Connect product catalog to Meta

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GUIDE TO CONNECTING YOUR PRODUCT CATALOG TO META

______________________________________________________________________________________________ Why integrate your catalog with Meta and WhatsApp Business?

Integrating the VentasxMayor.com product catalog with the Meta (Facebook/Instagram) and WhatsApp Business platforms allows you to:

✅ Promote your products with ads on Facebook and Instagram.

✅ Show your catalog from a store on Facebook or Instagram. (Not available in Argentina)

✅ Keep your catalog always updated automatically.

✅ Show your catalog on your WhatsApp Business profile.

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How does it work?

Your store at VentasXMayor automatically generates a special URL that contains your product catalog in a format compatible with Meta. This URL is always kept up to date and reflects any changes you make to your products.

Note about the prices shown in the catalog: The catalog is generated with a price of $1 for each product, since Meta requires a price to connect. Real wholesale prices will be available only to registered users of your store.

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Connect your XMayor sales catalog to Meta (Facebook Business Manager)

1. Access the Business Manager and locate the catalogs section

To manage product catalogs in Meta, you must first log in to your company's Meta Business Manager and navigate to the Catalogs section:

1. Log in to Business Manager: Go to business.facebook.com and sign in with your Facebook business account. If you manage multiple companies, select the desired company in the Business Manager.
2. Go to Business Settings: Within the Business Manager, click on Business Settings. In the left side menu, find the Data Sources section and click on Catalogs -> create a catalog. This section shows the product catalogs available in your account.
3. Create a catalog (if you don't have one): If a catalog doesn't yet exist for your store, you must create one. In the Catalogs section, click the Add Products button and then select Create a catalog. In the pop-up window:

• Select the type of catalog. For an online store for physical products, choose Products.
• Enter a descriptive name for the catalog (for example, the name of your store).

• Click Next and assign the appropriate permissions. Select the people (for example, your user) who will manage the catalog and assign the Catalog Administrator role or another as appropriate, then click Assign. (Note: Make sure you have administrator permissions for the catalog; otherwise you won't be able to add data sources or make changes.)
• If Meta asks you to connect a Meta pixel or event sources to the catalog, you can choose to connect it now or skip this step. This step is optional for advertising purposes, and is not necessary to simply link the catalog to WhatsApp.

4. Verify the created catalog: Once created, the new catalog will appear in the Catalogs list. Select it to configure your details. You may need to open the catalog in the Commerce Manager to manage your products and data sources.

2. Connect the catalog using the URL of the product feed

Once you have a catalog set up, the next step is to populate it with the products in your store using the data feed provided (a CSV file in a public URL). This feed contains the list of products in your store. Meta requires that each product include certain mandatory fields such as ID, name, availability, price, link, etc.

In our case, the feed URL is in the format https://tudominio.com.ar/feed/facebook-catalog.csv and contains fictitious prices of $1 for each product (this is because Meta requires a price value for each item; the real prices are kept hidden and are only shown to users registered in the wholesale store).

To copy the URL of your catalog, go to the ADVERTISING -> PRODUCT CATALOG section IN META and copy the URL.

Now follow these steps to connect the catalog via the product feed URL:

1. Open the catalog in the Sales Manager: From the Business Manager, in the Catalogs section, select the catalog you created (or the destination catalog) and click Open in sales manager. This will open the Commerce Manager interface specific to that catalog, where you can add the data source.
2. Navigate to Data Sources: Within the Commerce Manager, open the Catalog tab and go to the Data Sources section of the catalog. There you will manage the lists of product data (feeds).
3. Add a list of data:

• If the catalog doesn't yet have a data source configured, you'll see the option to create one. Click Add (or Data Sources) to start setting up a new product list.
• If the catalog already has an existing data list (for example, if a feed was already connected), click Add another list to create an additional data source.

4. Choose the type of feed (scheduled upload): The system will ask you how you want to add the products. Select the Data List option (also called scheduled feed) and click Next. This option allows you to connect via URL so that the catalog is automatically updated on a regular basis.

5. Enter the URL of the product feed: In the Set up list step, provide the URL of your store's CSV file. Copy the URL from your administrator in ADVERTISING (for example, https://tudominio.com.ar/feed/facebook-catalog.csv) and paste it in the Enter URL field. Then, click Next.
6. Name the data source and choose currency: Assign an identifying name to the data list (by default, Meta can use the same URL as the name) and select the currency corresponding to the prices in your catalog (for example, ARS for Argentine pesos, USD for dollars, etc.).
7. Configure the update frequency: You can then schedule how often Meta must re-upload the file from the URL to keep the catalog up to date. For example, you can set up daily updates. Choose the appropriate interval depending on how often the products or stock in your store change (by default, the update is usually daily). Leave the Automatic Updates option enabled if available, so that Meta automatically detects changes and updates the catalog.
8. Click on UPLOAD

9. Complete the feed upload: Meta will start processing the CSV file and uploading the products to the catalog. This process may take a few minutes depending on the size of the catalog. You'll see a progress message and, when finished, a summary of the import. If there are any problems with some products (for example, incomplete data), Meta will indicate this with warnings, but as long as the required fields are present, the products will be added to the catalog. (Remember that the price field is required for each product; in our feed, $1 is used as a fictitious value just to meet this requirement.)

