Best Practices for Loading Catalogs

Overview

To make loading catalogs into Coupa easier, we've compiled some tips for you.

Do

Always use the same method to load a catalog into Coupa.
If you initially load a catalog on behalf of the supplier, use the Suppliers > Catalogs method. This will allow the supplier to take over maintenance of that catalog through the Coupa Supplier Portal.
Ensure item name and description are unique, regardless of which loader method is used or the associated uniqueness criteria.
Use good data!

Don't

Don't use generic item names (Bad: "iPhone". Good: "iPhone 7 Plus 128GB Jet Black")
Don't mix and match item loading methods.
Never use incomplete data.
Avoid using the wrong loader for the volume of data you need to load.

Loading Methods

Object	Method	Customer Effort	Additional Information
Supplier Catalog loaded by supplier	Coupa Supplier Portal	2 hours	Customer sends invitation to supplier via Coupa GUI Supplier clicks on link to register Catalog uploaded by Supplier Customer reviews & approves Catalog
Supplier Catalog loaded by customer	Coupa platform: Suppliers > Catalogs	1 hour	Supplier emails the catalog file to the customer Customer loads the file on behalf of the supplier Customer reviews & approves Catalog
Internal Catalog	Coupa platform: Setup > Items	2 hours	Customer creates the catalog content These items are internal only and will never be maintained by the supplier No approval or review is required
Supplier Punchout Site	cXML	8 hours Duration 2-4 weeks (depending on supplier’s efforts)	Customer inputs supplier provided credentials in Coupa UI and tests with supplier Customer does not need developer skills or IT resources to complete
sFTP Loader	CSV	3 hours effort per sftp account	Customer creates the catalog csv file Places file on sftp server No approval or review is required. Catalog items will be available for purchase once loaded

Item Uniqueness

Field	Required?	Item Loader	Supplier Catalog Loader/CSP	sFTP Loader
Name	Y	x	x **	x
Description	Y
Commodity	Y
UOM	Y
Item Number	Y		x	x
Supplier *	Y	x	x	x
Contract Number *	Y	x		x
Price *	Y			x
Currency *	Y
Supplier Part Number *	Y		x	x
Auxiliary Part Number *	N		x *******

* These fields are supplier specific.
** This is changed in R20 and Name will become part of the uniqueness criteria for the Catalog Loader
*** Becomes part of the uniqueness if used, although field is not mandatory

Loader Decision Tree

decision tree.png

* Spot check of accurate data to be periodically carried out as no approval is required before items are available to be purchased.

Testing Best Practices

Do

Load the catalog to your TEST environment, try with a few items only initially to test the data format is correct.
Validate that the data has loaded correctly, visibility of the items is accurate and there are no duplicate items.
Once the testing is completed and sign-off as correct load the catalog to your PROD environment.

Don't

Don't load catalog directly to Production without testing first.
Do not mix the loaders. Use the same loader in both TEST and PROD to ensure the load will be successful when the catalog is loaded in Production.