Though products may be entered manually, one at a time, if you have an existing list that you are moving over to BusyPaws you may find it easier to upload your data directly. In this help guide we will take a look at the steps required to import your existing products and inventory from a CSV file.

Much like customer profiles, the products sold by your business may have lots of associated data. Though you may use any CSV file to import your products list, the process can be simplified by using our provided template. This template can be downloaded by selecting the "Download Sample CSV Template" button in the product import pop-up.

Its associated data points are listed and described in the table below.

Though you are not required to use the "Option" columns in your CSV file, variants can be a great way to organize similar products within your inventory list. Check out the example below demonstrating how options are used to set up variants.

This list of items will result in a product called "Collar" being imported with 6 variants: Small/Blue, Large/Blue, Small/Purple, Large/Purple, Small/Green, & Large/Green, and a product called "Treats" with 3 variants: Beef, Lamb, & Chicken. Each variant may have its own price, picture, SKU, and inventory count, though all will fall under the same main product name.

The import process is most easily triggered from your main Manage Products page. To start, click the "Actions" button at the top of the page then select "Import" from the drop-down menu.

This opens an Import Data pop-up. From here, there are a few steps to work through to complete your import:

Click the file field to open a file-selector or drag a file over the field to upload it from your device's local storage.

Once your chosen file has finished uploading, click the "Import CSV" button to proceed.

The next step involves configuring which columns in your CSV file are to be assigned to which attributes in BusyPaws. If you have chosen to use our sample template, the columns will be automatically assigned for you. If using your own CSV format most attributes will need to be assigned manually.

This is done by clicking the field below each column header and selecting the desired attribute for that column from the drop-down menu. Selectable options include all data points listed in the first section of this guide.

When reviewing the mapping for your import, all columns with an assigned attribute will display in green, while all those set to "Do Not Import" will appear in red.

When you are happy with your selections, click the "Save & Preview" button at the bottom of the page to get to the next step.

After you've saved your attribute selections, you will be taken to an overview of the products that will be imported from your CSV upload. This preview may be used to check for any incorrectly assigned attributes or other mistakes. Note that this preview will include only the first ten products included in your CSV, not your full list.

Items on this page tagged with "New Record" at the top-right corner of their card indicate products that are set to be added as a new product. If your CSV import included handles for existing products, the preview will list a "Match Found" tag for any item that is to be updated instead of added as a new product.

If any of the first ten products are not able to be imported, they will be listed with a red warning icon. Products with a missing title or price will be left out of the import when it is completed.

When you are happy with the preview, select the "Process Import" button to complete your import. If you wish to adjust any of the assigned attributes before proceeding with the import, click the "Go Back" button instead.

After processing your import, you will be brought to your Data Imports page, where you'll see your newest import listed. While the system is processing your import, its status will show with a pick "Processing" tag.

Once the import has completed processing its status will change to "Completed" (note that this may take up to 10 minutes and you will need to refresh the page to see its updated status). The completed import will be listed with the number of rows successfully imported followed by the number that failed to import. All successfully imported products will now be listed in your system!

Click the grey (left-most) download icon for any import to download a copy of its associated CSV file. Select the red (right-most) download icon to download a copy with just those rows that failed to import.

As you begin importing your data, all previous imports will remain available for your reference. All of those files are saved on your Data Export/Import page. To get there, start by clicking the gear icon near the bottom-left corner of the page.

Then select "Data Import/Export" in the "Extras" section.

By default, the page will open on your Data Exports. Click the "Data Imports" tab at the top of the page to open your imports list.

Your Data Imports will be listed here with their type, creation date, status, and the name of the user that requested the import. Any previous imports that have gone through will be marked with a green "Completed" tag, those still being processed by the system will be listed with a pink "Processing" tag. Those still needing user input (i.e. if a user left the import process partway through) will have "Preview" and "Continue" buttons, allowing users to complete the steps needed to finalize the import.

If you wish, you may also start a new product import from your Data Imports page. To do this, click the "New Import" button at the top of your Data Imports page.

This opens an Import Data pop-up. Use the selection field at the top to set the import type to "Product List".

From there, the steps for completing your import are the same as for those required when importing from your Manage Products page:

If ever you need a full list of your products and inventory, whether for a stock count or for some other purpose, you can easily export products from your BusyPaws account directly from your Manage Products page. To start, select "Export" from the "Actions" button drop-down at the top of the page.

After making your selection, you will be taken to your Data Export page. Note that, depending on the length of your product list it can take the system some time to get your data together. Any export currently in progress will be listed with a yellow "Preparing export" label.
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Once it is complete, the export will have a "Download" button. You will also receive an email notification with a link to download the export file. All export files will remain on your Data Export page until you remove them. Files may be removed at any time using the "Delete" (trash can) button.

Note that you can also export your product list directly from your Data Exports page. For more information on that process, check out our guide on Exporting Data From BusyPaws.

The following are a couple of pointers to help you through the product import process:

Still having trouble with your product list import? Check out the following FAQs to help troubleshoot your process:

Product imports can only be done using a CSV (comma separated value) file. If, after selecting a file to upload, you are redirected back to the main Data Import page with an error message, likely you have chosen the wrong file type.

Ensure that your file is saved as a CSV file before attempting your upload again. All types of spreadsheet software (i.e. Excel, Google Sheets, etc.) have an export/download as .csv option that can be used to get files into the CSV format.

If you are certain that your file is a CSV, but are still unable to complete your upload, reach out to our support team with a copy of the file you are attempting to upload.

After your import has completed, you may notice a message listed below the successful import count indicating the number rows that failed to import.

Products will fail to import if they are missing one or both of the of the following attributes:

You can get a full list of the products that were not imported by clicking the red (right-most) download icon for the import. Use this file to check what information is missing for the products that could not be imported.

If the product has all of the required information and was still excluded from the import, reach out to our team with a copy of the failed import file.

Products in BusyPaws are linked to unique unique identifiers called "handles". Each handle is associated with only one item. These handles are automatically generated by the system when products are created or imported.

If you are using a CSV upload to update attributes or inventory for existing products in your system, including the product handle in your CSV file will ensure that the updates are associated with the correct product. You can get a list of product handles by exporting your BusyPaws products list. If handle information is not included in your CSV file, the import will result in the creation of new products in your system, regardless of whether there is an existing product already with the same title.

If you are using a CSV upload to create new products, there is no need to include a handle, as that will be generated by the system through the import process. If your CSV file includes the same product multiple times, multiples of that product will be created. This is because the system does not yet have a way of identifying that the duplicate is the same product as the original.

Note that you can also manually add/edit products and adjust your inventory. For more information on those processes, check out the following help guides: