How to Use Shopify Metafield 2-Way Sync
Welcome to the Metafield Sync guide! If you rely on custom data fields to display extra product information (like materials, care instructions, or technical specs), keeping that data accurate across both your marketplace and your storefront is critical.
Previously, you may have only been able to push metafield data in one direction. With our new Metafield 2-Way Sync, any changes you make to a product's metafields in Shipturtle will instantly reflect in Shopify, and any updates made directly in Shopify will automatically sync right back to Shipturtle.
1. How the 2-Way Sync Works
The integration operates seamlessly in the background to ensure your product data is always perfectly aligned. It supports three primary actions in both directions:
- Create: Adding a new metafield value.
- Update: Editing an existing metafield value.
- Delete: Removing a metafield entirely.
2. Syncing from Shipturtle to Shopify
When a vendor or merchant manages their products inside the Shipturtle dashboard, any custom data they input is automatically pushed to your live store.
How it works:
- Navigate to the Products section in Shipturtle and edit a product.
- Add or update the data inside the designated metafields.
- Once saved, Shipturtle instantly pushes this data to the Shopify backend.
- If a vendor deletes a metafield value in Shipturtle, that specific metafield data is erased from the Shopify product simultaneously.
3. Syncing from Shopify to Shipturtle
If you prefer to manage your custom data directly within your Shopify Admin, the 2-way sync ensures Shipturtle is never left out of date.
How it works:
- Go to your Shopify Admin → Settings → Custom Data and ensure your Metafield definitions are created (e.g., Single line text, hidden text, etc.).
- Open a product in Shopify and add or edit the metafield values.
- Click Save in Shopify.
- Shipturtle instantly detects the update and syncs the new data into the respective product within the Shipturtle app.
- Just like the reverse flow, if you clear or delete a metafield value inside Shopify, it will be automatically deleted from the Shipturtle app as well.
Important Note on Metafield Definitions:
While the data values sync automatically across both platforms, you must ensure that the underlying Metafield Definitions (the namespace and key) are properly configured in your Shopify Admin so that Shopify knows how to read and display the data being sent from Shipturtle.
4. Summary of Capabilities
- True Bi-directional Sync: Edit in Shipturtle or edit in Shopify—both platforms will always match.
- Real-time Updates: Changes to text, additions, and deletions are detected and synced immediately without requiring manual imports or exports.
- Vendor Empowerment: Allows your vendors to enrich their own product listings with custom specifications directly from their Shipturtle portal, without needing backend access to your Shopify store.
Important Note on Existing Metafields: Data for metafields that existed prior to the 2-Way Sync's activation will not be automatically synchronized. If you require your existing metafield data to be synced, please reach out to us for assistance.
If you’re stuck, reach us at team@shipturtle.com or open a ticket on the support page.