What is XML product feed?
Many modern CMS are able to extract information about products and categories in XML files to transfer them to various services (e.g. Google Merchant).
These files are used to provide information about products and product categories to InSend. The information about the goods is needed so that the corresponding promotional cards can be sent along, and the categories are needed so that InSend can calculate statistics and provide you with reports about which categories your visitors are interested in.
Go to “Settings”. Enter the URL of your XML file for Google in the “URL address of XML file with products” field. Be sure to click “Save”.
We remind you: we only support format– Google Merchant XML.
Product feed checklist
Where to change the feed?
After going through all the integration steps, the link to the feed can be changed here: Settings - InSend installation - Change settings - Product information. The last update should be today. If a different date is given, there are problems with the feed.
Product feed link
The link to the file must be added as a URL. The correct form of the address: https://site.com/feed/catalog_export/xml_619705.php
Incorrect address type: /feed/catalog_export/xml_619705.php
Important! Make sure the feed matches the format. We only support Google Merchant XML
Feed update
If your product feed is not updating, you will see "Failed to update products" in your account settings. Check the reasons for which errors may occur.
The system is automatically updated once a day, between 4-5 am. Follow the instructions to update the feed manually.
Checking the compliance of the availability of products on the website and in the feed
On the main analytics screen, click on the Carts or Orders funnel stage, select any of the orders. By clicking on an order, you will see the products in it. If the product(s) look like “Item #341477”, there is a problem with the feed.
Important! The product ID in the feed must match the product ID on the website, in the cart, in the order. If there are different values everywhere, the product will not be found and correctly substituted in emails.
Check the availability of product
Copy the product feed link and open it in a browser. Use the hot key combination Ctrl+F to search for the desired product in the file. You can search by the name or address indicated on the site.
The available="true" tag means the item is in stock. If a product is marked “out of stock” in the feed, it will not be found for InSend.
After you know the product ID from the feed, open the card of the desired product on the site. Right-click to select “View code” and find the product by analogy with the search in the feed, check the values. Add the item to your cart and check the code again. The ID must be the same everywhere. Change the data in the file and update the feed manually.
What to do if subscribers receive emails without a product image?
This means that the links to the images are incorrect. You can check the data in the same way as the product ID. Copy the link from the file and open it in a browser. There was a 404 error - the link is invalid. Make sure the image storage is open. Change the data in the file and update the feed manually.
How to add two prices for a product?
By default, InSend substitutes the price for the “price” tag in template email. You cannot add two prices for a product in a template emails. This can only be done in your own html layout of the newsletter.
For example: You have a promotion going on and you want to add a crossed out price under the main one. Only one actual value from the feed by the “price” tag will be substituted into the template email.