Importing, creating and managing items

Now its time to add your products to PlentyONE.

1. Getting prepared

PlentyONE manages some item information centrally and links it to variations. So before you can create variations, you have to save this information in the system. The following item information must exist in the system before you can create items and variations:

Now you will learn how to save this information in PlentyONE.

1.1. Creating categories

You can use categories of the type item to structure your product portfolio and organise the items in your online shop. Each item must be assigned to at least one category.

The plentyShop LTS online shop can have either 2 or up to 4 category levels:

1 main category + 1 subcategory
- The default navigation bar displays a maximum of one other category level below the main categories.
1 main category \+ up to 3 subcategories
- The mega menu displays up to three more levels below the main category.

Planning the category structure

Spend some time thinking about which categories and sub-categories match your product line. How will your customers find their way around the plentyShop? You might find it helpful to draw a category tree and visualise your product groups.

To create a main category, proceed as described below.

Creating a main category:

Go to Item » Category.
From the drop-down list, select the client you want to create the category for.
*Tip:*The default client is preselected by default.
Click on New category in the bottom left corner.
→ The Create new category window opens.
Enter a name.
Tip: Main category is selected by default.
Click Create.
The category is created.
→ The Settings tab of the category opens.
Enter a position. The position determines in which order the categories will be displayed in the online shop. Every new category has a default position of 0.
Tip: Count by tens when creating position numbers. This will allow you to easily add new categories in between.
Activate the Client (store) checkbox to display that category for the respective client.
Enter a meta title.
Tip: The meta title will appear in the browser tab.
Save the settings.
The category is created.
Note: The category will only appear in the online shop if at least one of the items linked to the category is visible for that client.

Now create a subcategory for your new main category.

Creating a subcategory

Go to Item » Category.
Click on New category in the bottom left corner.
→ The Create new category window opens.
Enter a name.
Select Subcategory.
Select the main category you want to create the subcategory for.
Tip: If you want to create a subcategory on the third or fourth level, click on the folder icon to open the main category. Open the subcategory folders the same way until you reach the category you want to create a new subcategory for.
Click Create.
The category is created.
→ The Settings tab of the category opens.
Enter a position. The position determines in which order the categories will be displayed in the online shop. Every new category has a default position of 0.
Tip: Count by tens when creating position numbers. This will allow you to easily add new categories in between.
Activate the Client (store) checkbox to display that category for the respective client.
Enter a meta title.
Tip: The meta title will appear in the browser tab.
Save the settings.
The category is created.
Note: The category will only appear in the online shop if at least one of the items linked to the category is visible for that client.

New categories not showing up in the online shop?

If your categories do not appear in the online shop, have a look at ourcheck list for category visibility.

1.2. Creating attributes

Attributes are used to create variations. They are all similar, but differ in one or multiple properties. Variations are different models of the same item. Some typical attributes are e.g. colours and sizes. To prevent you from having to create a separate item for each of your products, PlentyONE creates attributes for these properties and assigns them to an item. To give you an example, we will describe how to create a colour attribute below.

Example

You want to sell an item in 3 colours. Customers should be able to choose one of the 3 colours when buying the item. Instead of creating 3 items, we will create one item with three variations. We will use attribute values to create these variations.

Creating the "Colour" attribute:

Go to Setup » Item » Attributes.
Click on New Attribute.
→ The New Attribute window opens.
Enter a Name (internal) e.g. Colour.
Tip: The internal name will not be visible in the online shop.
Save the settings.
→ The attribute is created.
→ The Basic settings tab of the attribute opens.
Switch to the tab Name.
Enter a name for the attribute for each language you will use in your online shop.
→ This name is shown in the online shop.
Save the settings.

Now you can create attribute values for the attribute. As an example, we will create the value “Green”.

Creating the value “Green” for the “Colour” attribute:

Switch to the tab Values.
Click New Value.
→ The New value window opens.
Enter a Name (internal) e.g. Green.
Tip: The internal name will not be visible in the online shop.
Save the settings.
→ The value is created.
→ The value is displayed in the list.
Enter a name for the value un the Name column.
Tip: The internal name is used by default.
→ This name is shown in the online shop.
Optional: If you offer your products in multiple languages, select the other languages from the Show language drop-down list.
Optional: Enter the name of the value in this language in the Name column.
→ This name will be shown in the online shop later on.
Save the settings.

1.3. Adjusting the sales price

Define conditions for item prices and special reduced prices. For example, do you want to sell items at a lower price in your online store than on Amazon? No problem! In this step, you can specify the conditions for individual marketplaces, customer classes, countries of delivery, etc.

Open the Setup menu and search for the Sales prices assistant. Once you’ve completed the assistant, you can link your new sales prices with all of the relevant variations and enter the actual prices.

