen export channels, uncheck the checkbox with the number of the selected exports or select Clear filters.

  7. The platform redirects you to the Exports page, where you can see your export channels added and can set them up.

Build your export template from scratch

In some cases, the existing export templates may not cover your needs. Then, you can build a template for any necessary export from scratch using blank exports. There are four (4) types of blank exports: Blank Export (empty), Blank Export (with ID), Delta Blank Export, and Export2Datasource Blank. See Build your exports from scratch for more information.

To add a new blank export, follow the steps:

  1. Go to Exports from your site’s main menu.

  2. Select ADD EXPORT.

  3. Select the necessary blank export template in the gray banner under the search field.

    Add a Blank Export

When you added a blank export, you need to configure it. Each blank export has its setup peculiarities. See Build your exports from scratch for more information.

Edit export channel settings

When you add one or several export channels, the platform automatically returns you to the Exports page, where you can see the list of all added export channels and set them up individually.

Modify an export name

Modifying the export channel's name is helpful when you use the same export channel for different exports; for example, Google Merchant Center main data flow, Google Merchant Center clothes only data flow, etc. Adding a channel more than once is only necessary if you want to create multiple data flows for A/B testing or need variations of the same template. For more information on export A/B testing, see A/B testing FAQ.

multiple_export_names.png

To modify an export channel's name:

  1. Go to Exports from your site's main menu and select the cogwheel icon (⚙) next to the export you want to modify.

  2. Select the Edit icon next to the export's name.

    Modify export name

  3. Modify the export channel's name and add a short description (optionally).

  4. Select the checkmark icon to save your modifications.

Copy the export channel

You can create a copy of the export channel if you plan to use it multiple times without starting from scratch. After duplicating your export, decide if you want to copy it with or without destination settings.

  1. Go to Exports from your site's main menu and select the cogwheel icon (⚙) next to the export you want to modify.

  2. Select the Duplicate button on the top-right corner.

  3. In the opened pop-up window, select Yes to copy the export's destination settings to the newly created export template. Or select No to copy an export without destination settings.

Overview tab

In the Overview tab, you can view your export dashboard and add destinations and files.

View the Channel Dashboard to get an overview of the following:

dashboard.png

  • Last Export - Previously-run export.

  • Next Export - If you set up a schedule for this specific channel.

  • Products - Quantity of products for export.

  • Channel - Name of the export template.

To add a destination, take the following steps:

  1. Select Add Destination to add a data feed destination.

  2. Enter a name and select a destination from the drop-down menu.

    destination.png

  3. Select Save.

Note

To learn more about destinations, see Set up an export destination.

You can change the filename or limit the number of products per file. To do this, take the following steps:

  1. Select the Setup button in the Files section.

    Change filename

  2. Enter the desired filename and a valid feed format extension in the Filename field. Valid feed formats are .xml, .csv, .txt, and .tsv. If you want to compress the file, regard such extensions as .bz2, .zip, or .gz.

  3. Enter the number of products you want to export per file in the Limit (Products per File) field. Here is some guidance:

    • To export all products from the file without limits, set the limit to 0. This means that the export begins with the first row containing product data, skipping the header.

    • Enter the target value to limit the number of products in your feed. Limiting can be helpful in case you want to test and try out a new export channel. You can limit the number of products, for example, to 100, to avoid sending your entire catalog.

  4. Select Save.

You can split the feed into several files.

  1. Select the Add File button in the File section.

  2. Enter the filename and format and set the limit for products per file.

  3. Select Save.

If you add a second feed, you are not exporting to the channel twice. You only split the export into two (2) feeds in equal parts. But if you set a limit per file, the platform splits the feeds according to the set limits.

For example, if your feed contains 1000 products and you set up three (3) feeds with a 200 product limit, the platform only exports 600 products. The remaining 400 products are not present in any file. To avoid this situation, set a limit of 0 in your last file to ensure you export all products. If the number of products is less than the sum of all file limits, the platform does not update unnecessary files. If you want to receive empty files instead, turn on the Allow empty files option in the Settings tab.

Note

If you want to export your channel once as a CSV and once as an XML file, you must do this in separate channels.

You can add a dynamic filename with Twig:

  1. Select the Setup button in the Files section.

  2. Enter the filename in the following format:

    • To use the site and export names as dynamic placeholders in the filename:

      {{ Site.id ~ "" ~ Export.name | replace({ "/":"" }) }}.txt

      twig.png

    • To add the export name and date:

      {{ Export.name | replace({ " ":"" }) ~ "" ~ "now" | date("Ymd") }}.csv

Settings tab

In this tab, you can activate the following settings:

  • CSV Separator - Set to On to select the separator type.

  • Enable Pixel Tracking - A tracking pixel is a small piece of code in the form of a pixel that you implement in your website code. Set to On to activate.

  • Enable Redirect Tracking - Redirect tracking collects your site ID, the export ID, and the product ID. It sets a cookie for the conversion pixel. Set to On to use.

  • Shorten Tracking URL - If your export channel only accepts a limited number of characters in the tracking URL, turn on Shorten Tracking URL and select the respective content column.

    To learn more about tracking options, see Productsup tracking options (legacy document).

  • Export as XML - Set to On to send your file as XML. Remember to change the filename extension to .xml.

  • XSL Template for XML Export - Use an XSL template, as a style sheet, for your XML export.

  • Export-Plugin - You can use an export plugin if your output requires a specific format, such as JSON, XLSX, etc. Contact support@productsup.com if you need help with a non-JSON or Excel XLSX plugin. Otherwise, see the following JSON and XLSX plugins.

