CSV
The most common format is CSV (Comma-separated values). Most shop systems export their data in CSV format. Excel can also be used to create files in CSV format.
A CSV-file consists of lines, each of which represents data. The values within a line are separated by commas (or other separators). Channel Pilot Pro converts the rows and columns into data fields. Each row fills an article with values for each data field.
Example:
Name,Age,City
Max,25,Berlin
Lisa,30,Hamburg,
Tom,22,Munich
In this example, the first line contains the "headers", which specify the content of the columns: "Name", "Age" and "City".
Delimiter
The values in the header and the values of the articles are separated with the so-called delimiter. In our example, a comma (,) has been used as the separator. Channel Pilot Pro can work with the following separators:
Comma (,)
Semicolon (;)
Pipe (|)
Space (/t)
Hashtag (#)
Colon (:)
NOTE: Only use 1 type of delimiter within a file! Otherwise, your feed cannot be imported, and you will receive an error message = (unclosed_CSV_Escaping).
Example:
Name,Age;City
Max,25;Berlin
Lisa,30;Hamburg
Tom,22;Munich
Two different delimiters were used in this example. A comma (,) but also a semicolon (;). This leads to an error and the file cannot be imported!
We strongly recommend “colon (:)” NOT to be used as a separator. This separator can mean that your file cannot be read or cannot be read correctly.
Example using a URL: https://www....
The following would happen here:
The colon as a separator would split the URL into two parts:
Line 1: https
Line 2: //www....
Quotes
If you use quotes, line breaks or certain special characters within data fields, you must enclose your data with a "quote".
Inverted commas (")
Apostrophe (')
NOTE: If you use quotes, these must always be "closed". In other words, they must enclose a specific section within a line. If this is not the case, the feed cannot be imported, and you will receive an error message = (unclosed_CSV_Quote).
Example:
Name,Age,City
Max,25,Berlin'Spandau'
Lisa,30,Hamburg'Harburg'
Tom,22,Munich'Bogenhausen
In this example, the city districts were enclosed with a "quote". However, "Bogenhausen" was not closed with an apostrophe ('). This leads to an error and the file cannot be imported!
Max. Number of faulty lines
This value refers to the maximum number of incorrect lines that are tolerated in a file before a specific process or application processing the file triggers an error or aborts the processing of the file. A "faulty line" is a line that does not conform to the expected format specifications.
Some common reasons are:
Invalid number of fields: The line has more or fewer fields (columns) than expected.
Invalid file format: One or more of the fields contain data that does not correspond to the expected format (e.g. text in a numeric field).
Line breaks within fields: Sometimes fields can contain unexpected line breaks that destroy the structure of the CSV file.
Incomplete data: The line is incomplete, or ends abruptly.
Duplicate Article Numbers
If you have duplicate data in your feed, set here that they are automatically excluded by Channel Pilot Pro. The duplicate article that is detected first will always be kept.
Specify the value as a percentage or as an absolute number.
Minimum Number of Items
Define here whether a minimum number of items must be imported. Specify the value as a percentage or as an absolute number.
Maximum Number of Missing SKUs
Enter here the maximum number of missing SKUs in your feed. Specify the value as a percentage or as an absolute number.
New or Missing Data Fields
Select the configuration for handling new or missing data fields.
Only new data fields are allowed.
No changes are allowed.
Any change to the data fields is allowed.
Please make sure that you select the correct setting here. If errors occur during an import, you can find possible causes and troubleshooting steps in this article.
Feed Type
Product Feed
This feed type contains data for new or existing products.
Data Feed
This feed type contains only data for products that already exist.
Lookup Feed
This feed type contains data that can be assigned to existing products using a matching key.
Click “Save changes.”
Header line exist?
Is there a header line within the document? And should this be used? Or should the file be imported without a header? In this case, Channel Pilot Pro creates a so-called "dummy header" in which you can name the columns.
XML
XML (extensible Mark-up Language) is a format for representing hierarchically structured data in a text file. XML consists of elements, attributes, their value assignments and the content of the elements, which can consist of text or subordinate elements.
An XML node (element) is defined for the import, which should represent a product in the import. All data from and below this node is taken into account; data higher up in the hierarchy is ignored.
