Now that you have set up the generic and look and feel parameters for your store, this section enables you to define how the heart of your store operates. This administration area enables you to set up product categories and then add individual products in these categories; it also to enables you to upload the whole of your inventory as a CSV file and report on the structure of your store's catalogue.
Click the Add product category button to start inputting the different categories and sub-categories required for the structure of your product inventory. Note: The categories will only be displayed to your shoppers if they contain at least one product.
Category Image
If you have decided to include an image as a link to a category, then it
is displayed to your shoppers alongside the category's name and laid out
depending upon the selection of the category layout in the Look
and Feel chapter. To enter an image, either type in the image ID number
(if known) or search for the name of the image in the folder that was
defined in the Image Library.
Category Name
The category name is displayed to the shopper alongside the category image
above. The category name is also a hyperlink, which enables your shoppers'
access to the brief product pages of the products contained in that category.
Enter a descriptive name for the category to prevent confusion for your
shoppers.
Sort Priority
The sort priority enables a category to have an importance level. By associating
a category with a priority number you can apply an order in which the
categories are displayed in your store. You can choose your own numbering
system however lower numbers will appear first.
Product Displayed per Page
By entering a number in the Product
displayed per page field you can specify the number of products
that are displayed on the brief product page for that category.
Visible
When checked, it makes the category visible to shoppers. Note: The
default setting is 'Invisible' so that shoppers will not see categories
under development. To temporarily make a category and all the products
in that category invisible in your store, simple un-check the Visible
checkbox.
Description
The description will be displayed at the top of the category's brief product
pages, and is there to provide the shopper with a more detailed summary
of what products are contained within that category. Entry of the description
either as a standard format or as HTML is carried out in the same way
as in the Site
Pages Administration.
Parent Category
Using this drop down list you can state that your new category is a sub-category
(child) to a parent category, thus obtaining a structured method of breaking
down your product inventory into smaller categories. The parent for your
new category can also be a child to another category, therefore some pre-planning
of your product inventory structure would prove beneficial to avoid confusion.
When each of the parameters above have been filled out click either the Add and Return to Add or the Add and return to Menu buttons to confirm the new category. To clear the menu, click the Reset Form button.
Select a category from the drop down list and then click the View/Edit button to change the content of that category. You can change any of the category's parameters as above; in addition, you can now include a new category as a sub-category or 'child' to your chosen category. Click the Add Child Category button, and fill out the new category details menu to include this new category as a child to your now parent category.
Select the category's name from the drop down list that you wish to delete, once selected click on the Delete button. When deleting, a confirm checkbox is displayed in order to avoid accidental deletions. This box needs to be checked before the delete button becomes effective.
Select a category name
from the drop down list and click the Quick
Edit button. This displays a screen that shows all of the products
that are included in that category, and enables you to quickly edit some
of the product's details. You can view any of the product or variant details
in full by clicking on the relevant hyper linked name. However, the main
purpose of Quick Edit
is to quickly:
i) enable you to make your products visible to your shoppers by ticking
the Visible checkbox.
ii) to edit the price of each of the products.
iii) to change the stock levels of the products.
After changing any the product's details click the Update
button to confirm the changes.
Once you have entered the product categories, you need to complete your inventory by adding your products into their categories. From the drop down list, select the category that you wish to add a product to and click the Add Product button. At the next screen, enter the new product's parameters, including the product's name, description and product image and details on the product's tax and shipping, discount applied and the product's variant(s).
Product Code
An optional parameter. Use this if you wish to implement product part numbering.
Not displayed to the shopper.
Product Name
The product name is displayed to the shopper and is hyper linked (as is
the associated thumbnail image), to an area displaying the long description
and a larger size image of the product.
Sort Priority
The sort priority enables a product to have an importance level, by associating
a product with a priority number you can apply an order in which the products
are displayed on the brief detail product pages. You can choose your own
numbering system however lower numbers will appear first.
Visible
When checked, it makes the product visible to customers. To temporarily
make products invisible in your store, simply un-check the Visible
checkbox.
In (Category)
Using the drop down list you can select a different initial category, that
the product will be stored in, also the amount of time that it is visible
in this catalogue. By default it will display the category that was chosen
before entering the Add
Product screen. Products may reside in multiple categories; add
the product to additional categories by clicking Add
and Add a Category Entry button at the bottom of the menu or by
entering the edit product screen (see Product
Options).
