Congratulations on your new E-commerce website!
In 2020, E-Commerce accounted for nearly 15% of ALL sales in the United States, up three percent from the previous year. It’s clear that this is the future of enterprise and we are excited to help you get started in this booming market with your e-commerce website!
Before we begin, we will need detailed information about all the products in your store. This information will need to be organized into a Product List. The Product List is an essential step in development – it will structure the foundational database that your store will be built upon. We have created step-by-step instructions to help you provide an accurate Product List, and we will be here to help you along the way!
Here's What You’ll Learn:
- 1
Introduction: Getting Started With E-Com
2Understanding the Required Fields
3Submitting your Product List
4Frequently Asked Questions
Introduction: Getting Started With E-Com
Accessing the Product List Example Template
For your convenience, we have provided a Product List template. This template will give you an idea of how your product list will look and the type of information we’ll need.
The template is embedded on the page for you. Once you're ready to begin working on your own Product List, you will need to add a copy of the template onto your new or existing Airtable account by following these four simple steps:
- Login to or create an Airtable account. It's quick and free!( More about Airtable)
- Click the "Copy Base" button at the bottom-right corner of the template.
- This will prompt a login screen. Create a new account or log in to an existing one. It's quick and free!
- Add to your Workspace (this is a folder in your dashboard)
- You're now ready to Review the template to understand the fields.
Tip:
We recommend that you first download the template, review each of the columns, and understand what each means before working on your own (covered in the next lesson). Once you're ready, replace the example information with your own product information.
Existing Inventory Migration
Do you already have an inventory sheet or similar document? If this is the case, then you’re ahead of the game as we may not need to create this list from scratch. We recommend you create a duplicate of your existing document (that way you'll always have a backup of your original), then rename and match up the columns to the Product List template.
After the existing information is matched with the template, add any additional information that may be missing in the remaining columns (i.e. variants names and options).
Once the fields match perfectly, import it to Airtable directly from your Excel Sheet, Google Sheet, Apple Numbers sheet, or a CSV file. If you need help at this step, as always, please reach out to us!
Migrating from another online Ecommerce platform
If you're migrating from another e-commerce platform, follow your platform's guide on exporting products to get the CSV file.
Resources
Understanding the Required Fields
This is an essential step in ensuring the accuracy of your product list so it may be uploaded into the database correctly. We want to make sure you have a complete understanding of the role each column plays in the template, so we ask that you please take a moment to review every explanation before submitting your Product List. A careful review at this point will expedite the process and eliminate the risk for mistakes down the line. If you have any questions about the columns and required fields, we are happy to explain!
Product Handle (required)
The product handle (also called a ‘slug’) is a string of text that is unique to each product. It is the string of text that will be seen in the page URL address bar. The product handle is usually the same as the name of the product only with spaces substituted with dashes.
Type: slug (url)
Example: kurts-strawberry-jelly
Resulting URL: mywebsite.com/product/kurts-strawberry-jelly
Maps to field: slug
To pass validation, this field must:
- not be empty
- be unique for each product
- be no longer than 256 characters
- only contains letters, numbers, and dashes, and doesn't contain any spaces or other special characters
- be in English characters. Non-English characters will be converted to Latin characters.
Need to know:
- Any capital letters in the slug will be converted to lowercase
- If a product with the same handle already exists in your products collection, the new item from your CSV won't be uploaded
Product Name (required)
This is the name of the product. This is what your cusotmer will see listed on the website.
Type: plain text
Example: Very Strawberyy Jelly
Maps to field: Name
To pass validation, this field must:
- not be empty
- be unique for each product
- be no longer than 256 characters
Product Description
Detailed description of your products. If you have some variants or columns that don't fit within the template, the additional information can be added here in the descriptions as there will be less text-length limitations.
Type: plain text
Example: You must try Kurt's Fruit Jellies! Made with all organic and locally sourced ingredients, these jellies are packed with nutrition and flavor. They also come in recyclable packaging. For every jar of jelly purchased, $5 gets donated to wildlife conservation.
Maps to field: Description
Product Categories
The category or categories the product belongs to.