Now the Meta catalog is populated with your products through the feed. You can verify in the Articles tab of the catalog that all the products appear with their data (name, description, image, price $1, etc.). Even if the price shown in the Meta catalog is $1 for configuration reasons, customers will only see the actual price when entering your store (if the store shows prices only to registered users, that logic remains on your website).

3. Link the catalog to the WhatsApp Business account

With the catalog ready in Commerce Manager, the final step is to connect that catalog to your WhatsApp Business account so that the products appear in your business profile within the WhatsApp app. By connecting a catalog, your customers will be able to see the list of products directly in your WhatsApp Business profile and you can easily share those products in chats.

Before proceeding, make sure you comply with the following:

• WhatsApp Business account: You must have the WhatsApp Business application installed and configured with your company number (this is different from personal WhatsApp Messenger).
• Linked Facebook page: The WhatsApp Business account must be linked to the Facebook Page of your business that is associated with the catalog. In other words, the WhatsApp Business number must be added to the company's Facebook page (or Business Manager) before the catalog can be linked. If you haven't already done so, link your WhatsApp Business to your Facebook page by following these steps:

1. Open the WhatsApp Business app on your phone.
2. Go to Business Tools (in some versions it appears under Settings > Business Tools) and tap Facebook and Instagram.
3. Select Facebook and then tap Continue. Sign in with your Facebook account if asked.
4. Choose the Facebook Page of your business that you want to link (if you don't have a page, the app will give you the option to create one).
5. Tap Connect WhatsApp to confirm the link to that page. Once this is done, your WhatsApp Business number will be associated with your company's Facebook page. (This allows, for example, a WhatsApp button to appear on your Facebook page for customers to send you messages, and is a requirement for sharing the catalog.)

With the Facebook page linked, you can now connect the catalog:

Steps to connect the catalog in the WhatsApp Business app:

1. Open the WhatsApp Business app on your mobile device.
2. Go to the Tools tab (briefcase icon at the bottom, or from Settings select “Business Tools”) and tap Catalog.
3. Within Catalog, tap the more options icon (the three dots ⋮ on Android, or Settings on iOS) and select Catalog Settings (or it may simply appear as Catalog Settings or Catalog settings depending on the language).
4. Look for the Connect Catalog option and tap it. The app will detect that you have a Meta catalog available to link (thanks to the previous link to your Facebook page).
5. If the app shows you information or warnings, tap Continue to confirm the action. Finally, tap Confirm to complete the connection.

Note: When you connect your WhatsApp Business catalog to a Meta catalog, any catalog you're using locally in the app will be archived. That is, if you had previously created a manual catalog in the application, it will be hidden and will be replaced by the connected Meta catalog. All products will now be managed from the Commerce Manager catalog (or from your e-commerce platform through the feed).

That's all! 🎉 Your Meta product catalog is now connected to your WhatsApp Business account. Customers who visit your business profile on WhatsApp will be able to see the Catalog section with all the products you configured (name, image and basic information from the feed). From the app, you can also select products from the catalog to send them in chats with customers, making it easier to share product information.

4. Maintenance and Final Considerations

• Product update: Since the catalog is connected through a programmed list (feed URL), it will be automatically updated according to the frequency you configured (for example, daily). If you need to force an update (for example, you added new products to your store and want them to appear immediately on WhatsApp), you can do so by going to the Sales Manager > Data Sources section > selecting the data list and using the option Upload Now or Reimport. Alternatively, changes made to your store's feed will be reflected on WhatsApp no more than 24 hours after the automatic update.
• Product editing: You won't be able to edit the connected catalog from the WhatsApp Business app. Any changes (adding, removing or modifying products) must be made directly in Meta's Commerce Manager (or in your e-commerce platform that generates the feed). For example, if you want to change the description or price, do it in your online store or in the Meta catalog, and wait for it to sync.
• Visibility of real prices: In this particular configuration, the feed uses a fictitious price ($1) only to meet Meta's technical requirements. WhatsApp Business users will not be shown that fictitious price as a final price, since normally the strategy is to indicate in the description something like “Check the price in the store” or manage sales in conversation with the customer. If your WhatsApp catalog shows $1, you could clarify in the product description that the actual price is reported during the conversation or on the web. (Meta allows you to list products without showing the actual price if you prefer, since the WhatsApp Business catalog price function is optional in some countries.)
• Customer experience: By having the catalog connected, you offer a consistent experience across multiple Meta platforms. Customers can browse your products on Facebook/Instagram (if you use stores there) and WhatsApp in an integrated way, facilitating communication and sales. Customers can even share links to your products with their contacts from WhatsApp, amplifying the visibility of your catalog.
• Support and help: If at any time you want to disconnect the WhatsApp catalog (for example, to return to the local manual catalog), you can do so from the app: Tools > Catalog > Options menu > Catalog settings > Disconnect catalog. This will unlink the catalog from Meta and restore (unarchive) the local catalog that you had in the app, if it existed.

By following this guide, you will have been able to integrate your product catalog with WhatsApp Business effectively, without the need to use the WhatsApp API. Now your customers can see your products directly on your WhatsApp Business profile and you can keep that catalog updated through Meta tools.

Sources: The above information is based on official Meta documentation (Facebook/WhatsApp) and relevant public guides, including instructions from the Meta Business Help Center for catalogs and WhatsApp, as well as the WhatsApp Help Service for linking catalogs.