XML

In order to be able to show your product listing to best effect to our customers around the world, Fruugo requires a product data feed.  We need to retrieve this feed frequently to keep stock levels accurate and thereby improve the customer experience.

The method used to get product information into the Fruugo system is via a suitably constructed product data feed. This feed contains the information which the Fruugo system requires to be able to correctly display your products to the customer, correctly calculate the cost (including shipping and sales tax where appropriate) to shoppers in all of the Fruugo countries.

Feed Policy

It is our policy that all data must be submitted on an automated feed which does not require manual upload. The feed must be provided in the Fruugo feed specification.

It means a full feed of your product data in our formats being automatically generated by a feed script on a pre-defined schedule (at least daily but ideally more frequently) and the script publishing the output feed file to a static URL (http) from which our system can collect the file each time a new version has been published for automatic processing.  We operate in this manner to ensure that the products remain consistently up to date - stock, prices etc.

XML Feed Overview

(EXtensible Markup Language) is an open standard for describing data from the W3C. It is used for defining data elements on a Web page and business-to-business documents. XML uses a similar tag structure as HTML; however, whereas HTML defines how elements are displayed, XML defines what those elements contain. While HTML uses predefined tags, XML allows tags to be defined by the provider (Fruugo).  

Therefore virtually any data items, such as "product" and "sales" can be identified, allowing Web pages to function like database records.  

Simply, what is XML?

  • XML stands for Extensible Markup Language.
  • XML is a markup language much like HTML .
  • XML was designed to carry data, not to display data.
  • XML is designed to be self-descriptive

Why use XML?

The human-readable XML tags provide a simple data format, but the intelligent defining of these tags to serve business needs properly and everyone's adherence to using the same tags determines the real value of XML.

By providing a common method for identifying data, XML supports business-to-business transfers and has become "the" format for electronic data interchange and Web services.

XML Rules & Schema

An XML document can include a self-describing set of rules that identify the tags and their relationships; the rules are called a "schema". The schema is the definition of an XML document, which identifies the XML tags and includes the rules for their interrelationships; for example, there must be at least one B tag within every tag A, or there can only be B tags within an A tag, and so forth.  

Residing within the document itself, an XML schema is commonly used to verify the integrity of the content.

Fruugo XML Specification

The information explains the specification of the Fruugo XML format and our pre-defined tags which are used to contain each element of data.

There are only 11 mandatory child tags in the Fruugo XML format to ensure you can get up and running as soon as possible. The remaining child tags, although not compulsory*, are there so that we can fine tune your experience to get you the most sales possible. Throughout this process the Fruugo Integration Team will be on hand to advise on submitting a feed that ensures your products are set-up correctly. *They may become compulsory dependent on the nature of your products.

For information on the mandatory fields and all other fields please see Fruugo Feed > Field Specification.

XML File Structure

The Fruugo XML file consists of a "<Products>" element which contains any number of "<Product>" elements. Each <Product> element contains all the information relevant to a single product SKU variation. Each variation of a product gets a different <Product> element. The <ProductId> is used to link the variations together to create the main product, with the <SkuId> identifying the specific variation.

Within the <Product> element, the fields relating to the description and pricing of the product are split into further <Description> and <Price>elements. This allows for the inclusion of the description in multiple languages and prices in multiple currencies.

Notes:

  • Although they are not required by our systems, using indenting and new lines in the file, as shown in the examples, makes it easier to locate and correct any errors.

  • The files should be UTF-8 encoded.

  • The standard XML encoding rules apply for special characters, such as &, <, >, etc.

  • To include HTML tags in a field, it is advisable to wrap the field with CDATA.

The most basic example XML file with a single product with only the mandatory fields:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<Products>
    <Product>
        <ProductId>LE46D550</ProductId>
        <SkuId>LE46D550</SkuId>
        <EAN>567432574371</EAN>
        <Brand>Samsung</Brand>
        <Category>Electronics - Video - Televisions</Category>
        <Imageurl1>http://www.fruugo.com/images/le46d550.jpg</Imageurl1>
        <StockStatus>INSTOCK</StockStatus>
        <Description>
            <Language>en</Language>
            <Title>Samsung LE46D550 46" Full HD LCD TV</Title>
            <Description>Take a step up with the benefit of large display area and great versatility with the Samsung LE46D550 46" Full HD LCD TV.</Description>
        </Description>
        <Price>
            <NormalPriceWithoutVAT>540.83</NormalPriceWithoutVAT>
            <VATRate>20</VATRate>
        </Price>
    </Product>
</Products>

