Reviews

Current Version

Review posted by CaptainPanda on at

Works great, easily modable

CaptainPanda
Works really well easily modable and TBCrowe provides prompt and effective support
Review posted by rainmaker on at

GREAT addon! GREAT support! Lots of options!

rainmaker
This is a great addon with endless capabilities. Many options. Many customized options. Great support! At first I wasn't so sure about it and was a little scared (come on--it's XML...any newbie would be scared), but once I managed to wrap my brain around it, I saw the potential and the ability to speed product population. It's freakin' amazing!
Review posted by dbrimm on at

Excellent - great time saver!

dbrimm
XML is easy to pick up from the examples and creating a CSV file to convert is also easy, especially now with the link to the conversion webpage. I find this saves a lot of time and makes it easy to update existing products as well. I am glad this add-on is available and I'm glad that I got it!
Review posted by glowmedia on at

Great!!

glowmedia
A great add-on that has saved me lots of time and effort. Support is first class as well.
Review posted by pixo on at

A Great Tool for Large Imports

pixo
The latest version of the importer is really quite nice. I’ve used the importer add-on for a few sites now with the first version that I used being a beta copy. The early versions were a little rough but this latest version didn’t have any trouble importing 6,000+ products.
Review posted by StriderSEO on at

Awesome and getting better!

StriderSEO
We've been using this module since its earliest days of development, and it's only getting better and better.

This is certainly not a product for rookies, but neither is the task that this tool is designed to accomplish. For a competent practitioner who understands data quality and formatting who is looking to quickly populate an ecommerce catalogue with a powerful, flexible tool that is well supported there is no better option.

I wish I had tools like this one 10 years (or more) ago with other ecommerce products (in the dark ages before C5).

Before 2.0.0

Review posted by MrGrowBizz on at

Simply Marvelous!

MrGrowBizz
I have found the “Import” add-on a terrific complement to C5 eCommerce, it virtually adds another dimension by giving the user the ability to customize, automate, and validate data entry. It allows one point entry and manipulation of data that can be linked to other business data elements such as inventory, finance, customer records, etc.

I was concerned about purchasing the “Import” add-on as I knew nothing about creating an XML file. Searched the web, watched a couple YouTube videos, and still had reservations.

One thing I did know was that multiple entries without data validation weren’t going to cut-the-mustard with the volume of unique products to be added on a weekly basis. Additionally, on the product side, not having a link with inventory and pricing source data may be considered risky, not to mention time consuming.

Here's how easy this hack found it to create the required import.xml file using Excel, and get the "Import" add-on up and running.

1. Using XML note pad (available free) created the XML map and saved.
a. This is real easy to do using the add-on instructions given for default attribute handles and the HTML examples included in the documentation.
2. Opened the XML in Excel and dragged the first XML header (products) onto the (A1) cell in the worksheet.
3. Entered the product attributes in the cells directly below the HTML titles.
4. Saved the worksheet in Excel as a XML data file.
5. Uploaded the photos into the image file on the server.
6. Set the parameters in the add-on and imported the HTML data file.
7. Presto! Shazam! Amazing!

Since, I have created an Excel “Master Product File” that allows one entry point for multiple properties. The file contains a data entry worksheet that is the feed source to all other worksheet pages within the Excel file, one being an eCommerce import file. Other files include: inventory, financial metrics, and customized output for creating ready-made export files for sales & marketing venues such as eBay and others. The data entry worksheet has drop-down validation lists for easy and error free entry of redundant product to product attributes, and of course attributes can just be copied from one product to another. To create an import file is as simple as copying the products from the import worksheet and pasting them as text into an opened XML map (in another Excel file) and then saving as an XML file. There are some rules that one needs to play by when doing an XML conversion in Excel, but for my application they were easily overcome.

In addition, “Import” allows the use of custom product default page types for unique categories of products. “Import” can create a product page using a specific default page template that has product block properties checked only relating to that category of product, or the page itself can have a difference appearance. As an example: a bike has very different product attributes than let’s say a diamond ring, but yet the client may market both. Another plus is that “Import” will initially only post the property name labels of attributes onto the product page where an entry within the XML file has been made for that attribute. This means that if the attribute does not apply, but the property is checked in the product block, you will not see the attribute title on the product sheet. I have found an exception to this being when a product is subsequently updated from the dashboard within the current version of eCommerce, or if an attribute data entry is added then removed in the import.xml file. While not an issue derived from the "Import" add-on, editing the display/properties.php to only display an attribute name label if an entry has been made can overcome most issues relating to this. It will also allow flexibility by hiding attributes that don’t apply to a specific product without the need to uncheck the associated property in the product block.

Thus far the “Import” add-on has proven to do, and be, everything described and more. On top of it, it’s backed by terrific, beyond the call of duty support! I have found it to be an essential tool in dealing with a high level of product differentiation and volume. While I have yet to work the other import capabilities: customer, user, order, and page data, confident they offer the same high level of efficiency found in importing product.

Simply Marvelous! A Big 5 Stars and Two Thumbs up!
Review posted by dlntx9 on at

Amazing Add-on, Great Support

dlntx9
This add-on has worked great for us. Without it we would have had no way to import our 20,000 and growing products into ecommerce. Todd provided great support and replied quickly to any questions we had. Without a doubt the most important add-on for anyone moving to Ecommerce from another shopping cart system, or for those that already have products in a database.
Review posted by aghouseh on at

Works flawlessly.

aghouseh
This add-on really brings the Concrete5 eCommerce package to another level of management by allowing my customers to edit their products within an Excel or Google Docs spreadsheet and mass updating on their site. Reponse with pre-sale questions was also very fast. Would definitely recommend!
Review posted by mrowell on at

Great for Importing existing HTML Pages

mrowell
We used the "eCommerce Import" to import a bunch of static pages from our old website.

It worked flawlessly.

The developer was also very responsive to our pre-sales questions.

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