How to enhance product data
Introduction
Every e-commerce shop shares a common goal: to offer products that spark customers' interest. To achieve this, precise and easily accessible product details are crucial. SCAYLE offers a range of features dedicated to enhancing product information effectively.
In the following sections, we'll dive into the features for product enhancement and how to maximize their potential:
- Make it specific: Differentiating between product types using master categories.
- Live is Live: Utilizing product status for clear enhancement stages.
- Better safe than sorry: Set up a robust approval process for product data changes.
- Make it fast: How to work with bulk updates.
- This mission is not impossible: Exploring the 'missions' feature for targeted enhancements.
Prerequisites
You should be familiar with how master categories and attribute groups are handled within SCAYLE. It’s also useful to have access to the SCAYLE Panel to check out features directly.
Make it specific
Most e-commerce shops typically have diverse products, each with specific product data requirements. Within the SCAYLE Panel, under “products,” you can navigate to the product details page (PDP) by selecting a product ID or name. Here you’ll see all the product information which can also be showcased in the shop frontend. Depending on your Panel permissions, adjustments to product details can be made directly on the PDP. This capability is crucial for the product enhancement process. For more details about the PDP within the SCAYLE Panel, click here.
To make sure the PDP only displays the information that matters for each type of product, SCAYLE lets you choose what product details are important for different product types. This approach makes enhancing products through the PDP much clearer. The logic behind organizing product types is built around what we call “Master Categories” in SCAYLE. Basically, you'll set up a master category for every kind of product you have.
By going to Settings ➜ Product structure ➜ Categories in the SCAYLE Panel, you can decide which attribute groups belong to each master category.
In the SCAYLE Panel, only the attribute groups assigned to a specific master category will show up on the Product Details Page (PDP) for any product within that category. Please don’t get confused with the PDP in the shop frontend, where you can display all product information available through the Storefront API. While master category configurations won't change what's shown on the shop frontend, they help organize the product enhancement workflow in SCAYLE. For instance, fashion items, furniture, and food each require distinct attribute groups. By setting up master categories for each type of product and linking only the necessary attribute groups, you streamline the process.\
You also have the option to specify which attribute groups are mandatory for each master category. A product can only go live when all mandatory attributes are provided. For more details on master categories, click here.
Live is live
Product status indicates whether a product is prepared for display on the shop frontend. It's important to note that this status focuses solely on the product's readiness from an enhancement perspective and does not account for additional factors like price and stock, which are also crucial for the product's saleability.
In SCAYLE, products can have one of the following enhancement statuses:
| Live | The product has all the required attributes and at least one image. The enhancement process is complete. |
|---|---|
| Problem | This status flags when essential attributes are missing. It can also be applied manually. Products labeled as "problem" won't be accessible through the Storefront API. |
| Blocked | Products can be marked as "blocked" manually. Unlike the "problem" status, "blocked" doesn't require a specific issue to be noted. These products are also hidden from the Storefront API. |
| Draft | Products can be initially created with a "draft" status to ensure they remain unpublished until approved. |
Product status is displayed on both the PDP and the product overview within the SCAYLE panel. Here, you can change the product status to "Problem," "Live," or "Blocked." When setting a product to "Live," SCAYLE automatically verifies that all mandatory attribute groups are defined for the product. If any are missing, the product status switches to "Problem."
Better safe than sorry
In case you want to double-check all product data changes, the SCAYLE panel includes an approval process designed for this purpose. This process depends on specific permissions within the panel. Users must have the 'Save product (or merchant product) with status "In Approval"'permission but not have the ability to mark products as “live” to move a product into the “in approval” status. The permissions of the panel user role must look like this:\
Generally, the approval process looks like this:\
User 1 can mark the product as “in approval” but doesn't have the right to set it to “live”. Changing a product's status to “in approval” through the Product Details Page (PDP) works just like changing it to any other status. The designated approver can review the product's details and, if it meets all the criteria, can update the product’s status to “live”.
Make it fast
Need to update a specific attribute across multiple products quickly? The bulk update feature in the product list is what you're looking for. To activate the update button, simply apply two or more filters at the top of the product list. For more information on the product list and its functionalities, click here.
With the bulk update feature, you can modify an attribute group's value, change assigned master categories, or update product statuses for several products at once. Options include removing, replacing, or appending attributes. This tool is especially useful for actions like removing simple attributes from a large number of products simultaneously, enabling their deletion from the SCAYLE environment. Note that master categories and product statuses can only be replaced, as they cannot be left empty or have multiple values.
Additionally, SCAYLE provides a bulk media upload feature, ideal for when you need to upload or refresh images for your products manually. To learn more about this function, click here.
This Mission is not impossible
The “mission” feature is at the heart of the product enhancement processes in SCAYLE. Missions allow you to structure product enhancement tasks based on predefined product selections. This process starts in the product list, where activating the “create mission” button requires selecting two or more filters.
Missions are particularly useful for addressing common issues, such as products marked as “problem” due to reasons like lacking images or missing mandatory attributes. They also come in handy for managing products awaiting approval, as highlighted in the "Better safe than sorry" section. For efficiency, it's wise to pair a mission with a specific master category, tailoring the enhancement tasks to be as precise as needed.
Missions store the selected filters and display the included products like a catalog in the PIM Add-on, where further details about the Add-on are available here. Within this Add-on, you can update each product individually. The update process is based on the product details page that you’re already familiar with.
Missions can be set up as standard or temporary. Standard missions are permanent, staying active even if no products are currently linked to them. On the other hand, temporary missions are automatically deleted once they no longer have products associated with them. It's useful to choose a mission name that clearly indicates the purpose of the mission, such as naming a mission “Products Awaiting Approval” for products in the “In Approval” status.
Since tasks often require different users or roles, you can allocate specific missions to particular users or roles. For instance, if only certain users have the authority to approve product data changes, you can directly assign the mission to them.