Descriptive Keywords
A shopper will be able to search your catalogue either by category, or
by using keywords. You should enter any descriptive keywords for your product
that will help accommodate this search method. Design Tip: Always include the full product
name, manufacturer, model number and so on. Enter the keywords separating them with spaces only (camera sharp digital SLR).
Brief Description
You may set up two textual descriptions of your products; brief and long
descriptions. The brief description is displayed in the brief product
pages, which is the initial product page that is displayed to your shoppers.
Several brief product details can be displayed at once, dependent on the
number chosen in Look
and Feel. The thumbnail image, described below, will also be displayed
alongside the brief description. Entry of brief description text is carried
out in the same way as in Site
Pages Administration.
Design Tip: The use of any of the list formats that are included could help present a product feature list to your shoppers in both the brief and full product pages.
Long Description
The long description is displayed when the shopper is viewing the brief
product page and clicks the Product Name hyperlink or thumbnail image.
The purpose of the two description areas (Brief & Long) can be best
illustrated with this example, a CD's artist and CD title can be entered
in the short description, and further details like the track listing is
entered in the long description. Alternatively, a book and author title
can be entered in the short description and a chapter extract in the long.
Be cautious about the amount of data entered here, as it will take longer
to display large amounts of text to your shoppers, and will increase the
amount of server space used. A different graphic of the product can displayed
alongside this text.
Design Tip: If you enter track listings or similar lists in this area, use one of the list formats to display it properly. A mix of images and different text styles can give your product descriptions a very professional output.
Design Tip: The Brief description area is the page that the shopper will use to identify the product so it needs to load quickly. Use a small image of the product and minimal descriptive text. Use a larger image and fuller description in the Long Description area to give the shopper more information about the product.
Image
This image is displayed with the long description. To enter an image either
type in the image ID number (if known) or search for the name of the image
in a folder which was defined in the Image
library. Here is where you feel the benefit of keeping your images
in libraries that mirror your categories as previously suggested.
Thumbnail Image
This image will be displayed in the brief product pages, alongside the
brief description. To enter a thumbnail image either type in the image
ID number (if known) or search for the name of the image in the image
library folder using the drop down lists.
Design Tip: This image will be hyper linked, so you may want to consider a more descriptive image, rather than a thumbnail of the larger image (as outlined above).
Tax Rate Group
This parameter is used to choose a previously defined tax rate group for
the product. A description of tax rate group setup and use is given in
the Tax and Shipping
Options chapter.
Shipping Rate Group
This parameter is used to choose a previously defined shipping rate group
for the product. It is either used in conjunction with the shipping parameters
below, or standalone (which will render it applicable only to the unit,
percentage value or fixed cost). A description of shipping rate group
setup and use is given in the Tax
and Shipping Options chapter.
Discount Scheme
This parameter is used to apply a previously defined discount scheme to
a product. A description of the discount setup and use is given in the
Discount Options chapter.
Instruction
Select an instruction's name, or select multiple instructions by holding
down CTRL and highlighting them for the list, until all the relevant instructions
have been associated with the product. A description of the instructions
setup and use is given in the Instruction
Options chapter.
Shipping Parameters
These parameters are used with the figures entered in Shipping
Rates Group for shipping rate calculations based on weight or size.
The weight unit (grams, kilograms, etc.) and the dimension units (mm's,
cm's or inch's) are irrelevant providing the same unit is used in both
areas. If the product is being shipped on a unit, percentage value or
fixed price basis, these parameters can be ignored. The dimension shipping
parameters are not used in the TecknaShop Standard Shipping Model
(see Tax
and Shipping Options for more details).
Variants are used to sub-classify variations of a single product. For example, size or colour variations. This can also used for variations of any products that have similar descriptive characteristics (i.e. for films the classifications are either Video or DVD, and for music they could be Vinyl/CD/Cassette/Minidisc etc). Variants have their own stock amounts and pricing so if you do not wish to use stock control but do wish to sub-classify, you should use Instructions instead. If you are not using any variants, an initial variant name need not be entered, although the other details in this section (price, stock details, and goods type) are required.
Design Tip: For associated products, such as batteries for electrical equipment, or accessories for audio/video equipment, a variant can be set up so that they are alongside the parent item.
Operational Tip: If a product has more than one variant then you can add the additional variants by clicking the Add and Add a Variant button at the button of the page or enter the product options edit screen (see below).
To add a product variant you will need to fill in the following parameters:
Variant Name
This parameter needs only to be entered if you are planning to apply more
than one variant to the product. Enter a descriptive name, as this will
be displayed to your shoppers.
