Shopify Integration Information & Understanding Navigation

This article explains what data is exported from Retailer and what field it will appear as within Shopify.

To configure the Tower Web Connect (TWC) link please see: Setting up a new Webstore

Stock Item Data

Retailer stock items that have 'Webstore' ticked can be sent to Shopify with the following information:

1. Department as Collection, Product Type or Metafield
   
2. Category as Collection, Product Type, Metafield or Tag
3. Description as Product Title
4. Web Description (On the extra details tab) as Product Description
   
5. Retail or Web Price as Price  
   
6. Stock Item Catalogue Price as Sale 'Compare at' Price Recommended
7. Barcode as SKU and/or Barcode
8. Variants as Options (Required choice) Recommended
9. Classifications as Metafields (Additional info)
10. Tags 
11. Tag starting with "Brand_" as Shopify Vendor Recommended
    
12. Tag starting with "Type_" as Custom Product Type
    
13. Images 
    
14. Quantity on Hand (QOH) as Stock on Hand
15. Weight
    

See all settings: Setting up a new Webstore > Check Your Sync Settings

Tips

1. Load stock data with information both customers & Google are looking for,
   Anatomy of a Webstore Product - Setting up stock for eCommerce Success
2. Ensure Department & Category names are unique & SEO Friendly. e.g.
   ❌ "Dry Food"
   ✅ "Dog Dry Food"   
   Webstore advice: How to write Product & Collection descriptions that are SEO friendly & informative for customers
3. Avoid loading stock data with missing or incomplete data
   e.g. Variant items are not ready
   e.g. Product and Collections handles (Page URL) will use the first name synced. 

Additional for Classifications

If you're looking to enhance product visibility by highlighting products specs or additional website filters, Classifications are a great way to sync Shopify Metafields. Alternately, you can manage Metafields direct in Shopify.

View advice sheet here - Stock Classification

Additional for Variants

Variants allow you to give customers up to 3 options within one product.

While the setup may require extra effort, it significantly improves the customer’s online experience.

Tip: It is best to mark Variant products for webstore when all Variant stock items are ready.

View advice sheet here - Variants (Colour, Size and Style) 

5 things to consider for Variants

1) Shopify allows for 3 variant groups, with a total limit of 2,048 combinations per product.

See Shopify Help Center | Adding variants > Considerations

2) Due to the nature of the connection, variant types will be ordered by the length of the variant name.

If you want to maintain the original order, you can change the variant names to be more descriptive (make some longer).

Colour

Shirt Size

Fashion Style

3) In Retailer, any variant ticked as Webstore cannot have a blank variant value.

 If any item in a variant group is ticked for Web Store, all its variants will be.

4) To change/convert an existing item already on the website, from a normal stock item to a variant, the item must be deleted off the website and then re-created by the link.

5) When all items of a variant group have run out of stock - the unpublish option in TWC won't hide or unpublish the variants, as this causes issues with the variant sync.

 

Understanding Shopify Collections, Filters & Navigation

What are Collections?

Shopify uses ‘Collections’ to group products.  Collections are standalone product ranges used to create main navigation links and showcase products throughout your site. Collections can display filters based on select stock data.

Collection Setup

Save time by using Retailer structure!

1. Retailer & TWC Managed (Recommended):  Sync Departments and Categories as main Collections. Retailer stock changes update synced Collections automatically. Extend ranges in Shopify as needed.
   
2. Shopify Managed:  Ignore Retailer structure & use stock data to manage collections in Shopify. Collections need to be established & stock data maintained.
   

Examples of extending or creating online product ranges

Ongoing ranges to create interest: e.g. Sale, Gifts Ideas, Gifts under $50

Limited time offerings: e.g. Mother's Day, Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Christmas, Brand/Range on Sale

Further group collections for large menus: e.g. Outdoors, Home, Pet

Some ways to collect products:

1. Use keywords in product title or product type to collect products. 
   
2. Use sale price or price to collect products
3. Use tag or metafield to collect products.
   

Learn more here - Shopify Help Center | Examples of smart collections

Navigation Links & Collections

While web products are sent through at one level, you can easily create up to 3 levels of menu links based on stock data. An example of 2-level menu is one where Department collections are main links and Categories are dropdowns.

Customer Data

There are Shopify plan limitations & other factors that restrict Customer data import functions

1. Customer information isn't uploaded or synced from Retailer to Shopify.
   
2. Most customer information recorded on the sale in Shopify, will be added to Retailer when the sale imports into Retailer. This will generally be names, addresses and contact details.
   
3. The customer will be added as new, if the email address against the sale is not recorded in Retailer.
   
4. The loyalty program, discount voucher, gift voucher and discount profiles information, is not synced or tracked with Shopify.
   

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