Everything starts with the mapping. You want to define what information in Akeneo should be transferred to Salesforce. It is not only this, you also want to make sure that the information is put at the correct place.
The mapping process starts in Salesforce, where you decide which fields you want to fill with data from Akeneo.
In the second step you move over to Akeneo where you define which data should be used.
Let us walk you through this step by step.
Select the catalog
What is a catalog?
A catalog fulfils two main functionalities.
- First, the filter criteria for the products you want to transfer from Akeneo are defined.
- Second, the field mappings for those products are defined.
On top of that, scheduled transfer are defined on the catalog level.
From the main menu, select <<Akeneo Catalogs>>. You are presented with an overview of all available catalogs and the option to create a new catalog.
Let's start with creating a new catalog. You want to enter a new name that is not yet used by any other catalog. You could also select an existing catalog from the list.
Creating a field to field mapping
You are following a 3 step process to create the field by field mapping. That process is indicated on top of the catalog details inside the mapping schema.
- Select Fields
- Update Akeneo Catalog
- Schema Overview
Select the Salesforce product fields
After creating the catalog, you are ready to configure the mapping on this screen.
In Salesforce fields can be required. Required fields have to be mapped and filled with information from Akeneo as without data in those fields the product record can not be saved.
Optional fields can be selected by you. Please see the overview of supported Salesforce field types:
| Salesforce Field Type | Supported |
|---|---|
| String | YES |
| Text Area | YES |
| Text Area (Long) | YES |
| Text Area (Rich) | YES |
| Picklist | YES |
| Multi Picklist | YES |
| Date | YES |
| Checkbox | YES |
| Number | YES |
| Percent | NO |
| Currency | NO |
| Date/Time | NO |
| Encrypted String | NO |
| Time | NO |
| NO | |
| Phone | NO |
| Address | NO |
| Geolocation | NO |
| URL | NO |
Once you selected all fields, click on <<Save & upload>>. The fields are sent over to Akeneo where you can select the specific source fields. Let's continue with this process step.
Select Akeneo fields in Akeneo Catalog App
You don't have to do much to find the correct catalog in Akeneo. Just click on <<Go to Catalog>>. The mapping process is described here in the Akeneo documentation.
We suggest you only map the following Akeneo field types into the respective Salesforce field types although other mappings are not restricted by the connector.
| Salesforce Field Type | Akeneo Field Type |
|---|---|
| String |
|
| Text Area |
|
| Text Area (Long) |
|
| Text Area (Rich) |
|
| Picklist |
|
| Multi Picklist |
|
| Date |
|
| Checkbox |
|
| Number |
|
Choose your source parameters
Akeneo PIM supports multiple values per field.
Target Fields sent to Akeneo are considered as localisable targets. When a field is a non-localisable target on the PIM, the connector will use the unique value that is common across all locales.
Fields can also be configured as multi-channel so that you can have a different value per channel. You configure the channel to be transferred in the mapping.
For the Akeneo field types measurement and price Akeneo you have to define the unit or the currency to be transferred.
Configure special mappings
A product needs more information than what is directly mapped to a product. Your products should be organised in Salesforce and might have pictures and other files attached to it.
Why do I have more fields to map than I selected?
You might wonder why you have more fields to map than you selected. The reason is categories, attachments and Akeneos unique identifier.
- Asset Types have to be mapped individually and are created and configured as Custom Meta Data Types within Salesforce.
- Category Tree to be mapped
- Akeneo UUID is automatically mapped
Categories
You can structure your products in Akeneo in (multiple) categories. If you want to transfer them to Salesforce you have to provide a mapping.
The relevant Salesforce target is named Category. Please select the Akeneo field categories and select the “code”.
| Salesforce Field Name | Akeneo Field Name and parameter |
|---|---|
| Category |
|
We have a custom object for categories
Categories are available for multiple Salesforce clouds by having a custom object. This custom object can be easily transferred to the B2B data model.
Assets (Pictures and Attachments)
In order to enrich your products, you can transfer assets from Akeneo to Salesforce. You can define the assets to be transferred completely free.
Just head over to the Custom Meta Data in Salesforce Setup and define your asset types. Each of the asset types can be mapped to a specific Asset Collection in Akeneo.
Publicly available links instead of files
Please make sure that only publicly available links for pictures and attachments are used. If your assets are not publicly available links then UI Components (for e.g. Product Media Gallery) won't be able to display the media content inside the Product page in Salesforce.
The connector is coming with pre-configured asset types that are corresponding with the assets you need for a commerce implementation. If your Salesforce org has B2B Commerce enabled, you can use the Assets to create your CMS records.
You can map the configured Asset types to the corresponding Asset Collections in Akeneo using the Akeneo Catalog App.
For each Product all assigned assets are transferred to Salesforce and create respective Akeneo Product Asset records.
Enable your catalog
When you are done with the mapping of all fields, assets and categories you can proceed with enabling the catalog in the Akeneo Catalog Mapping App. Please also see the Akeneo documentation on how to enable a catalog
Confirm step is completed
When you are ready with all mapping activities in Akeneo, head back to Salesforce and confirm it.
Check the mapping schema
In the last step you can check your mapping schema for completeness. You can see all product fields that you have selected in the first step without all other Product2 fields to have a better overview.
If you enabled your catalog, you can proceed to previewing your products.
Update your mapping schema
After the initial creation of the mapping schema, it can always be updated. Please keep in mind that Akeneo is the source of truth.
If you remove a field from the mapping it won't be transferred anymore so the data in Salesforce might become outdated.
If you change the source of data in the mapping, the data in Salesforce will be overwritten.
If the asset type is removed from the mapping, the assets will be deleted in Salesforce
Preview Products
Start Data Transfer
Transferring the products can be handled in two ways.
- Instantly
- Scheduled