Price
Enter the price in the base Currency
(the currency that your store
was set up with) for the product, this will then be re-calculated automatically
for the shopper dependant upon the shoppers currency choice when they
enter your store. As the exchange rate variations are handled via the
real-time link to WorldPay the prices displayed to your shopper could
vary from day to day.
Operational Tip: If you have not subscribed to WorldPay's multi-currency system, we recommend that you consider taking the option. Additional currencies make your products much more accessible to your shoppers from countries outside your own by allowing shoppers to make an easy 'value for money judgement' in their own currency.
Make visible to Shoppers
When checked, it makes the product's variant visible to your shoppers.
To temporarily remove the variant from shoppers view simple un-check the
Visible checkbox.
Use Stock Checking
Tick this checkbox if you want TecknaShop to maintain a stock level
on this product/variant, display the stock level to shoppers and provide
you with low stock or stock depletion emails.
Operational Tip: If you did not included stock checking in your initial variant, but wish to include this functionality to the product, then you will need to delete the product's variant and recreate it using the product option variant edit menu (see below).
Sort Priority
The sort priority enables a variant to have an importance level, by associating
a variant with a priority number you can apply an order in which the variants
are displayed on the product pages. You can choose your own numbering
system however lower numbers will appear first.
Initial Stock
Enter the initial amount of stock, this value will then be displayed in
your store provided you have checked the Use Stock Checking
box above.
Re-order Level
When a shopper adds a product to their basket the available stock level
will be depleted. Note:
If the shopper subsequently leaves the store without ordering or their
payment is unsuccessful the stock level will be restored after a timeout
period. When the stock level reaches the re-order level, an (optional)
email will be sent to you by TecknaShop advising you that your stock
is low and should be replenished.
When stock is completely depleted, no quantity input box for ordering that product will be displayed to shoppers until the stock level has been replenished. The replenishing of stock is achieved in the product option edit menu (see below). Complete depletion of stock also triggers an (optional) email to you. See the Personal Details chapter for more details.
Goods Type
Choose either hard goods, (a product that has to be physically shipped
to your shopper) or downloadable goods (a piece of software or information
that can be downloaded from a virtual page) from the drop down list provided.
Important Note: While you are developing your store it will normally be set to test mode. This will enable you to test all of it’s functionality including connection to the payment gateway, but the gateway will not debit any cards used in transactions. If you load “live” downloadable goods onto your site, anyone that knows or finds the URL of your site can order and download goods without making any payment. So if you intend to upload downloadable goods before your site is live, make them invisible (See the Catalogue Option chapter for details) and use downloadable material of no value for testing.
If your product is downloadable, then you will need to select the downloadable file by finding the relevant file (that you previously uploaded) from the drop down lists or by typing in the files ID number (if known). This file will be available to the shopper upon successful completion of a card transaction, from a time expired, 'virtual' page (that cannot be book-marked).
Allow Access To Purchasers is where you enter the amount of days/hours that your shopper can access the virtual page to download their purchased file. Note: The time entered should reflect how long it might take a shopper accessing your store via a slow modem link to download the product. Refer to the table in Download Options.
Requires Delivery checkbox enables your downloadable goods to be both downloaded and physically shipped to your shopper as normal hard goods. For example you may need to send a hard copy manual to accompany the software.
Discount Scheme
This parameter is used to apply a discount scheme to a particular variant
of a product for example, a 3 for 2 offer or a 20% discount after spending
£100. A description of the discount setup and use is given in the Discount
Options chapter.
Instruction
Different instructions can be related to variants of a product. These instructions
allow the your shoppers to select different versions of a particular variant
of a product, i.e. the choice of colour for a size of the product. Simply
select the instruction's name, (or select multiple instructions by holding
down the 'CTRL' key) from the list provided. A description of the instructions
setup and use is given in the Instruction
Options chapter.
The product details can be viewed, edited or deleted from this menu by simply selecting the products name from the drop down list and then by clicking any of the following option buttons.
When you have selected a product from the drop down it can be viewed in more detail by clicking the View/Edit button. You can change any of the products parameters set out above and the choice of which categories the product appears in. You may also add a new variant to the product. To confirm any changes click either the Add and Return to Add button or the Add and Return to Menu button.
Editing Variants to the Product
Within the edit product screen is the Variant Option menu that enables
you to edit the initial variant of the product and add new variants. See
the sections above for explanations of the individual fields.
The Variant Edit menu also enables you to change the stock level of that product or variant. A positive figure entered in the Increase Or Deplete Stock By field will increment the stock by that amount, and a negative will decrement it. The reorder level can also be adjusted here.
