This explanation outlines how FinerWorks integrates with third-party platforms like Squarespace or Shopify to simplify inventory management and product publishing for sellers, particularly those offering customizable products like fine art prints. Here’s the key takeaway:
Summarizing the Product Creation Process
Whenever you publish a virtual inventory item, it will create the base product, which is simply your artwork and its title and description. It will then assign the virtual inventory item as one of the product’s variants (purchase options).
Hierarchy of Products and Variants
Products are the main items being sold (e.g., an art print).
Variants are the different options for that product, such as sizes (8×10, 16×20) or types.
FinerWorks’ Role
Your uploaded images become “Inventory Files” in FinerWorks, which act as the base for creating products and variants. These inventory files don’t expire and can be reused to define your products.
Publishing Integration
FinerWorks mirrors the product/variant structure and pushes it to platforms like Shopify or Squarespace. For example, a single uploaded image file can be published as a product with multiple variants for size or type, each with its unique SKU.
Limitations
- SKU Usage: SKUs must be unique across the platform. A SKU used for one product/variant cannot be used again for another.
- Manual Adjustments for Reuse: If you need the same SKU across multiple products, you’ll have to create and manage these manually.
- Platform-Specific Restrictions: Variants must be assigned to products published from FinerWorks, not created directly on the third-party platform.
What it Means
It’s essentially a system designed to streamline the selling process by letting you manage your product hierarchy and inventory within FinerWorks, and then publish it to e-commerce platforms. However, there are specific restrictions you need to work around, like unique SKU requirements and limitations on directly editing products created outside of FinerWorks.