Channels (also known as integrations) are the marketplaces or listing tools that can sync your product catalogs, import orders, track shipments, and update available inventory. 

When an account is first created, you have the option to connect an initial channel so that product records for inbounding inventory can be created. However, you may choose to connect a channel later, and are free to add or suspend channels as needed from your account.

For a full list of the channels, please see Integrations.

 

Connecting a channel 

Step 1: Click ‘+ Add Integration’ in the left sidebar menu of your Flexport Portal account

 

 

Step 2: Select the channel you’d like to connect, and follow the prompts to enter your credentials and connect the integration 

For frequently asked questions about connecting specific channels, please see Account Setup. 

NOTE: In general, it’s not recommended to connect more than one account per channel. For example, if you have multiple eBay accounts, only connect one. For more information, please see Can I Connect to the Same Marketplace Twice? However, multiple Shopify stores can be connected to one fulfillment account, as long as the first Shopify integration is directly connected and all subsequent Shopify stores are connected via a listing tool.

After each successful integration setup, you will see the channel added in the left sidebar menu of your Flexport Portal account, under “Integrations.” 

 

Using the Integration Details screen

Once you've successfully connected a channel, you can view and edit its details by clicking on the marketplace name under “Integrations” in the left sidebar menu of the Flexport Portal account. 

 

Channel status

Each integration will show its current status. Statuses may be one of the following:

• Active: The channel is fully connected and active with no known issues. Disconnect the integration by clicking ‘Disconnect.’ You’ll be prompted to confirm this decision before disconnecting.

• Disconnected: The channel has been manually disconnected. Once you’ve connected an integration, it will remain in the “Integrations'' list in your Flexport portal so you can always easily reconnect. Disconnected integrations will not import orders nor send inventory updates to the channel, but will continue to update tracking information in the marketplace for any pending and/or unshipped orders. Click ‘connect’ if you wish to reconnect the channel.

• Invalid Credentials: The channel is disconnected because the credentials we have for the integration are no longer working, and we are unable to communicate with the marketplace. Click ‘Update Credentials’ to update the API key or password. If you no longer wish to use this channel and would like to have the credentials fully removed, please contact Support, and we’ll take care of this for you.

 

Channel actions

• Update Credentials: This option will start the process of updating the credentials or permissions to connect to the current channel. If validated (and if the channel is already connected), a new channel product import and inventory sync will be performed for that channel.
  
  
• Connect/Disconnect: Connecting a channel will validate the current credentials for that channel, import any new catalog items, send current stock levels for connected items to the channel, and begin checking for new orders to ship. Disconnecting a channel will update your managed inventory to zero (items already inbounded) in the marketplace and stop importing new orders from that channel.
  
  
• Buffer Stock: To reduce the risk of overselling inventory, set a minimum number and/or percentage of units to hold in your inventory. This will reduce the number of inventory we report to your marketplace so that you can reduce stockouts for popular items and minimize penalties from marketplaces that penalize merchants for stockouts. For more information on our Buffer Stock feature, please see Set a Buffer Stock for Inventory Levels.
  
  
• Order Import Delay (Shopify only): If you don’t want us to process your orders immediately, enter the number of minutes you’d like to delay before importing the order. This is useful if you want to make manual adjustments to your orders, check for fraudulent orders, or give your customers time to add items to an existing order before the order is imported and processed. For more information on our Order Import Delay feature, please see Set a Delay for Importing Orders.

• Shopify Settings (Shopify only): There are three different ways to configure your Shopify integration: Basic Configuration (Default), Multiple Locations, and Manual Approval. To understand the use cases for each setting and to learn the required steps for each configuration, please see Which Shopify Configuration Should I Use?

 

Fast Tag actions

The Fast Tag sections on this screen serve to inform you of any available and unconnected Fast Tags the specific channel supports. You can connect or reconnect Fast Tags directly from the Channel Details screen. Here, you’ll find any type of Fast Tags that are supported by the particular channel. Only unconnected Fast Tags and Fast Tags supported by the channel will display here. For more information about channel-specific Fast Tags, please see Fast Tags.

• Recommended Fast Tags: These are the recommended suggestions for Fast Tags that are common and encouraged for connecting to the channel to drive up sales for the particular marketplace.

 

• Available Fast Tags: These are Fast Tags that can be connected to the particular channel but are less commonly used.