Adding the Product to Additional
Categories
A product can belong to several categories to provide shoppers with multiple
routes to finding a single product, though the product's stock level will
be maintained
regardless of how many categories it resides in.
Click the Add button to enter the add category entry menu where you can simply select the additional category from the drop down list. You can also choose to time expire the products appearance within the chosen category by first stating the from date and then the number of days after the start date that the product will remain in that category. By including a time frame for a product's duration in a category, you can highlight new stock, or sell 'hard to move' stock by reducing its price and putting it in a 'Special Offer' area for a limited amount of time. When you have set the parameters for the additional category click either the Add and Return to Add or the Add and Return to Menu buttons to confirm your choice. By adding a product to more than one category you can also provide your store with a more structured and searchable format as many products could fall in the realms of multiple categories.
This will display all the products in all categories, and enables you to quickly view and edit prices, stock levels and visibility to the shopper. You can view any of the product or variant details in full by clicking on the relevant hyper linked name. After changing any of the products details click the Update button to confirm the changes.
Select the product that you wish to delete from the drop down list, once selected click on the Delete button. When deleting, a confirm checkbox is displayed in order to avoid accidental deletions. This box needs to be checked before the Delete button becomes effective.
If you have a large, pre-existing inventory, a quick upload facility is available via a CSV (Comma Separated Values file - which is a common output format used by the market leading spreadsheets and databases).
Click the Admin button to enter the inventory upload file selection menu. Click the Browse button to search for the CSV file that you intended to upload and when located, click the Open button. The format for the CSV file is as laided out in Appendix A.
Populate your image libraries, downloadable goods, discounts and instructions before compiling your CSV file. The catalogue structure must also be completed so that ID numbers are available.
If you are an existing TecknaShop customer you may have previously compiled a CSV in an earlier version of TecknaShop, in which case your file will be either version 2.3 or 2.4 (see your TecknaShop provider for your version details)
Note: The early versions of the CSV file will still work in version 3 of TecknaShop however, some of the product details will be excluded. If you are a new user to TecknaShop and have generated your CSV file from the format given to you in Appendix A then your CSV file is version 3. To submit the product inventory CSV file to your store click the Commit Upload button. If you wish to see if you file will upload correctly before overwriting any of you pre-exist information tick the 'Test Mode' check box before committing the file.
After a successful upload of data, you will see several pieces of information in a blue-bordered box when the screen refreshes:
The name of the file that has been uploaded, e.g. c:\inventory.csv
Notification of whether products exist and have been edited
Notification of whether variants exist and have been edited
Summaries of products that have been added
Warnings may immediately precede the information for individual products. These signify data lines, which the system cannot interpret fully, but that are not critical enough to force a rejection. Slight changes may have to be made to these items using the on-line Click and Build interface.
For those items that are rejected completely, a rejection message, followed by an input box enabling you to edit the product data, will be presented at the foot of the refreshed page. Each rejection will include a row number that relates to the lines in the text input box, and a file row number that relates to the original CSV file. It will also have a product, variant and category number (if on that line). Following amendment, these items can be resubmitted. This cycle can be followed until the process is complete. The possible rejection messages are as laid out in Appendix A.
Operational Tip: If you have not got a pre-existing inventory set out in a database or spreadsheet but you have a large inventory to add to your store, TecknaShop now has an Off-line Inventory Builder. For more information upon building your store off-line go to the Off-line Inventory Builder chapter.
Catalogue reporting has 3 reports, which are run by clicking the Go button adjacent to the report title.
Category Reporting displays each of your category folders and lists the products that are included in them.
Inventory Reporting enables you to download any of the following reports as useful CSV files; Entire Inventory Report; Inventory Hard-Goods Report; Inventory Downloadable Goods Report; Inventory Product Shipping Group Report; Inventory Product Tax Group Report; Inventory Product Discount Report; Inventory Product Instructions Report. These CSV reports can be imported into programs like Microsoft's Excel or Access, which enables you to create an offline inventory.
Orphaned Product Report An orphaned product is a product that is not assigned to any category, therefore a shopper has no way to navigate to it.
The report will display each orphaned product's ID number (which is hyper linked to its product page) and the products name. You can then select the orphaned product by clicking the radio button next to the ID number. To move it to a category, select a category from the Move to drop down list and then click the Go button. To delete the orphaned products, check the Delete Product box for each of the redundant products and then click the Delete Orphaned Product (s) button. To delete all orphaned products simply check the Delete All box and click the Delete Orphaned Product(s) button to confirm the deletion.
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