Getting Started with CSV

You can utilize CustomCat’s State-of-the-Art production facility no matter what cart or platform you use!

Follow the instructions below to take advantage of this bulk manual order process.

 

1. Activation

Once you have created a CustomCat account & you are logged into CustomCat.com, you will have the option to choose the CSV connect on your ‘My Stores’ page.

Next you will be prompted to ‘connect’ your store by entering your store name & a valid formatted URL.

Please note that this step is strictly for our records — no actual connection will be completed as CSV ordering is a manual feature, thus if you need to enter a fake url it is ok.

The next step is to activate your new store, which can be done by filling out your Account information in the Settings like all other integrations. After adding Payment Information & Shipping Label Information, click ‘Save Changes’ to activate your new store.

2. Setting up your CSV file (Documentation & Template)

Before you can submit an order using the Order by CSV feature, you need to create your CSV file. When importing a CSV file with your order data, it’s vital that the file is formatted with certain columns & column headers for our system to be able to read & process all order details. Otherwise, your order will be rejected due to a formatting error OR you will need to manually map your fields each time you import a CSV.
Please note: If CSV is formatted perfectly, your products will auto map & all you will need to do is click “process orders!”
** All columns listed below are ‘required’ unless noted as ‘optional’.

Column Headers:

OrderID – (Required) – is your store’s own internal order id. Must be unique per order. If multiple items are desired in an order, each item must be listed as its own line item (row) in the CSV & must share the same OrderID as any other items in the order. All rows represent a single item UNLESS creating a DIGISOFT® front + back product. In this case use the LineItemID column to map 2 rows to one item.

LineItemID – (Optional) Only needed when CSV includes DIGISOFT® front + back items otherwise Omit) – Must be unique for each item in the order. If a product has both a front & back location, they need to share the same LineItemId & any other items in the same order need a different LineItemID.

Quantity – (Required) How many of each product is ordered.

ProductName – (Required) Name of the product in the store, can be anything the seller wishes.

ProductId – (Required) Identifies the product from the CustomCat product catalog: https://customcat.com/catalog/

     -ex: G500, CANLA15

Color – (Required) Identifies the color of the product from the CustomCat product catalog: https://customcat.com/catalog/

-ex: Black, White, Navy

-note – hover over the color swatch to see the color name

Size – (Required) Identifies the size of the product from the CustomCat product catalog: https://customcat.com/catalog/

-One-size products must be listed as “One Size”

-Other size options are: XS, S, M, L, XL, 2XL, 3XL, 4XL, 5XL, 6XL

We will automatically map your product(s), color(s), size(s) if using the exact meta provided in the CustomCat catalog: https://customcat.com/catalog/

For example: G500 5.3 oz. T-Shirt – Navy – Medium

• ProductID = G500
• Color = Navy
• Size = L

 

DesignPosition – (Optional) Omit if using Store SKU Template) – The default is Front where applicable & no other entries such as Left Chest, will be recognized by our system. For Design Presets such as Left Chest, use ‘PresetId’.

SKU – (Optional) – If also using Shopify, WooCommerce, Etsy or any other CustomCat integration, you can use the exact CustomCat SKU to auto map products from your store that need to be manually ordered. If you are not using an exact match from your Shopify, Woo, Etsy, etc. then you should omit this column.

DesignId – (Optional) Omit if using DesignURL Template or Store Sku Template – Use this option when selecting your designs from the Design Library. After successfully submitting the first order with a DesignID, submitting subsequent orders with the same DesignID will automatically map the design associated with that DesignID.

DesignURL – (Optional) Omit if using DesignID Template or Store Sku Template – Bypass the Design Library if you are hosting & storing your own image urls.

• Filetype must be .png or .jpg
• File cannot be password protected & must download automatically when link is opened.
• Amazon AWS or Google Cloud Storage image hosting is recommended for best results.
• Dropbox URLs must include the suffix ‘dl=1’ to be downloadable.
• Google Drive URLs are not recommended and will fail consistently.
• For best results Design URL artwork should be designed at the exact artwork dimensions designated by the CustomCat Art Guidelines for each specific product. For artwork that does not exactly match the CustomCat Art Guidelines, use ‘ExactArtwork’ ‘FALSE’ and a ‘PresetId’ to position the artwork according to CustomCat preset design positions.

ExactArtwork – (Optional) – For best results Design URL artwork should be designed at the exact artwork dimensions designated by the CustomCat Art Guidelines for each specific product. For artwork that does not exactly match the CustomCat Art Guidelines, use ‘ExactArtwork’ ‘FALSE’ and a ‘PresetId’ to position the artwork according to CustomCat preset design positions.

