How to Bulk-Add Products to Your Shopify Collections ?

Hey there! I’m Charlotte from MassCat.
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In this article, I’m going to show you how MassCat works and how you can use it to save time when managing your Shopify collections.

What is MassCat?
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So, first things first—what exactly is MassCat, and how can it help you?

MassCat is a Shopify app designed to let you bulk-add products to manual collections using a list of SKUs. This can save you a lot of time when updating collections, especially if you have large product catalogs.

Quick Refresher on Shopify Collections

Just a quick refresher: in Shopify, there are two types of collections. You’ve got :
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Automated collections, which use conditions (like product tags) to automatically add matching products.
Manual collections, where you add specific products yourself. Manual collections are great for things like sales or special promotional events where you want to handpick which products are featured.

‍Note: Manual collections require you to add products one by one, which can be time-consuming. This is where MassCat shines by helping you add products in bulk.


Why use MassCat?

Now, as merchants, we often deal with spreadsheets that have hundreds—sometimes thousands—of products. Updating manual collections like that can be super time-consuming. This is where MassCat comes in. It helps you update these collections much faster and more easily. All you need to do is copy the list of SKUs from your spreadsheet, paste it into the app, and then select the collections you want to update.


Step-by-Step Guide to Using MassCat

Step 1: Create a Manual Collection

Alright, let’s take a closer look at how it all works.

To get started, you’ll need a manual collection in Shopify. Remember, MassCat doesn’t work with automated collections because those are based on conditions like tags or price etc. Automated collections are typically better for permanent categories like “coats” or “shoes,” where the products are automatically added based on set criteria.

To create a manual collection :

1. Navigate to your Shopify Admin panel.
(Screenshot: Shopify admin panel overview)
2. Go to Products > Collections > Create Collection.
3. Select Manual Collection as the type.

Step 2: Preparing Products for MassCat

Since MassCat identifies products by their SKUs, make sure the products you wish to add to a manual collection have SKUs assigned.
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Check Product SKUs:
• Go to your product in Shopify.
• You can find the SKU on the product details page or at the variant level (if your product has variants).

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Step 2: Preparing Products for MassCat

Since MassCat identifies products by their SKUs, make sure the products you wish to add to a manual collection have SKUs assigned.
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Check Product SKUs:
• Go to your product in Shopify.
• You can find the SKU on the product details page or at the variant level (if your product has variants).

Step 3: Copy SKUs to MassCat

1. Open your spreadsheet and copy the SKUs for the products you want to add to your manual collection.
2. Go to the MassCat app in your Shopify Admin.
3. In the first field, paste the SKUs into the text box.
• Click “Add”: Your products will appear in the app, ready to be updated.
• If you make a mistake, you can manually remove a SKU or click the “Reset” button to clear all SKUs.

Step 4: Select the Collections to Update
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1. In the MassCat app, select the manual collections you want to update. You will see all the manual collections available in your store.
• You can select multiple collections at once, but note that processing time may vary based on the number of collections you choose.
2. Click “Save” to start the process.

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Step 5: Review the Update
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Once MassCat completes the update:
• A message will confirm the number of products successfully added to your collections.
• If there are any issues, you will see an error message with details about the problem.
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And that’s it! You can now see your collections updated with the new products.