Workflow best practices and troubleshooting

Workflow best practices

The following are the suggested best practices when using Product Uploader to create, update, publish, unpublish, or delete products in bulk:

Before upload

• Review template: Always use the latest template from the interface, especially after marketplace locales change, so localized columns match your catalog
• Validate data: Check your data for completeness and accuracy
• Keep en-US complete: En-US values are mandatory for product details; fill En-US before relying on other locale columns
• Do not localize pricing: Pricing attributes are not localized; use price update workflows for price changes
• Test with small batch: Test with a small number of products first
• Backup current data: Download current catalog before making bulk changes
• Check file size: Ensure your file is within size limits

During upload

• Monitor progress: Watch the progress indicator during upload
• Review validation: Carefully review validation results
• Fix errors: Address all errors before proceeding
• Review warnings: Consider warnings and fix if needed
• Confirm Changes: Review change summary before final confirmation

After upload

• Verify results: Check that products were created/updated correctly
• Review activity log: Check the activity log for operation details
• Test products: Verify products appear correctly in the catalog
• Handle failures: Address any partial failures or errors
• Document changes: Keep records of bulk operations for reference

Troubleshooting

The following table lists the common issues and what you can do to trouble shoot them.

Common issues	What to check
File upload fails	Check file size (must be under 1 GB) Verify file format (CSV, UTF-8 encoding) Ensure file is not corrupted Check network connection
Validation errors	Review error messages for specific issues Check required fields are populated Verify data types match requirements Ensure references (categories, etc.) exist
Locale or translation validation fails	Confirm the marketplace has the expected additional locales configured Review the error report for the column, row, locale, and rule violated Ensure en-US product detail values are present Follow the column and locale conventions in the latest template or .XLSX instructions Do not expect locale-specific columns for pricing attributes
Products not appearing	Check product status (may be in draft) Verify publication status Review activity log for errors Check product visibility settings
Partial Success	Review error report for failed items Fix issues in failed rows Re-upload corrected data Consider splitting large files
Unpublish fails — product not in Production Catalog	Confirm the product is published to the Production Catalog Review the failure file in the Activity Log for the specific error
Delete fails — active subscriptions	Resolve active subscriptions before you delete the product Download the failure file from the Activity Log to identify affected products Re-upload a CSV containing only products that are eligible for deletion

Getting help

If you are unable to trouble shoot and need further assistance do the following:

• Check activity log: Review detailed error information
• Export rrror report: Download error details for analysis
• Contact support: Reach out to AppDirect support with error details
• Review documentation: Check this documentation for guidance