Set up Commerce Connect

Version: 8.2

After you install the Sitecore Commerce Connect zip package using the Sitecore Installation Wizard, you must complete the set up in Sitecore. For each webshop that you create in Sitecore, you create a corresponding instance of each of the engagement plans that come with Commerce Connect. If your external commerce system uses the product synchronization feature to store product data in Sitecore, you must also create a product repository to integrate the external commerce system with Sitecore.

This topic outlines how to:

Create Commerce Connect engagement plans for a webshop

Sitecore Commerce Connect comes with several engagement plans, such as Abandoned Carts and New Order Placed. For Commerce Connect to work with multiple shops, you must create an instance of each of the engagement plans that you plan to use for each shop.

To create an engagement plan for a webshop:

  1. In the Marketing Control Panel, in the Marketing Control Panel/Engagement Plans folder or any of its subfolders, create an engagement plan based on the relevant engagement plan branch template from Templates/Branches/Commerce Connect/Marketing Center.

    Tip

    The Commerce Connect folder (/Marketing Control Panel/Engagement Plans/Commerce Connect) contains insert options for the Commerce Connect engagement plan branch templates.

  2. Name the plan using the convention {Site name} {Engagement plan name}, where {Site name} is the name of the site as defined in the <site name=”…”> element in the configuration file, and {Engagement plan name} is the branch template name, for example, Abandoned Carts or New Order Placed.

    Note

    Following the naming convention automatically binds the plan to the Commerce Connect framework. You can change the default naming scheme for an engagement plan.

  3. To deploy the plan, on the Home tab, click Edit, Deploy; enter a comment and click OK. Then publish the plan.

Repeat for each engagement plan and each webshop.

The following image shows three engagement plans that have been created for the webshop named Website:

Create a product repository for product synchronization

After you have installed a connector to integrate Sitecore with an external commerce system that uses product synchronization, you must create a product repository. If the external commerce system does not use the product synchronization approach, skip this procedure.

Important

Create only one repository that is shared across all your webshops. Use Divisions to indicate which webshop each product belongs to.

  1. In the Content Editor, in the /sitecore/Content folder, create a product repository item based on the Product Repository branch template in Templates/Branches/CommerceConnect/Products. The subfolders needed for product synchronization are automatically created.

    Note

    If necessary, instead of placing the product repository in the Content folder and naming it Product Repository, you can specify a custom product repository name or change the location of the product repository.

  2. Copy the item ID from the Manufacturers item in the product repository (/sitecore/content/Product Repository/Manufacturers) and save it in a text editor (for example, Notepad). Repeat this step for the ProductType item (/sitecore/content/Product Repository/ProductType).

  3. In the Product template (/sitecore/templates/CommerceConnect/Products/Product), in the Source field for Manufacturer, enter StartSearchLocation=<itemid> where <itemid> is the Manufacturer item ID you copied in the previous step.

    Repeat this step for the ProductType item.

  4. Save the template.

  5. In the Content Editor, select the Product Repository item in the /sitecore/Content folder and click Synchronize all products. The product and master indexes are rebuilt during synchronization.

  6. On the Publish tab, click the Publish drop-down arrow and click Publish Site.

  7. In the Publish Site dialog box, select Republish and click Publish.

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