There are only two options ‘TRUE’ or ‘FALSE’.

TRUE – If True, we will NOT trim the transparent space in your artboard. Instead, the artwork is positioned based on the placement of the design inside the Art Board, with negative space observed.

DIGISOFT™ Products:

• Exact Artwork Placement
• Transparent space in the design file is NOT trimmed.
• Design is printed based on exact position within the Art Board and negative space is observed.
• Must submit an art file with appropriate artboard size based on product (maximum printable area below).
• File must be 300 dpi at size below
• Use TRUE if you want full control of the position, scaling and dimensions of your design or if you have created artwork to our max print dimensions.

Maximum Printable Area
Adult Crewneck Front/Back: 11.41 x 15.11 inches
Adult V-Neck Front: 11.41 x 12.12 inches
Adult Hoodie Front: 11.41 x 11.41 inches
Youth Front/Back: 10 x 12 inches
Youth Hoodie Front: 10 x 10 inches

Sublimation Products:

• Exact Artwork Placement (Printed edge to edge)
• Design is printed based on exact position within the Art Board and negative space is observed.
• Must submit an art file with appropriate artboard size based on CustomCat art templates.
• CustomCat art templates can be found here: https://customcat.com/guides/resources/artwork-guidelines/
• File must use dpi specified in art template.
• Use TRUE if you want full control of the position, scaling and dimensions of your design or if you have created artwork to our max print dimensions.

FALSE – If False, we will trim the transparent space in your artboard & default the positioning according to the PresetID value.

PresetID – (Optional) Preset design placements. Design will be trimmed and positioned based on the preset options below.

PRESET OPTIONS:

DIGISOFT™ Products:

Presetid = 2

• Full Front Placement
• Transparent space in design file is trimmed and design is maximized within the Full Front print area
• Full Front Print area varies by product. See Maximum Printable Area.
• The listed dimensions indicate the largest possible print size for each garment type; these are typically achieved on sizes Large or X-Large.
• Your print will be scaled down proportionately from size L or XL to look as similar to your mockup as possible on smaller sized garments.
• Select this preset if you would like to utilize the maximum printable area available for that garment or if you have created artwork to our max print dimensions.

Presetid = 3

• Full Back Placement
• Transparent space in design file is trimmed and design is maximized within the Full Back print area/li>
• Full Back Print area varies by product. See Maximum Printable Area.
• The listed dimensions indicate the largest possible print size for each garment type – these are typically achieved on sizes Large or X-Large.
• Your print will be scaled down proportionately from size L or XL to look as similar to your mockup as possible on smaller sized garments.
• Select this preset if you would like to utilize the maximum printable area available for that garment or if you have created artwork to our max print dimensions.

Maximum Printable Area

Adult Crewneck Front/Back: 11.41 x 15.11 inches
Adult V-Neck Front: 11.41 x 12.12 inches
Adult Hoodie Front: 11.41 x 11.41 inches
Youth Front/Back: 10 x 12 inches
Youth Hoodie Front: 10 x 10 inches

presetid = 4

• CC Preset (Default Center Chest) Placement
• Transparent space in the design file is trimmed and design is centered on the front chest.
• Artwork will be centered on the garment & positioned to what our experience tells us is the ideal size/placement for that garment.
• Artwork will be scaled down proportionately based on the garment size.
• Select this preset if you want us to optimize the size & position of your design for you.

presetid = 1

• Left Chest Placement (wider than tall)
• Transparent space in design file is trimmed and design is maximized within Left Chest print area for a wider than tall image.
• Artwork will be positioned to what our experience tells us is the ideal size/placement for left chest on that garment.
• Artwork will be scaled down proportionately based on the garment size.
• Adult Left Chest: (4 x 3.5 aspect ratio)
• Left Chest preset should be used for designs that are wider than they are tall.

presetid = 10
Left Chest Placement (taller than wide)
Transparent space in design file is trimmed and design is maximized within Left Chest print area for a taller than wide image.
Artwork will be positioned to what our experience tells us is the ideal size/placement for left chest on that garment.
Adult Left Chest: (3.5 x 4 aspect ratio)
Left Chest (tall) preset should be used for designs that are taller than they are wide.

presetid = 9

• CC Preset (Default Back Placement)
• Transparent space in the design file is trimmed and design is centered on the back.
• Artwork will be centered on the garment & positioned to what our experience tells us is the ideal size/placement for that garment.
• Artwork will be scaled down proportionately based on the garment size.
• Select this preset if you want us to optimize the size & position of your design for you.