    1. For a JSON plugin, enter the following value in the Export-Plugin field on the export channel's Settings page:

      • \Export\Json

      Note

      Use the \Export\Json plugin name for the standard JSON structure only.

      export_json_plugin.png

    2. For an Excel XLSX plugin, enter the following value in the Export-Plugin field on the export channel's Settings page:

      • \Export\Xlsx

      add_excel_plugin.png

  • Allow empty files (0 products) - Set to On if you allow Productsup to export empty files. It can be helpful if you create internal reports. For example, you can export a file that reports image URLs that lead to a 404 page. In this case, having an empty file with headers is suitable.

  • Add Header before Main Header in CSV (optional) and Add Header after Main Header in CSV (optional) - Some export channels request additional headers before or after the CSV header column's name. Add the header information as static values in Add Header before/after Main Header in CSV (optional), and Productsup adds them with the next export.

    Note

    The main use cases for the options Add Header before/after Main Header in CSV (optional) are Blank Export (empty) and Blank Export (with ID).

    add_header_beforeafter_option.png

  • Product Uniqueness - You can choose the column in your export feed that you consider unique. The platform prevents duplicated values and exports unique rows. Set to On and choose the unique product column, then select Add.

  • Hide unmapped attributes on the Intermediate - In the Intermediate stage, you can hide or show unconnected intermediate attributes. These are attributes that you created when you added the export channel. Set to On to hide unmapped attributes.

  • Replace Main Header in CSV (optional) - This field is available on demand. If your export channel outputs a CSV file, you can use this field to replace the header row of your CSV export file with a header that suits your needs.

    The Replace Main Header in CSV (optional) field allows changing the header row in your CSV export file to any header row that suits your needs

    Note

    Replace Main Header in CSV (optional) is available in one export channel only: Blank Export (with ID).

    To have the Replace Main Header in CSV (optional) filed in any other export channel, contact  or your organization manager. This service is free of charge.

    To replace the header row in your CSV export file:

    1. Go to Exports from your site's main menu and select the cogwheel icon (⚙) next to the export you want to modify.

    2. Select the Settings tab.

    3. In Replace Main Header in CSV (optional), enter your new header row and separate the names of the attributes with a comma (,). The platform omits the commas in the output file.

      For example, enter the string product_ID,product_title,price for the CSV export file to contain the header row product_IDproduct_titleprice.

      If you enter the string product_ID, product_title, price, the platform outputs an export file with the header row product_ID product_title price.

      Tip

      You can use empty and dynamic attribute names in Replace Main Header in CSV (optional):

      1. Empty attribute names

        You can enter a space character instead of the attribute's name in between commas if you need an attribute without a name. For example, enter product_ID, ,price for the CSV export file to contain the header product_ID price.

      2. Dynamic attribute names

        If you need an attribute to contain dynamic data, such as today's date, you can enter a Twig expression instead of the attribute's name in between commas. For example, enter product_ID, {{ "now"|date("m/d/Y") }}, price for the CSV export file to contain the header product_ID 06/22/2022 price.

    4. Select Save.

Labels, Tags & Sorting tab

You can set up labels, tags, and sorting in this tab.

Add labels - If you have many different export channels, labels help you categorize them. You can later use these labels as filters in Exports.

To add a label:

  1. Go to Exports from your site's main menu and select the cogwheel icon (⚙) next to the export you want to modify.

  2. Select the Labels, Tags & Sorting tab.

  3. Add one or more labels separated by a comma (,).

  4. Select Save.

Once you've created a label(s), the Labels button appears in the Overview tab of the Exports page and you can filter your exports:

  1. Go to Exports from your site’s main menu.

  2. Select Labels and choose your desired label(s). You can also see the Labels column containing all labels assigned to each channel.

    tracking_label.png

Export Tags let you distinguish column titles for each exported product by applying a custom export tag to each row of your export file.

  1. Go to Exports from your site's main menu and select the cogwheel icon (⚙) next to the export you want to modify.

  2. Select the Labels, Tags & Sorting tab.

  3. In the Export Tags section, enter Key and Value.

    export_tags.png

  4. Select Add Tag.

Here are two examples of the key and value entries to get the desired outcome:

Desired outcome #1: BMEcat without CDATA ( <![CDATA[attribute value]]> ) -

  • Key: custom_xml_writer_class

  • Value: ProductsUp_Xml_File_Writer_BMEcatWithoutCDATA

  • Output result: Here is the value from the attribute

Desired outcome #2: Show CSV output with enclosures ( ‘’ or ““ or || ) -

  • Key: custom_csv_writer_class

  • Value: ProductsUp_Csv_File_Writer_AllEnclosured

  • Output result: ‘row1’;’row2’;’size’;’price’;’product_id’

You can also use Predefined Tags from another platform in Authentication. See Add OAuth authentication to external systems to set up authentication with another platform.

Sorting lets you define the order of exported products based on a specific column.

  1. Choose a column in the Select Column drop-down menu.

  2. Choose the sorting mode in the Select Mode drop-down menu.

  3. Choose sorting order in the Select Direction drop-down menu.

  4. Select Add Sorting Rule.

labels_page.png

Pricing tab

Add a pricing model for your channel to calculate costs in the Reporting page.

See Set CPC Add Cost in Reporting for more information about calculating costs.

pricing.png

Status menu

Status becomes available in the left main menu when you are in any export setup page. The Status page lets you see past exports by scrolling through the entries.

status.png

Order Columns menu

Order Columns becomes available in the left main menu when you are in any export setup page. You can change the column order for your final output feed by selecting and dragging them as you wish. If you export them once in their set order, they appear green. If the order changes and you have not exported them, they appear black.

order_column.png
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