Build your bulk-upload file

Fill the Standard or Advanced template correctly: what each column holds, why condition is a whole-file setting, how to enter brands, and how to avoid dropped rows.

Bulk Upload reads a spreadsheet you build from one of two ready-made templates. This page explains what goes in each column, how the two templates differ, and how to give GridX Connect information it can match, so more of your rows are added and fewer are dropped.

There is no column-mapping step. You do not tell GridX Connect which template you used or which column is which — it reads the headers in the file you downloaded and works the rest out. The safe way to build your file is to start from a downloaded template and keep its header row exactly as it is.

> [!WARNING] > Do not rename, translate or reorder the header row. The headers are matched exactly as written — Quantity is not the same as Qty, and Vehicle Make is not the same as Make. A file missing Part Number, Price or Quantity is rejected before any row is read, with "Your file is missing required columns".

> [!NOTE] > Condition is not a column. You set New or Used once for the whole file on the Bulk Upload page, not row by row. Part type is not a column either — GridX Connect works out the part type for every row from what you put in Brand (see below).

Before you start

  • You can open Bulk Upload from the sidebar (the item is not locked).
  • A spreadsheet editor that can save as CSV (.csv) or Excel (.xlsx).
  • The OE or Manufacturer Part Numbers for your parts to hand.

Steps

  1. Open Bulk Upload from the sidebar.
  2. Under Download Template, click Standard Template or Advanced Template. Each one downloads as an Excel file (.xlsx).
  3. Open the file and go to the Parts List sheet. That is where your rows go. Row 1 is a note and row 2 holds the column names, so leave both as they are. Replace the sample rows under them with your own parts, starting at row 3. The Instructions sheet is guidance only and is ignored when you upload.
  4. Fill in one row per part, keeping the header row exactly as downloaded.
  5. Put the OE Number or Manufacturer Part Number in Part Number, and fill in Vehicle Make. Use the Brand column only where the rule below says to.
  6. Save the file as .csv or .xlsx, 10MB or smaller.
  7. Go back to the Bulk Upload page, pick your condition, and upload. If you see Listing currency, pick the currency your prices are in. It is applied to every row in the file. For the upload itself, see Run a bulk upload.

The Brand column: the one rule that matters most

Brand is only for aftermarket and private-label parts. Leave it empty for genuine OE parts, new or used.

| What you are listing | File condition | Brand column | |---|---|---| | Genuine / OE part, new | New | Leave empty | | Aftermarket or private-label part | New | Enter the brand | | Genuine / OE part, used | Used | Leave empty |

Getting this wrong is the single most common reason a row fails. A brand name on a Used row marks the part as aftermarket, and used parts can only be listed as OEM — so the row fails every time you upload it, no matter how often you retry. If you need to list branded aftermarket stock, put it in a separate New file, because condition is set for the whole file.

You can also set the Brand column to the vehicle make (for example Toyota on a Toyota part) — that is read the same as leaving it empty.

Special cases: Mopar and Mobis

Two brand names are treated differently, because they are not aftermarket brands at all — they are the labels the vehicle makers use for their own genuine parts.

  • Mopar is the parts brand of Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep and RAM.
  • Mobis is the parts brand of Hyundai and Kia.

A Mopar or Mobis part is a genuine factory part that happens to carry a brand name. So GridX Connect makes an exception: put Mopar or Mobis in the Brand column of a New file and the part is still listed as Genuine OEM, with the brand name kept on the listing — so buyers filtering eBay for genuine parts still find it.

| What you are listing | File condition | Brand column | Listed as | |---|---|---|---| | Mopar or Mobis part | New | Enter Mopar or Mobis | Genuine OEM |

> [!WARNING] > Every other genuine OE part still leaves the Brand column empty — new as well as used. Mopar and Mobis are the only two brand names that belong on a genuine part, and only on a New file. On a Used file they follow the ordinary rule like any other brand: leave Brand empty, or the row fails.

Only these two names are read as a vehicle maker's own label. Every other brand behaves exactly as the rule above describes.

The two templates

The Standard Template has 5 columns. The Advanced Template has those same 5 plus 9 more (8 more on the metric template), for sellers who already hold full product data. Both are .xlsx files with a Parts List sheet.

Standard — 5 columns

| Column | Required | Notes | |---|---|---| | Part Number | Yes | The OE Number or Manufacturer Part Number. Casting marks and stamped numbers return the wrong part. | | Price | Column must be present | Your listing price. You can leave a row's price blank and set it later in Inventory. | | Quantity | Yes | How many you have. | | Vehicle Make | Strongly recommended | The vehicle make — this is what makes the match accurate. | | Brand | Conditional | Only for aftermarket / private-label parts. See the rule above. |

Advanced — the same 5, plus 9

Every one of these is optional. Leave any of them blank and GridX Connect fills it in for you, exactly as the Standard template would.

