Virtual Products | Enhanced Print On Demand Import (Artwork Only)
OVERVIEW
The KX Platform offers a Print On Demand CSV Import for creating Virtual Products in bulk via a semi-automated process. This provides an effective solution for Brands, Retailers and Designers to add their artwork content to GFN Blank products, and to quickly create product ranges for selling online.
As of November 2024, the POD Import has been updated to increase the number of targetable Print Areas up to a maximum of 15. This upgrade expands the use case potential of the import solution, allowing it to be used for both simpler DTG items and now more complex products within the GFN Catalog such as multi-piece All Over Print apparel (AOP).
The POD Import is available via:
CATALOG > Product Manager > Imports > Print On Demand
PRE-REQUISITES
To utilize the POD Import solution effectively, the following information / assets are required:
‘Print Ready’ Artwork Files
Recommended Format: PNG or JPEG
Image Quality: Artwork files must be of suitable size and quality for intended application / printing. Generally, a resolution of 300dpi is recommended (at print size), with a minimum accepted resolution of 150dpi.
Fit: Supplied artwork files should conform to the GFN products print templates / printable area for best fit / precise control over size and placement of the printed artwork on the final product.
Note: If the artwork does not match the printable area it is being applied to, then the system will automatically scale it to fit the available space (up if the image is smaller than the printable area - or - down if the image is larger than the printable area). Therefore, if specific artwork placement and design scaling is a requirement, then this must be factored into the artwork file during creation.
Accessible: Artwork files must be added to the import spreadsheet via URL. The images should be hosted on a server and the location provided via direct link that is publicly accessible with the file extension visible.
Note: If the artwork file is not accessible, then the import will fail.
Failure to supply 'print ready’ artwork based on the information outlined above could result in items being printed in an undesirable way; design elements might be offset, misaligned, incorrectly scaled, blurry or cropped in the final print which could lead to production and / or order related issues.
GFN Product Information
Blank Product IDs: These are KX unique identification numbers for each Blank product within the GFN. The ID’s are used to target the Blank within the POD Import sheet and are required to initiate Virtual Creation.
Print Area Names: These are the names of the printable areas available on the GFN Blank Products, eg for a DTG item this would be ‘Front’ or ‘Back’ etc.
Note: The exact names are needed when populating the spreadsheet. Failing to use the correct information will lead to import issues.
Top Tip: The GFN team can provide this information on request – alternatively you can quickly obtain Product data via the available system exports.
In Product Manager use the search tools to navigate to the relevant GFN Blank category folder and click Exports > Excel.
Access the ‘print_areas’ sheet and see Column A (Blank ID) and Column D (Print Area Names).
KX Platform Categories
Read Access: Permission is required to the categories containing the Blank Products that you intend to apply artwork to and create Virtual Products from.
Category ID’s: These are KX unique identification numbers that are attributed to every Category folder in the Platform. The ID’s are needed in the POD Import sheet to target a specific folder location for new Virtual Products to be added to upon creation.
Once you have all of the pre-requisite data / assets you can proceed to populating the spreadsheet accordingly.
Master POD Import Guide / Template
A Master POD Import Guide / Template has been created for reference purposes when populating with the required data (please see attached file at the end of this article).
2 Sheet Presets are available to provide a quick start based on common use cases:
DTG Preset (2 areas) - Includes columns for up to 2 targetable areas. The number of areas can be increased as desired.
AOP Preset (15 areas) - Includes columns for up to 15 targetable areas. The number of columns can be reduced as desired.
Note: Whichever sheet is unused, delete it prior to saving the csv.
The guide is colour-coded to show Required (RED) and Optional (BLUE) fields. Any unpopulated optional columns should be deleted prior to import.
Row 1 shows the available column headers, along with a description of what data should be included (see row 2).
PLEASE NOTE: All information in row 2 is for reference purposes only and should be removed prior to saving / importing the final data.
Once you have populated all of the data you can proceed to save and import the spreadsheet.
CSV Format Requirements
If using Excel to prepare the data, the file must be exported as a .CSV.
If using OpenOffice or equivalent, save as .CSV and be sure to:
Enable 'Edit the Filter Settings'
Keep Current Format
Change the character set to UNICODE (UTF-8)
Enable 'Quote all text cells'
The file is then ready to be imported into the KX Platform to create the Virtual Products.
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