Your product photos, all in one ZIP.
Images aren't uploaded one at a time: they're loaded in bulk. The whole job comes down to one rule — the folder is named exactly like the product code — and one compressed file. This guide shows the exact structure, which photos pay off and which don't, and how to build the ZIP on Windows and Mac.
The rule: the folder is named after the code
When we import the images, the only thing linking them to products is the folder name. If the folder is called RM-001-S, every photo inside is assigned to the product whose code is RM-001-S. That's it. The files inside can keep whatever name the camera gave them.
The structure, step by step
- Create a main folder. It can be called
products,photosor your company name. It's just the wrapper. - Inside it, one folder per product. Each one is named with that product's code/SKU, spelled exactly as in the spreadsheet.
- Inside each folder, all its photos. Front, back, detail, the closed pack, whatever you have. No special naming.
- Compress the main folder into a ZIP. One single file with everything inside, not one ZIP per product.
The simple case: one photo per product
If you have a single image per item, no folders are needed. Drop all the photos loose inside the main folder and name each file with the product code: RM-001-S.jpg, BZ-114.jpg. Then compress it just like before.
Both methods can be mixed in the same ZIP: folders for products with several photos, loose files for the ones with only one.
Which photos pay off and which don't
In wholesale the photo doesn't sell on its own, but it decides: buyers compare catalogs and the one that looks better wins the first look. You don't need a photo studio, you need consistency.
| What | Recommended | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Format | jpg, png, webp | iPhone HEIC files and design files (psd, ai) can't be imported. |
| Size | From 1000 × 1000 px | That's what lets the product page zoom without looking pixelated. |
| Aspect ratio | Square, always the same | A catalog with mixed ratios looks messy in the grid. |
| Background | White or light and even | It makes the product stand out and works the same in Google and Meta feeds. |
| Framing | Product centered, with breathing room | It allows cropping to different sizes without cutting the product. |
| First photo | The product alone, no context | It's the one shown in the grid and in ads. Context shots come after. |
| Pack photo | Add it as second or third | In wholesale it answers the most common question: what do I get when I order a pack. |
Building the ZIP on Windows and Mac
On Windows
- Right-click the main folder.
- Choose Compress to ZIP file. On Windows 10 the path is Send to › Compressed (zipped) folder.
- A
products.zipfile appears next to the folder. That's the one to send.
On Mac
- Right-click (or control + click) the main folder.
- Choose Compress “products”.
products.zipappears in the same location.
products-1.zip, products-2.zip.
How to send it
Email doesn't work for this: almost every provider rejects large attachments. The three ways that do work:
- Google Drive: upload the ZIP, share the link with view access for anyone with the link, and send that link.
- WeTransfer or similar: no account needed and the link arrives on its own. Good for one-off sends.
- To your commercial advisor: if you prefer, they'll give you a shared folder and you upload everything there, no middleman.
Send the product spreadsheet along with the ZIP. Both are imported together, so the team can cross-check codes and tell you if any product ended up without a photo.
The mistakes that break the upload
- HEIC photos, straight from the iPhone.They can't be imported. On iPhone: Settings › Camera › Formats › Most Compatible, and new photos come out as jpg.
- WhatsApp screenshots.WhatsApp compresses images on send: they arrive small and blurry, and the quality can't be recovered. Find the original file.
- Photos with the supplier's watermark.They advertise someone else inside your catalog, and in several industries they're a third party's material. A phone photo of your own is better.
- Folders named after the product instead of the code.It only works if the name matches the spreadsheet letter for letter, accents included. With a code it never fails.
- One ZIP per product.Four hundred compressed files have to be opened one by one. Everything goes in a single ZIP, or a few numbered ones.
- A Drive link without permissions.The biggest time-waster: the link arrives, nobody can open it and the back-and-forth costs two days. Check it by opening it in an incognito window.
Images migrate too
If your products are already on Tiendanube, WooCommerce, Shopify or another platform, the photos come along with them and there's no ZIP to build. It all migrates together, in a day.