Type: semicolon-separated text string
Example: jellies; jams; preserves
Maps to field: Categories
Creates: a new category if the category doesn't exist
Product Taxable/ Product Tax Class
Specifies if the product is taxable or not taxable.
Type: true or false (switch/toggle)
Example: False
Maps to field: Charge sales tax on this product
To pass validation, value must be blank or any of the following:
- True
- Yes
- Taxable-standard
- False
- No
- exempt
- standard-taxable
- standard-exempt
- books
- books-religious
- clothing
- clothing-swimwear
- digital-goods
- digital-service
- drugs-non-prescription
- drugs-prescription
- food-bottled-water
- food-candy
- food-groceries
- food-prepared
- food-soda
- food-supplements
- magazine-individual
- magazine-subscription
- service-admission
- service-advertising
- service-dry-cleaning
- service-hairdressing
- service-installation
- service-miscellaneous
- service-parking
- service-printing
- service-professional
- service-repair
- service-training
Need to know:
- blank values default to: taxable
- Tax laws and e-commerce can become tedious and complicated. Fortunately, Webflow does most of the heavy lifting with the tax calculations! Webflow uses TaxJar to automatically calculate taxes based on your customer’s location. All you need to do is report your tax earnings and pay them accordingly. If you have any further questions regarding taxes, you can read up on e-commerce tax law or consult your tax accountant. If you haven't already, it's important that you hire a tax accountant to start planning for your online business's tax plan.
Variant Price (required)
The current price of the product or variant
Type: Number
Example: 19.99
To pass validation:
- Must be only an integer or a decimal number
- Must not contain a currency unit or symbol
Compare-at price
The old price of the product, before sale.
Type: Number
Example: 58
To pass validation:
- Must be only an integer or a decimal number
- Must not contain a currency unit or symbol
Variant Inventory
This field signifies the stock quantity. Variant inventory enables inventory tracking and is especially useful if you would like to let your customers know how many items you have left in stock. This is especially true if you also have a brick-and-mortar store where you complete in-person transactions. This may make it difficult to keep track of inventory on the site alongside your current inventory management software. However, this feature is entirely optional.
Type: Number
Example: 40
To pass validation:
- Must be only an integer or a decimal number
- Must not contain a currency unit or symbol
Variant Options and Values
Your product will have additional variants your customer can choose different options for a product. For example, if Kurt is selling homemade jams, a customer may have different options to choose from such as size, fruit, and sugar/sugar-free. Size, Fruit, and Sugar Options are all called option sets. Each option set will have names and values, which we''ll go over in detail in the next section.
Option 1 Name
If a product has more than one option set (color, size...), then enter the name of that option set.
Type: Plain text
Example: Size
Example: New variant
Option 1 Value
If a product has an option, then enter its value (blue, medium, XXL...).
Type: Plain text
Example: Mini
Example: New variant
Option 2 Name
If a product has a second option set, then enter its name.
Type: Plain text
Example: Flavor
Example: New variant
Option 2 Value
If a product has a second option, then enter its value.
Type: Plain text
Example: Apricot
Example: New variant
Option 3 Name
If a product has a third option set, then enter its name.
Type: Plain text
Example: Topping
Example: New variant
Option3 Value
If a product has a third option, then enter its value.
Type: Plain text
Example: Sprinkles
Example: New variant
Need to know:
- You're able to create up to 3 option sets per product, with a limit of up to 50 variants total.
- Each product item can have a total of 50 variants. This limits the number of options you can add. For example, if you have 5 options for option set 1, you won’t be able to add more than 10 options for option set 2. (5*10=50).
Visual Breakdown of Variants and Option Sets
Main Variant Image
This is the URL for the product image. You can upload your images directly to Airtable as an attachment, which will convert into a link when it's ready for export.
Type: URL (or file attachment)
Example: https://assets-global.website-files.com/5c5c66ea0a3f27bc39bf5e24/5c63f4869b9111bfde
To pass validation, this field must:
- be a direct URL — a link that ends in a supported image file extension
Need to know:
- Only JPEG, PNG, GIF, or SVG image file types will be imported into your collection
- Images will be uploaded and hosted by Webflow
- These images are not variant-specific. Variant images should be specified in the specific variant images field/column.
