Case study 4: Importing product files

You can import new products with files like e-books, music, or video tutorials, or you can import files for products that already exist in your store. Every file can be up to 25 GB, and you can import as many files per product as you need.

In this section, you’ll learn how to import a new product with a file into your store.

In our example, we’ll use the following product:

A sample Terms and Conditions template that costs $2 and has an SKU (A0002). It is a digital product that does not require shipping.

This product has one file that becomes available for download after purchase.

To create an import file:

1. Open your spreadsheet editor.
2. Enter “type” in the first cell. Then enter “product” in the row below it:
   

   

3. In the next column, enter “product_name” and the name of your product – “Terms and Conditions template” – as its value for the “product” row.
4. Then similarly add the “product_sku” column to the file header and “A0002”.
5. Then add the “product_price” column to the file header and “2” as its value for the “product” row.
6. Next, add the “product_is_shipping_required” column and “FALSE” as its value to specify this is a digital product that does not require shipping.
7. In the next row, enter “product_file” in the “type” column:
   

   

   Now you’ve specified that this row is about a product file.
8. In the “product_sku” column, enter “A0002” again. That’s the SKU of the product this file belongs to. By specifying it, you let the import tool know which product in your store the file goes to.
9. Add the “product_file_secret_url” column to the file header and a link to your file on the web as its value for the “product_file” row (in our example, it’s https://help.shopsettings.com/hc/en-us/article_attachments/8235845702423/English_Terms_and_Conditions_template.pdf).
   You cannot give links to files stored on your device – the file has to be hosted somewhere on the internet (e.g., in a folder on your hosting account).
10. Add the “product_file_filename” column to the file header and enter “template” (or any other name you like) as its value for the “product_file” row.
11. (optional) Add the “product_file_description” column to the file header and “This is a sample T&C template” (or any other text you like) as its value for the “product_file” row.
12. Now save/download the file as .csv to your device. In Google Sheets, you can do it by going to File → Download → Comma Separated Values (.csv).

That’s it! You’ve compiled a CSV file for the “Terms and Conditions template” product (you can find the “product_with_files” file in the article attachments):

After you upload this CSV file on the Catalog → Data Import & Export page, the product with its file will be added to your store. Here’s how its file will look on the Files tab in your store admin:

Now you can choose any product with files from your catalog and follow these instructions step by step to compile your own CSV file. If you need to upload several different files to a product or several products with files, simply add rows with data on them to the same CSV:

If later you need to update files for your product, simply create and upload a new CSV that will contain all the files that you need your product(s) to have after import. See the list of available product file columns →