This is a free internet service that helps Opencart shop owners:
- easily import, export and batch-update their data ;
- rapidly perform routine tasks like searching, adding and editing of data records;
- create and run sophisticated reports on data, to help run their businesses smoothly.
Zen Cart owners have been very happy with ShopAdmin, as also osCommerce users. And now, OpenCart users also can manage data seamlessly with Apsona ShopAdmin.  All of this is possible within your browser, with no need for custom development or coding.  The installation package is customizable to the specific needs of each cart.  Sign-up is free, and only takes a few minutes. Please sign up, try it out and see for yourself. As always we welcome feedback.

• exporting a range of customer records into Quickbooks-compatible IIF format
• exporting a specific order into a customizable Excel-compatible format.

These features are only available by request. If you would like them enabled for you, please contact us via email.

Until recently, ShopAdmin had included support for numbers only in the US and UK format. A number 23,302,983.02 in the US format is expressed very differently in Europe.  As many of our users are European, we are now happy to inform our European users that ShopAdmin now supports localized numbers and currencies when importing and editing.  The German format 23.302.983,02, the Swiss format 23′302′983.02 and the French format 23 302 983,02 is now supported by.  ShopAdmin uses the locale determined by the user’s browser to determine the number format.

As always, new features will take effect the next time a user logs in to Apsona ShopAdmin. Stay tuned for new features, updates and services. We welcome for feedback and feature requests.

Happy New Year!

• Many customers required import of UTF8 characters. ShopAdmin now supports UTF8 characters. Importing foreign languages will now be possible. Updates will take effect automatically when you next refresh your ShopAdmin window.
• Also included is a new “Clone” button available in the product detail area, via which the product record can be replicated. You can use this to create a copy of the current product, edit a few parts such as its name and model, and save it as a new product.
• A new child tab called “Orders total” is now shown in the Orders table. You can now see to each Order the title, value and class. You can also manually add a total to an order.

Many of our users ask how to get a  report of the most popular attributes ordered. With ShopAdmin this data can be got with a few clicks. From the Ordered Products table select  the count (Ordered product ID), along with Option and Option value from the Ordered product attribute table and you should be able to see the numbers sold.

The Ordered product ID field is found under the metrics sections and is called #records. This field will give the number of option values to an option that have been ordered. So with just 3 fields such valuable data can be got instantly. Such reports can be crunched instantly with ShopAdmin.

Export, update, import and report data with ShopAdmin and for all Zen Cart and osCommerce users this web based application is offered free.

The Apsona team would like to wish all the users of ShopAdmin a very Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! As always we look forward to your feature requests and feedback.

So how do online retailers know what products to stock and in what quantities?  What do shoppers really want? Trends of returning customers – Is it offer free shipping, free returns or faster shipping options?  The answer for all these questions and more is a good analytics tool which will help shop owners with past trends.

Apsona ShopAdmin is a free offering with powerful built-in analytics. No custom coding. A simple drag and drop interface will give you reports instantly. Data records from different tables can be selected and the final report is available instantly. This type of data crunching provides the shop owner with facts and trends instantly, for easier decision-making. For example, a report for all the Orders in November 2009 by region can be obtained by selecting the Zone field from the Customer table, Date purchased and Order totals from the Order table and immediately a very important piece of data is at your fingertips. Visualize this data by Zone with the grouping visualization available with ShopAdmin for a better feel of the data.

When stocking products, another vital piece of information to shop owners is which attributes are the most popular. For example, while ordering T-shirts, which sizes and colors sell quickly and easily. Such data can be got from ShopAdmin by making a report from the Ordered products table. Just select option and option values from the Ordered product attribute table and count (Ordered product ID) field from the Ordered product table click save and you are done. Ordering and stocking products which move is key to a online retailer’s success.

Analyze data in minutes with Apsona ShopAdmin. Get your free account from apsona.com.

