Migration Hub

How products work in Shopify

This video will describe how products work in the Shopify Admin. You will first see how products are created manually from the back end, which will allow you to have a better understanding of how CSV files can get involved with the product creation process.

We will add a test product in the Admin together, and although we will not learn the full CSV migration process in this video, you will see how Product data fields are connected to CSV files. You can choose to continue to add products manually after seeing this video, or, continue through the Migration Hub to learn more about the CSV method.

In this section of the video, we add our first test product together. We will create a simple T-shirt product with multiple variant options to start.

Follow these steps to create a product from the Shopify Admin:

  1. Log into your Shopify Admin.
  2. From Admin, go to Products > All products.
  3. This page will show you any products that have been added to your Shopify catalogue. If you do not have any products added so far, you can add your first product by clicking the Add product button.
  4. You will be taken to the Product Module, where you can enter data about your product through multiple fields.
  5. Once you have filled out all needed fields for your products, click Save at the top or bottom of the page.
  6. If you would like to add more products using this method, you can use the Add product button again from the All products page. This is a great option for anyone who cannot export a CSV file with their product data in it, or if you have a small catalogue and would like to use the Admin interface to add products.

This method is very user friendly and easy to use, however it is typically a slower process for those that have already successfully exported their product data in a CSV format.

We will take a look at how the Shopify CSV template looks like, using our test product that we just added as an example. After you have added your first product, you can export that data in the Shopify CSV format by following these steps:

  1. Go to Products > All products.
  2. Click on Export at the top of the page.
  3. Click on Export Products in the window.

Your Admin will prompt you that a file is being downloaded, or it will prompt you that the file will be emailed to your inbox. When you open the file, you will see your product data in the Shopify Product CSV format.

The first row of this sheet will show the Product CSV Headers that define our CSV. When importing any new products via CSV on the Shopify Product page, you must must keep these headers unchanged.

To learn more about these headers, you can click on Import at the top of the All products page, then click on "Download a sample CSV template" from there. That link will bring you to this help center page, where you can scroll down to see a table of Header descriptions. 

Note: if you have decided that the CSV route is right for you, please continue through the Migration Hub before moving forward with your CSV file composition. There are many tips & tools presented in the next series of videos that can help you transform your data more efficiently.

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