ChannelEngine: add a channel

About this article

This article describes how to add channels to ChannelEngine.

Table of contents

Introduction

Types of channels

Add a channel

Introduction

A channel is an online location where products can be listed, sold, promoted, compared, and/or reviewed, such as a marketplace. On ChannelEngine, you connect to your channels via a channel plugin: an out-of-the box connector that connects the ChannelEngine platform to a given channel. It is possible to list your products and/or offers on any channel that has a channel plugin on ChannelEngine, given that you are approved as a seller on that channel.

Types of channels

ChannelEngine connects to a variety of channels that support a wide range of ecommerce models. Below are a few: 

• 3P marketplaces - customers buy your products directly on these marketplaces, such as Amazon, bol, Cdiscount, etc. When it comes to marketplaces, a full integration with products, orders, shipments, and returns is possible.
• 1P channels - sell your inventory to online sellers, and they sell your products for you, managing the operations around all orders. 
• Owned channels - manage your products, orders, shipments, and returns via your existing ecommerce solutions, e.g.: Shopify, to continue selling through your own webstore and your other trusted channels. 
• Affiliate channels - (a.k.a. click and ad channels) your products are listed on affiliate channels, but prospective customers are redirected to your own webstore. ChannelEngine is used to generate a product feed for these channels. E.g.: Google Shopping, Facebook Business, Awin, etc.
• Feed channels - create dynamic product feeds of your products in various file formats, for sharing with third parties, including product comparison sites and channels that ChannelEngine does not yet connect to.

Add a channel

Easily add a channel from ChannelEngine's main screen, after logging in.

1. To locate your desired channels, click + Add channel on your ChannelEngine dashboard.
2. In the channels overview, use the search box to find a specific channel to connect to, or use the filters to find channels that share the same qualities, e.g.: selling country or product category. Filter by:
   • Marketplaces 
   • Click & ad channels
   • Feed channels
   • Country
   • Category
     • Automotive
     • Beauty & personal care
     • Books & music & movies
     • Consumer electronics
     • Fashion & apparel & accessories
     • FMCG
     • Garden
     • Healthcare products
     • Home appliances
     • Home living
     • Office supplies
     • Pets
     • Refurbished
     • Sports & outdoor recreation
     • Tools & home improvement
     • Toys & games & crafts
3. If you are already an approved seller on a given channel, click the + Add button on the channel card of the channel. 

4. If a channel is still being piloted by ChannelEngine, then you will see a + Request to configure button on its channel card. Click on + Request to configure, and a ChannelEngine representative will start working on your request. Once your request is complete, you will be able to start configuring your channel.
5. Once the channel is added to your environment, you will see the View button on its channel card. Click on View to open the plugin. Configure it by using the steps in its relevant guide, located in this Help Center.