2. Understanding the item structure

By now you have entered the following information required to create your products in PlentyONE:

Categories
Attributes
Sales prices

Before you start entering item data into the system, take a look at the item overview and the item structure. We will explain how the item overview works and introduce you to the example items preconfigured in your new system.

2.1. Understanding the item overview

In the Item menu all items and variations are shown. In this item overview you can search for items and variations, edit them and create new items.

Beside the search bar you find filters to limit your search. When you’re first getting started, the most important filter is the Active filter. This filter specifies whether you only want to see the items and variations that are currently visible in your online shop. This filter is set to Yes by default. Once you have many items and variations, this filter will help you edit your items quicker. However, it can also cause some confusion in the beginning because inactive items will not be displayed when you click on Search, unless you have set the filter to No.

2.2. Understanding example items

Your PlentyONE system contains some example items and variations. They will help you understand the structure of items and variations before entering your own data.

We will give you a brief overview of the item structure using these examples.

2.2.1. Displaying example items

Displaying example items:

Open the Item menu.
→ The item overview displays the example items.
Open the following items:
- The single item “Lounge chair Floating Water” (item ID 123)
- The variation item “Two-seater Paradise Now” (item ID 132)
Look through the sections of both the items and the variations to familiarise yourself with the settings.
→ Table 1 compares both items.

Test the functionality of inheritance with item 132 by deactivating it first and then adding a new category to the variation. Then activate inheritance again.

Deactivating inheritance and adding a new category:

Open item 132.
Open the Variation overview () in the side navigation.
→ All variations are displayed.
Open variation 1065.
Click on Inheritance.
→ The Inheritance window opens.
Deactivate the inheritance for categories.
Click Execute.
Switch to the Product details tab.
Click more_vert More options in the Categories section.
→ A drop-down menu opens.
Click on Pick categories (edit).
→ The Select category window opens.
Select a category.
Click Apply.

Reactivating inheritance:

Click on Inheritance.
→ The Inheritance window opens.
Activate the inheritance for categories.
Click Execute.

The category you linked is deleted and the category for item 132 will be linked.

Table 1. Single and variation items
	Single item	Variation item
Item ID	123	132
Name 1	Lounge chair Floating Water	Two-seater Paradise Now
ID of main variation	1021	1030
Main variation purchasable	Yes *Tip:* For single items, the product should match the main variation.	No *Tip:* For variation items, the main variation should not be a purchasable product. In this case, the main variation only exists to supply the variations of the item with data through inheritance.
Variation ID	—	1065 - red 1066 - white
Manufacturer	A & C Design	Exclusive Leather
Sales price	Price RRP	Price RRP *Tip:* Variations do not inherit prices from the main variation.
Category	Living room » Armchairs & Stools	Living room » Sofas *Tip:* Variations inherit the category from the main variation.
Attribute value combination (Attribute:Attribute value)	---	1065 - Couch color:red 1066 - Couch color:white *Tip:* The main variation is not linked to any attribute.
Client (store)	Standard Shop	Standard Shop *Tip:* Variations inherit the client from the main variation.

2.3. Deleting example items

Now that you have examined the example items, they have served their purpose and you can delete them. This way, you can ensure that you start off with a clean system that does not contain any unnecessary data. The fastest way to delete the example items is to use the group function.

Deleting the example items using the group function:

Go to Item.
Set the Active filter to Yes.
Click on Search.
→ All items saved in the system are displayed.
Click on the checkbox in the top left corner to select all of the displayed items.
Click on icon:delete Delete items or variations.
→ The Delete items window opens.
Click on Delete.
→ All items are deleted from the system.

3. Creating items and variations

It is finally time: You get to enter your very own items in PlentyONE. Depending on how many items you want to start with and how you have managed your item data so far, you have two ways of entering the data into the system:

Create items manually
Tip: Once you have created your first item, you can work faster by copying this item and modifying the copy.
Import item data from a CSV file
Tip: Even if you import your items, you should create at least one item manually to become familiar with the item structure. Remember to delete that example item before importing your data.

We will describe both ways below.

3.1. Creating items manually

Now you will create your first item and make it ready for sale. To help you get started as quickly as possible, we will only describe the most necessary settings here to ensure that you can sell the item in your online shop.

Creating items manually:

Open the*Item* menu.
Click add Add item.
→ A drop-down menu opens.
Select Standard item.
→ The window for item creation opens.
Enter an item name.
Click Next.
Click on Choose categories.
→ A window with all categories opens.
Select a category that is relevant for all items.
Click Apply.
Click Next.
Enter a variation number.
Enter the content as a number.
Select a unit.
Click on Choose attributes.
→ The Pick attribute values window opens.
. Select an attribute.
Click Apply.
Click Next.
Click on Create item, when you are satisfied with your selection.
Tip: Do you want to change something before item creation? Click on Back to change your selection or inputs in the respective window.
Click on Create item.
Click To the item to adjust further settings.
Or: If you want to create more items manually, click on Create another item.