• Simultaneously import categories and products from a single CSV data file (automatically creating the category hierarchy).
• Update as well as import product records from the same CSV data file.
• “Undo” an import:  Automatically create a filter that records the ids of the newly-imported records, so that you can quickly get to just those records, and undo import via Tools – Delete all.
• Optionally check, when importing products, that all the Model values are distinct and do not occur. This feature is optional because some users specifically want to allow multiple model values.
• Better handling of data validation errors in the database. This feature is optional because some users specifically want to allow multiple model values.

Current users need not do anything, these fixes will take effect automatically the next time they reload the Apsona ShopAdmin window. We hope you find the new enhancements useful and welcome all feedback.

Meanwhile, at Apsona we were just getting started. The need for an  import and update tool was very evident. We wanted to provide a tool with our usual trademark – simplicity with a low or no learning curve. Thus in April 2010, Apsona ShopAdmin for Zen Cart and osCommerce was born. The points belows summarises Apsona ShopAdmin.

• ShopAdmin add-on is distributed in a zip file containing everything you need to install into your shopping cart. To install this add-on, simply unzip the attached zip file’s contents into the admin folder for your Zen Cart or osCommerce application.

• It interacts directly with your shopping cart database.

• From within ShopAdmin you can directly import , export and update your products – categories and attributes, customers, and order information.
• You can view the ShopAdmin window and your cart admin window at the same time. Thus changes made in one window are reflected immediately in the other window.
• It is  a thin layer of PHP code that works within your shopping cart application.
• Does not require copying or downloading your data to any external database or storage service
• No coding or SQL knowledge needed. All you need is a browser.

The result  -  a simple, easy-to-use interface that manages your data with minimum fuss.

As our customer base grows everyday so does our enthusiasm and commitment to the product. We are trying to accomodate customer requests to the best we can. There sure is never a dull moment for the Apsona team

On a final note to this blog, here is what one of our happy customers said on a forum:

http://www.zen-cart.com/forum/showthread.php?t=153990

” Got to say, only just come accross this addon, and its absolutely fantastic, the kind of module/addon that Zen Users im sure have been crying out for.

I just cant get over how easy it is to create your own filters, like for example listing customers from certain countries, creating custom reports, its just amazed me so far, and seems too good to be true. Its the kind of big change I would expect in a Version 2 Zen Cart too be honest.

Amazing work, well done :clap:”

Apsona ShopAdmin is the answer to these pain points. For starters, it allows  the unique capability of importing  product attributes. Importing attributes is done with no SQL and custom coding -  all that is needed is the data in a CSV (comma-separated values) file.  Similarly, updating product attributes can be done  as easily as importing data into Zen Cart and osCommerce in the same fashion. Create a filter of products attributes to be updated and using the update wizard(which is also the import wizard) update product attributes in seconds without any coding.

Run cross reports filters with Products, product attributes, manufacturers and ordered products with just a few clicks and see data instantly.

Apsona now offers Apsona ShopAdmin for Zen Cart and osCommerce for FREE.  Please feel free to use the product to suit your needs. We at Apsona will continue to support and enhance the product for a long time to come.

Do sign up for Apsona ShopAdmin and reap the rich benefits the application has to offer.

Manage data from your osCommerce  application seamlessly with Apsona ShopAdmin.  All of this is possible within your browser, with no need for custom development or coding. Import, update and export products and product attributes, customers and orders with just a few clicks.

Please visit http://apsona.com and sign up for  a free account. We welcome your feedback and comments.

With ShopAdmin,  Zen Cart users can now manage their day to day data seamlessly. All of this is possible within the browser, with no need for custom development  or coding. Updating product values for example, is a frequent basic task for all shopping cart users.  ShopAdmin’s mass update feature allows the user to change prices as and when necessary with just a few clicks. This is just one of the many features  of ShopAdmin.

When data management is taken care of, a user can  turn his valuable time to analyze  his data and focus on improving his business. ShopAdmin comes with a powerful in built reporting feature where an owner can identify his top selling products, power customers and so on with just a few clicks. Visualize data with charts and matrices and get a real feel of how the business is faring.

Zen Cart Users – Do try Apsona ShopAdmin, you will not be disappointed.