Sublimation Products:

presetid = 4

• Dye Sub Default Placement
• Transparent space in design file is trimmed and design is centered within the printable area.
• For Mugs, design will be duplicated and centered on either side of the handle.
• Select this preset if you want us to optimize the size & position of your design for you.

Sublimated Hats/Caps with Leather Patches:

presetid = 2

• Rectangle Patch
• Exact Artwork Placement (Printed edge to edge)
• Design is printed based on exact position within the Art Board and negative space is observed.
• Must submit art file with appropriate artboard size based on CustomCat art templates.
• CustomCat art templates can be found here: https://customcat.com/guides/resources/artwork-guidelines/
• File must use dpi specified in art template.

presetid = 12

• Oval Patch
• Exact Artwork Placement (Printed edge to edge)
• Design is printed based on exact position within the Art Board and negative space is observed.
• Must submit art file with appropriate artboard size based on CustomCat art templates.
• CustomCat art templates can be found here: https://customcat.com/guides/resources/artwork-guidelines/
• File must use dpi specified in art template.

presetid = 14

• Circle Patch
• Exact Artwork Placement (Printed edge to edge)
• Design is printed based on exact position within the Art Board and negative space is observed.
• Must submit art file with appropriate artboard size based on CustomCat art templates.
• CustomCat art templates can be found here: https://customcat.com/guides/resources/artwork-guidelines/
• File must use dpi specified in art template.

presetid = 18

• Small Circle Patch
• Exact Artwork Placement (Printed edge to edge)
• Design is printed based on exact position within the Art Board and negative space is observed.
• Must submit art file with appropriate artboard size based on CustomCat art templates.
• CustomCat art templates can be found here: https://customcat.com/guides/resources/artwork-guidelines/
• File must use dpi specified in art template.

Resources:
CustomCat Design Guidelines & Best Practices:
https://customcat.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/CustomCat-Design-Guidelines-Best-Practices-DIGISOFT-6-12-23.pdf

All the customer’s shipping info needs to be included. If the order errors it is typically due to City/State/Zip not matching. Use Smarty Streets Address Validation to correct the order & submit again – https://smartystreets.com/products/single-address?address-type=us-street-components&street=&street2=&city=&state=&zipcode=

ShipToFirstName
ShipToLastName
ShipToAddress
ShipToAddress2
ShipToCity
ShipToZip
ShipToState
ShipToCountry
ShipToPhone
ShippingMethod
CustomerEmail

3. CSV File Mapping & Submission

Once your CSV account is activated & you have your CSV file formatted correctly, you can then import your CSV file by using the Import Orders button in My Stores or your Store Dashboard:

You will then be prompted to drop in your file or click to upload it from your computer:

If the file was formatted correctly, a notification popup will display showing how many orders were imported successfully OR if there were any errors.

After clicking “Continue,” all your orders plus all items in each order will be listed in the mapping step. If you have successfully submitted an exact match with our product catalog & submitted a design url or design id that our system recognizes, all of your products & designs will show as mapped & you will be ready to process your orders. However, if there was not an exact match or if you wish to remap your products or designs, you will need to use the ‘Select/Remap Product/Color/Size/Design.

When you click to ‘Select Product’ or ‘Preview/Remap’, you will be directed to our catalog where you can choose the desired product/size/color that you wish to order.

When you choose to ‘Select Design’ or ‘Preview/Remap’, you will be prompted to add a design(s) from your library (note this is not applicable when using a DesignURL):

Once a product/design has been mapped, there will be a Position button that appears next to it. This is where you can custom position the design placement. Note – if using a DesignURL & ExactArtwork ‘True’, the Position option will be replaced with a Preview & you will only be able to preview your design url.

Only after all products & designs have been mapped, you can submit & process your order(s) into production. Use the checkbox to select which orders need to be processed, & the total price for the selected orders will be listed at the bottom.

If the order was successfully processed, you will have a confirmation message display: Orders Processed!

At this point the selected orders have been processed, you have been charged & the orders will display in your Processed Orders in your Store Dashboard.

CSV Upload Tips & Tricks:

To keep the leading zero intact, you will need to highlight the ‘ShipToZip’ Column > right-click > Format cells:

The format dialog box will appear. In the Numbers tab, select Special as the category, & Zip Code in the type section.
Select OK.

Make sure to save your CSV sheet before submitting the CSV order into your CustomCat account.

*Please note – If you need to re-open & make any changes to the CSV file before submission, you will need to repeat the steps above to keep the leading zero in the zip code intact.

Good Luck & Happy Selling!!!