3.2. Creating variations manually

Great! Now you have created your first item. You probably noticed than when creating a new item, you always create a main variation. If you only want to sell single items, the main variation is the same as your product. If you want to group your products as variations of the same item, you should create more variations next.

Inheritance

Any time you create a variation, this variation inherits the following settings from the main variation:

Availability settings
Sales price and price
Category
Supplier
Warehouse
Client availability

Because of this, when creating an item with multiple variations, we recommend that you treat the main variation as a virtual instance and only use it to pass on data to the variations. If you do not want a variation to inherit one or multiple settings, you can disable inheritance for this variation and enter separate data for it.

Creating one or multiple variations:

Open the*Item* menu.
Open the item.
Switch to the Variation overview (manage_search) in the side navigation.
Click add Create variations.
→ The variation creation window opens.
Enter the content as a number.
Select an unit from the drop-down list.
Click Select attributes.
Select one or more attributes.
Click Apply.
→ In the window you find a table with attribute, amount and value.
Tip: Preview the variation by clicking on Preview.
Click on Create variations.
Click Close.
→ The variations are created.
→ The variations are displayed in the variation overview.
Tip: The variations inherit all inheritable settings from the main variation.
Note: New variations and changes to variation data are not available in the online shop and exports immediately.

Copying an item

If you want to sell multiple similar items, you can save time during item creation by copying an item and adjusting it. Click on the Copy symbol in the top bar of the item.

3.3. Importing items and variations

Of course it is not a problem if you want to import a large number of items all at once. To import items and variations, you need to have this data saved in a CSV file on your computer.

Create an example item before the import

Even if you import your items, you should create at least one item manually to become familiar with the item structure. Remember to delete that example item before importing your data.

3.3.1. Importing item and variation data with the assistant

3.3.1.1. Creating an import file

Prepare a CSV file containing your item data. Open the Setup menu and search for the Item import assistant. It creates an import template for item data that is tailored to your needs. Once you’ve completed the assistant, you’ll download the import template and fill your own item data into the file.

Have you finished all of the prep work?

Before you start importing data, make sure you’ve saved all of the information that you want to link with items and variations. In order to create items in PlentyONE. you need the following information at minimum:

Categories
Attributes
Sales prices

3.3.1.2. Uploading your import file

Are you ready to upload your item data in PlentyONE. Open the Setup menu and search for the Upload data assistant.

3.3.2. Importing item and variation data via the import tool

Do you have a specific job in mind and you can’t complete it with assistants? Or are you looking for more comprehensive import options than are included in the assistants?

The import tool is just what you need for complex and comprehensive data imports!

4. Saving item images

When you imported your items, you were able to save a URL for images that are available online. If your item images are not available online, you can save the images manually as described below.

If you have already imported your item images during the item import, you can directly go to the check list.

4.1. Uploading item images

You can save images in the item’s Images tab and then link these images to item variations. You can upload up to 25 images per item. These images can be in JPG/JPEG or PNG format.

Using the FTP upload

You should transfer larger quantities of images to the server via FTP upload. Note that the image files are named correctly, so that the images can be assigned to the correct items and variations during upload.

Saving images for an item:

Open the*Item* menu.
Open the item.
Switch to the Image tab of the item.
Drag and drop new images in the Insert new image section.
Or: Click Select files.
Use the Availability drop-down list to select the clients and/or referrers for which you want do use the image.
Save the settings.

4.2. Linking item images with variations

Now link the images saved for the item to one or more of its variations. To do so, proceed as described below.

Linking item images to variations:

Open the*Item* menu.
Open the item.
In the Image tab you see a preview of all saved images of the item.
Activate Link to variation (toggle_on) at the images that you want to link to one or more variations. → The images are linked with the selected variations.

5. Check list item catalogue

Work through the check list in order to review your settings for the item catalogue.

Did you create appropriate categories for your items?
Did you create description texts for all items?
Did you set the correct item availability levels?
Did you select the availability of all items you want to offer in your online shop?
Did you check that all prices are displayed correctly in the online shop?

6. More about setting up a catalogue of items

6.1. Getting prepared

6.2. Managing items

Using cross-selling

You want to draw attention to other products of interest directly from an item? Set up cross-selling.

6.3. Managing item images

Uploading item images via FTP server

6.4. Importing Data

Creating imports for other imports

Continue with Booking stock.