For products with SKU variations repeat the <Product> element for each variation with a different <SkuId> and chaging the parent <Description> attribute elements as appropriate. See example below:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<Products>
    <Product>
        <ProductId>ASIGT2160</ProductId>
        <SkuId>ASIGT2160_6</SkuId>
        <EAN>8717487191429</EAN>
        <Brand>Asics</Brand>
        <Category>Apparel and Accessories - Shoes - Running - Mens</Category>
        <Imageurl1>http://www.fruugo.com/images/asigt2160.jpg</Imageurl1>
        <StockStatus>INSTOCK</StockStatus>
        <Description>
            <Language>en</Language>
            <Title>ASICS GT-2160 Running Shoes</Title>
            <Description>The ASICS GT 2160 Running Shoe continues to go from strength to strength. The shoe is perfect for the serious runner in need of some additional support to prevent against overpronation.<br><br>The main difference between the 2160 and the 2150 is the addition of Guidance Line, which is designed to give you a more efficient path through the gait cycle. This new Guidance Line also makes the 2160 the lightest shoe in the 2000 series so far.</Description>
            <AttributeSize>UK 6</AttributeSize>
            <AttributeColor>Blue and White</AttributeColor>
        </Description>
        <Price>
            <Currency>GBP</Currency>
            <NormalPriceWithoutVAT>49.938</NormalPriceWithoutVAT>
            <VATRate>20</VATRate>
        </Price>
    </Product>
    <Product>
        <ProductId>ASIGT2160</ProductId>
        <SkuId>ASIGT2160_7</SkuId>
        <EAN>8717487191430</EAN>
        <Brand>Asics</Brand>
        <Category>Apparel and Accessories - Shoes - Running - Mens</Category>
        <Imageurl1>http://www.fruugo.com/images/asigt2160.jpg</Imageurl1>
        <StockStatus>OUTOFSTOCK</StockStatus>
        <Description>
            <Language>en</Language>
            <Title>ASICS GT-2160 Running Shoes</Title>
            <Description>The ASICS GT 2160 Running Shoe continues to go from strength to strength. The shoe is perfect for the serious runner in need of some additional support to prevent against overpronation.<br><br>The main difference between the 2160 and the 2150 is the addition of Guidance Line, which is designed to give you a more efficient path through the gait cycle. This new Guidance Line also makes the 2160 the lightest shoe in the 2000 series so far.</Description>
            <AttributeSize>UK 7</AttributeSize>
            <AttributeColor>Blue and White</AttributeColor>
        </Description>
        <Price>
            <Currency>GBP</Currency>
            <NormalPriceWithoutVAT>49.958</NormalPriceWithoutVAT>
            <VATRate>20</VATRate>
        </Price>
    </Product>
    <Product>
        <ProductId>ASIGT2160</ProductId>
        <SkuId>ASIGT2160_8</SkuId>
        <EAN>8717487191431</EAN>
        <Brand>Asics</Brand>
        <Category>Apparel and Accessories - Shoes - Running - Mens</Category>
        <Imageurl1>http://www.fruugo.com/images/asigt2160.jpg</Imageurl1>
        <StockStatus>INSTOCK</StockStatus>
        <Description>
            <Language>en</Language>
            <Title>ASICS GT-2160 Running Shoes</Title>
            <Description>The ASICS GT 2160 Running Shoe continues to go from strength to strength. The shoe is perfect for the serious runner in need of some additional support to prevent against overpronation.<br><br>The main difference between the 2160 and the 2150 is the addition of Guidance Line, which is designed to give you a more efficient path through the gait cycle. This new Guidance Line also makes the 2160 the lightest shoe in the 2000 series so far.</Description>
            <AttributeSize>UK 8</AttributeSize>
            <AttributeColor>Blue and White</AttributeColor>        
        </Description>
        <Price>
            <Currency>GBP</Currency>
            <NormalPriceWithoutVAT>49.958</NormalPriceWithoutVAT>
            <VATRate>20</VATRate>
        </Price>
    </Product>
</Products>

The full example XML file with a single product:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<Products>
    <Product>
        <ProductId>LE46D550</ProductId>
        <SkuId>LE46D550</SkuId>
        <EAN>567432574371</EAN>
        <Brand>Samsung</Brand>
        <Manufacturer>Samsung</Manufacturer>
        <Category>Electronics - Video - Televisions</Category>
        <PackageWeight>15450</PackageWeight>
        <Imageurl1>http://www.fruugo.com/images/le46d550.jpg</Imageurl1>
        <Imageurl2>http://www.fruugo.com/images/le46d550_1.jpg</Imageurl2>
        <Imageurl3>http://www.fruugo.com/images/le46d550_2.jpg</Imageurl3>
        <Imageurl4>http://www.fruugo.com/images/le46d550_3.jpg</Imageurl4>
        <Imageurl5>http://www.fruugo.com/images/le46d550_4.jpg</Imageurl5>
        <StockStatus>INSTOCK</StockStatus>
        <StockQuantity>7</StockQuantity>
        <LeadTime>3</LeadTime>
        <Description>
            <Language>en</Language>
            <Title>Samsung LE46D550 46" Full HD LCD TV</Title>
            <Description>Take a step up with the benefit of large display area and great versatility with the Samsung LE46D550 46" Full HD LCD TV.</Description>
        </Description>
        <Price>
            <NormalPriceWithoutVAT>540.83</NormalPriceWithoutVAT>
            <DiscountPriceWithoutVAT>440.83</DiscountPriceWithoutVAT>
            <DiscountPriceStartDate>2018-04-01</DiscountPriceStartDate>
            <DiscountPriceEndDate>2020-12-31</DiscountPriceEndDate>
            <Country>GB FR IE</Country>
            <VATRate>20</VATRate>
        </Price>
    </Product>