Syndication & it's Complete Workflow

Understanding Syndication Panel:

Syndication section lists all the syndications created till date gets displayed as shown in the screenshot below:

Following are the fields under the Syndication section:

• Actions: You have the following two options for an open syndication:

  • Edit: To address validation errors the suppliers can click on the edit   icon from the open syndication list on the supplier dashboard or you can click on the count under Status column (as highlighted in the below screenshot) and you’ll be navigated to syndication details page which is the same as when you select Option 2 for product data upload.

    For more information refer to Manage Open Syndication section.

    

  • Upload New File: For any open syndication, if the supplier has modified the uploaded data file or wants to add a new product data file then the same can be done by selecting Upload New File option as shown in the screenshot below:

The supplier is navigated to the following screen from where they can upload the new product data file as shown below:

NOTE: Syndication with status as ‘Complete’, ‘Error’, ‘Waiting for Distributor to review/map custom file’ or ‘Field mapping Done. Please rectify custom file mapping’ are the only ones where editing or upload files are allowed. For all other statuses, these options will be disabled.

• Syndication Name: Indicates the syndication name as assigned by the supplier during its creation.

• Category: A category refers to a predefined classification of products that the distributor enables for the supplier to upload SKU data. Categories are part of the distributor's Taxonomy, and each category has specific data requirements and templates tailored to the distributor’s needs.

• Products: Lists the total number of SKUs present in the syndication.

• Last Updated Date: Shows the most recent date the syndication was modified.

• Status: Displays the current status of the syndication. Adjacent to each status value you can see the count of SKUs that are classified by Ready to be Published, Needs Attention and Sent to Distributor.

• i icon: The icon next to the status count indicates the syndication progress. Clicking it reveals the complete flow of statuses, as shown below:

   

• + New Syndication: Here the supplier can choose the syndication method using which they would want to upload the product data which is same as 3 simple ways to upload product data option that we discussed previously.

• Refresh: Using the refresh icon, you can update to the latest list of syndications.

Syndication Workflow

The syndication process involves several stages, where SKUs progress through various statuses based on validation, distributor review, and integration into the PIM system. Below are the steps in detail:

1. Uploading Product Data

   • Choose one of the available methods to upload product data, as described in the 3 ways to upload product data section.

   • Once all SKUs are uploaded during the Create Syndication process, the system begins validation and you’ll see a new syndication created under the Syndication section.

2. Validation Process

   • A backend process checks all uploaded SKUs against the validation rules set by the distributor. These rules ensure that the data meets the requirements for each category.

   • Invalid Status: If an SKU fails one or more validation rules, its status is set to Invalid, and the supplier must correct the errors to proceed.

   • Valid Status: If an SKU passes all validation checks, it is marked as Valid and can be published to the distributor's system. This indicates the SKU has been submitted but awaits further processing.

3. Needs Review Status

   • If the distributor's automated approval/rejection rules cannot determine the outcome, the SKU is marked as Needs Review.

   • The distributor must manually review the SKU to approve or reject it.

4. Approved Status

   • SKUs that meet all automated or manual approval conditions are moved to Approved status.

   • This indicates the SKU has passed all checks and is ready for downstream processes.

5. Rejected Status

   • SKUs that fail to meet distributor requirements (via automated rules or manual review) are set to Rejected.

   • Suppliers can edit and reprocess these SKUs by clicking Edit in the Syndication section on the dashboard.

6. PIM Ready Status

   • Approved SKUs that undergo Data Transformation and mapping (via the Bridge channel, if configured) are moved to PIM Ready status.

   • This status indicates the SKU is ready for ingestion into the distributor's PIM system.

7. Onboarded Status

   • SKUs in PIM Ready status are transferred to the distributor’s PIM and marked as Onboarded.

   • This signifies that the SKU is fully integrated into the PIM.

   • For distributors using external PIM systems, this status may depend on the successful export of the SKU data.