| Column | What it holds | |---|---| | Title | Your own listing title, up to 80 characters. Blank means GridX Connect writes one. | | Description | Your own description for the listing, in plain text, up to 500 words. Buyers see it as you write it; GridX Connect only corrects spelling and grammar. Blank means GridX Connect writes one. | | Image URLs | Links to photos you already host. Separate the links with a vertical bar character. Each link must start with https, and a part takes up to 12. | | SKU | Your own SKU or label. It must be unique on your account. Blank means GridX Connect creates one. | | Weight Major (lb) | Shipping weight, whole pounds. | | Weight Minor (oz) | Shipping weight, remaining ounces (0 to 15). | | Package Length (in) | Package length, inches. | | Package Width (in) | Package width, inches. | | Package Depth (in) | Package depth, inches. |

Those five weight and size columns are the imperial template. The template you download follows the units set for your account in Settings > Preferences, under Package weight & dimensions: Imperial (lb, in) or Metric (kg, cm). On a metric account the Advanced template has four columns instead: Weight (kg), Package Length (cm), Package Width (cm) and Package Depth (cm). The small line on the Advanced Template button, under its name, shows which units your file uses.

Weight and package size are used for calculated shipping, so fill in all of those columns or none of them.

Writing your own title

Whatever you put in the Title column is used as the listing title exactly as you typed it.

  • Keep it to 80 characters. That is the most a listing title holds. A row with a longer title is not added. It is listed as Dropped with the reason "Title exceeds the 80-character limit", so you can shorten it and upload that row again.
  • You can change it later. Open the part in Inventory and edit the title.

Leave the column blank and GridX Connect writes the title for you.

Writing your own description

Whatever you put in the Description column becomes the description on the listing. It changes nothing else: the title, the specs and the vehicles the part fits are worked out exactly as they would be without it.

  • Write full sentences. The text is used as it stands, so a part name or a few keywords on their own will appear as the whole description.
  • Your wording is kept. GridX Connect corrects spelling and grammar and leaves everything else as you typed it, including part numbers, sizes and names.
  • Keep it to 500 words. A row with a longer description is not added. It is listed as Dropped with the reason "Description exceeds the 500-word limit", so you can shorten it and upload that row again.
  • You can change it later. Open the part in Inventory and edit the Product Description box.

Leave the column blank and GridX Connect writes the description for you, as it does on the Standard template.

> [!TIP] > You do not need the Advanced template to get good listings. The Standard template lets GridX Connect write the title, description and specs from the part number for you — reach for Advanced only when you want your own titles, descriptions, SKUs, images or shipping dimensions.

Getting the Part Number right

The Part Number is what GridX Connect uses to identify each part, so it is the most important column. Use the OE Number or the Manufacturer Part Number. Casting marks and stamped numbers look like part numbers but return the wrong part, so a row built on one is likely to be dropped.

The Bulk Upload page carries a reminder headed Important: Please Read Before Processing, which reads To find the exact part you need on GridX Connect, please give us the correct information. In practice that means a real part number plus the Vehicle Make.

Spelling the brand name

When a row *does* need a brand, type the maker's proper brand name, not a nickname or a shortened form. To check a name, open Add Part, choose Aftermarket, and search the Brand list. It shows the brands GridX Connect recognises.

Why rows get dropped, and how to fix them

When a part cannot be verified or found, its row is Dropped rather than added, and it is listed with a reason:

| Reason shown | What to do | |---|---| | Unable to find product information for this part number | Check it is the OE or Manufacturer Part Number, and fill in the Vehicle Make. | | Could not identify the product for this part number | Check the part number and the Vehicle Make. | | The vehicle make in this row is not recognized | Use the maker's normal name. The reason often suggests the right spelling. If the value is really a parts brand, move it to the Brand column. | | Description exceeds the 500-word limit | Shorten the description in that row to 500 words or fewer, or clear the cell so GridX Connect writes one. | | Title exceeds the 80-character limit | Shorten the title in that row to 80 characters or fewer, or clear the cell so GridX Connect writes one. |

Rows can also come back as Failed, which is different — that is almost always a Brand on a Used row. See Fix bulk upload rows that were skipped or dropped.

After a job, use Export CSV on the Results panel to download the rows that did not go in (saved as {filename}_errors.csv), correct them, and upload only those rows again.

If something goes wrong

| On-screen message | What to do | |---|---| | Your file is missing required columns | The header row is missing Part Number, Price or Quantity, or one of them has been renamed. Start again from a downloaded template and keep the headers exactly as they are. | | File size must be less than 10MB | Split your parts into files under 10MB each. | | Only CSV and Excel (.xlsx) files are supported | Save your spreadsheet as CSV or Excel (.xlsx). | | Your file has no data rows | The Parts List sheet has headers but no rows under them. | | All parts already exist in your inventory | Every row matched a part you already stock. Upload part numbers you do not already have. |

A file with no condition column is normal — you set New or Used on the page, not in the spreadsheet. Likewise, do not add a part-type column; GridX Connect works out the part type for every row from the Brand column and the file's condition.