Merge files

A merge file adds extra data to the products from your main source. For example, you might keep a Google Sheet of custom labels or Google categories by SKU, and merge it into your Shopify products.

You set up merge files on the shop's Settings tab, under Merge files. A shop can have up to 10 merge files.

Add a merge file

1. Click Add merge file.
2. Choose the Type, which can be CSV, XML, JSON or Google Sheets.
3. Enter the File URL, or the sheet link for Google Sheets. Files can need a Username, Password and SFTP host key in the same way as a main source. See Shops and sources.
4. Under Match products where, choose the Main feed field and the Merge file field that hold the same value, e.g. sku in the main feed and SKU in the sheet.
5. Tick Overwrite existing values if the merge file should win when both files have a value (see below).
6. Click Save merge files. Feedsmith downloads the shop again.

How matching works

Feedsmith compares the two key values without caring about upper or lower case or spaces at the start and end. So mct-nav-m in the main feed matches MCT-NAV-M in the sheet.

• Every column in the merge file becomes a field on the matched product, with the column's name.
• Products that don't match keep their values and stay in the feed.
• If the merge file has the same key on two rows, Feedsmith uses the first row.
• If you have several merge files, Feedsmith applies them in the order shown, so a later file can use fields added by an earlier one.

Overwrite existing values

This setting decides what happens when the main feed and the merge file both have a field with the same name.

With Overwrite existing values ticked, any value in the merge file replaces the main value, but an empty cell never wipes out a value. Without it, the merge file only fills fields that are empty or missing in the main feed.

Check that it worked

Open the shop's Activity tab. Each download lists a line for each merge file, e.g. "Merged 'https://docs.google.com/…': 950 of 1000 products matched on sku = SKU". If far fewer products match than you expect, check that the key fields hold the same values in both files.

If a merge file can't be downloaded, the whole download fails, and your feeds keep the products from the last good download.