- You can't change the image filename after that image has been uploaded to your store.
- Don't upload images that have _thumb, _small, or _medium suffixes in their names
Variant SKU
The SKU (or ID/Code/Key) of the product or variant.
Example: 001789-GRAPE-JAM
Variant Weight
The weight of the product or variant without units. You may specify which you units of measure you want to use in your e-commerce settings but the default variant weight is set to ounces. You must use accurate weights if you intend to offer weight-based shipping.
Type: Number
Example: 38
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Variant Length
Variant Length must be listed in inches.
Type: Number
Example: 42
Variant Width
Variant Width must be listed in inches.
Type: Number
Example: 12
Need to know:
If you have a circular product that requires a "Diameter" dimension, add the diameter as the Variant Width, then specify the diameter dimensions in the Product Description.
Variant Height
Variant Height must be listed in inches.
Type: Number
Example: 16
3. Submitting Your Product List
Once your list is complete, you may send it to your account manager via email. Sending your Product List early in development helps us accurately format the infrastructure of your site, and ensures that we can meet development timelines.
To share, click the "SHARE" button near the top-right corner of your Airtable base. Select "Base" to allow access to this base only (this keeps your other bases in your workspace private). From here, you can choose to invite your account manager directly in Airtable, or send the Share Link to your account manager via email.
Invite by Email
Under "Invite by Email", enter the email address of your account manager. This will send them a direct link through their email. Make sure they are invited as a "Creator". You can find this option in the dropdown to the right of the email field.
Share by Link
In the grey box at the top of the window, click "Invite by link". Choose the link to grant Creator access. You can allow sending to any email address, or any address ending in @yourdigitalresource.com (optional). Create the link, copy it to your clipboard, then use the buttons below to email your account manager directly.
4. Frequently Asked Questions
How do I get started with Airtable?
Airtable is quite easy to learn and had abundant resources to learn from. Once you've learned the Airtable basics, we'll be happy to help you navigate Airtable and build your product list. You can get started here:
Get Started with Airtable
Why is Airtable better than a regular Excel or Google Sheet?
Airtable allows us to determine a data type for each column, such as plain text, links, images, clickable options, etc. This makes adding and maintaining products much easier than an all plain-text Excel or Google sheet. Additionally, it's much easier to read and allows for easy collaboration.
I already have an inventory sheet, so I need to rebuild it from scratch?
Not necessarily! We recommend you create a duplicate of your existing document, that way you have a backup of the original document. With this new copy, match and rename your columns so they match up with the Product List template. After the existing information is attached with the template, add any additional information that may be missing in the remaining columns.
Once the fields perfectly match, you can download a CSV version of your inventory list and import it to Airtable. If you need help at this step, please reach out to us!
How do I download a CSV of my current inventory list?
For Google Sheets:
- Open your Google Sheets spreadsheet
- At the top left corner, select File > Download A
- Choose "Comma-Separated Values (.csv, current sheet)
- This will prompt a file to download to your computer
- Upload this new file to Airtable
Learn More
For Apple Numbers:
- Open your spreadsheet on your desktop.
- Choose File > Export to > CSV
- Choose a name for your file and a location to save it on your computer. Click Save.
- Import into Airtable
Learn More
How do import my previous inventory spreadsheet to Airtable?
- Open the base where you want to import your data. Click the + button next to your list of tables and select the "Import data" option.
- This will open the "Import data" dialog.
- You can choose to import directly from your Excel Spreadsheet, Google Sheet, Apple Numbers sheet, or CSV file.
For more information, visit the Airtable Support forum:
Learn More
My original inventory list isn't exactly matching up to the Product List template, what do I do?
We're excited to hear that your store is growing! To keep development streamlined, we can only accept the products that were submitted with your original product list, however, we'll be happy to add the new products once development is complete.
What if I'm migrating from another e-commerce platform?
If you're migrating from another e-commerce platform, follow your platform's guide on exporting products to get the CSV file.
Resources
Do you need additional help?
Our #1 goal is to help you succeed, and our team is standing by in case you need more information or need more support. Feel free to directly contact your account manager, or send us a message through our website!