You can also deliver your product feed as XML. Channel Pilot Pro reads all XML tags and XML attributes and creates data fields for them.
You can't use XML attributes in the XML tags of the data fields. This only works in the parent product tag, as in the example below.
The TAG names must be unique for a product to ensure a smooth assignment.
This is how an ".xml" file could look like:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<Feed>
<Product>
<Id>45325</Id>
<Name title="Blueberry Shampoo"><![CDATA[Kid's Shampoo]]></Name>
<Description>
<Description1 title="Blueberry flavor"><![CDATA[Kid's Shampoo]]> </Description1>
<Description2 title="Color"><![CDATA[blue]]> </Description2>
</Description>
<BrandId>5354325</BrandId>
<CategoryId>5354325.45325</CategoryId>
<ProductPageUrl><![CDATA[insert_image_url_here.com]]></ProductPageUrl>
<ImageUrl><![CDATA[insert_product_url_here.com]]></ImageUrl>
</Product>
</Feed>
Pay attention to the following points when creating an .xml file:
The content must always be enclosed by a
<tag></tag>.The content within the tags is case-sensitive!
Only use letters and numbers. Spaces and special characters lead to errors, as these may be recognized as .xml attributes.
If you want to use special characters, e.g. within a product description, you must use the following formatting:
<![CDATA[here you can now insert a text with special characters or spaces]]>
XSLT
XSLT (Extensible Stylesheet Language Transformation) is an extensible format language that is used for formatting and transforming XML formats. XSLT has the task of transforming elements of an XML-based language into another XML-compatible language.
This allows XML files supplied in the import to be customized, filtered and restructured as required, which is particularly useful for very complex hierarchical structures in order to avoid unnecessary data fields in the import and to keep the data provided as readable as possible.
An XSLT stylesheet contains rules and templates that define how certain elements of an XML document are processed or displayed. This allows XML data to be converted into another format or visually enhanced.
Make sure to always choose the correct "Article Path".
Select the "Article path" and "Character encoding".
Activate the toggle for “XSLT transformation”.
Insert your “XSLT Stylesheet”.
Then click on “Generate XML”.
Now we load the first 10 items from the original file and transform them. This ensures that your stylesheet works.
You will see a preview showing the result of the transformation for the first 10 items in your catalog.
You can modify the stylesheet and the example as you wish. The example is only used to check whether your XSLT works. For example, if you want to test more complex elements.
If you then click on “Generate XML,” a new preview generated from the example will be displayed.
If you click on “Apply changes,” we will load the first 10 elements from the original file into the table. It shows the result of applying your XSLT stylesheet to the original file.
Check the data and if everything is correct, click on “Continue.” Proceed and select the same article path in the next window.
JSON
JSON (JavaScript Object Notation) is a compact data format in text form in which information such as objects, arrays and other variables can be stored in readable form.
JSON is independent of programming languages and, like XML, can map hierarchically structured data.
A supplied JSON file is imported 1 to 1 so that each data node creates a data field.
You must observe the following points in order to create a valid JSON file:
Syntax: JSON (JavaScript Object Notation) uses a simple syntax. Make sure that you use curly brackets {} for objects and square brackets [] for arrays.
Key-value pairs: JSON consists of key-value pairs. The key must always be a string (in quotation marks), followed by a colon and the corresponding value (string, number, object, array, boolean or null).
Example:
[
{
"name": "Max",
"age": 30,
"married": false
}
]Strings: Strings must be enclosed in double quotation marks. Single quotation marks are not permitted.
Commas: Make sure that there is a comma between the key-value pairs, but no comma after the last pair.
Whitespace: JSON is not sensitive to whitespace, so you can use line breaks and whitespace to improve readability.
Validation: Use a JSON validator to make sure your JSON file is formatted correctly. There are many online tools, such as
https://jsonlint.com/for this.File extension: Save the file with the extension `.json` to mark it as a JSON file.
JSON token
A JSON token (JSON Web Token, JWT) is a compact, URL-secure way to transfer claims between two parties. JWTs are used to authenticate and authorize users. They consist of three parts separated by dots.