Overview
When you work with supplier spreadsheets, you typically have 4 columns and those are product type (like UPC/ASIN/WPID/EAN/ISBN), product code, costs of goods sold, and Selling Price. Now, you can also include optional checks like brand restriction lookups and Walmart.com WPIDs for more comprehensive product scanning. This article walks you through the entire process, from uploading your file to mapping the right columns.
Tip: Make sure your spreadsheet headers are descriptive (for example, “UPC,” “Cost,” “Brand,” or “WPID”). This helps the system detect the correct columns automatically.
Start a new import
Go to Alqen.com/upc-scanner and open your app.
Click Upload File to process your existing sheet
Either drag and drop your file into the upload box, or click to browse for your file.
What if I dont have an existing formatted sheet?
After you upload, a preview of your spreadsheet will appear.
Select the header row
In the spreadsheet preview, tell the system which row contains your column headers:
If your header row is the first row, the system selects it automatically.
If the header row is elsewhere, click that row to let the app know where headers begin.
Map your fields
Next, match each column to the right field so the system knows where to find each type of information:
Product ID: If you have like (UPC/ASIN/WPID/EAN/ISBN), select the matching column.
Cost of goods sold: Choose the column that shows your cost data.
Additional fields: For any misaligned columns, open the dropdown and pick the correct header.
Add reference columns (optional)
You can include extra columns for deeper insights, such as:
Brand details: This allows you to add your own brand restriction to checks to flag products that could have compliance issue..
Walmart.com WPIDs: Helps track listings across multiple platforms.
Other references: Supplier names, internal notes, or any other data you find useful.
COMING SOON: Just select any columns you want to include, and the system merges that data into your results. Image: Demonstrate selecting optional columns, like brand or WPID
Process your spreadsheet
Click Process when you’re ready to import.
The system scans each product and retrieves all availiable data.
After processing, review your results to confirm everything mapped correctly and check if any brand restrictions were flagged.
FAQs
What kind of spreadsheet does ALQEN support?
A typical supplier spreadsheet contains information such as a product identifier (like a UPC - and also support EAN/ASIN/WPID/ISBN) , the cost of goods sold, and potentially other supplementary details organized in columns. The layout doesn’t need to be exact. Extra columns in sheets are fine. Headers can be in any row.
What's the first thing I need to do?
Tell the app which row has your column headers. If it’s the first row, it usually finds it automatically. If not, just pick it yourself.
What happens if I pick the wrong header row or mess up the mapping?
No worries. You can go back and fix it anytime before hitting Process. Nothing is final until you confirm.
Why do I need to map fields?
Field mapping tells us what product identifier type you're planning to use, where to find product IDs, and your cost price for the item. We handle the rest. It also helps prevent errors during processing.
What if my spreadsheet format is weird?
No problem. The app can handle different header names, columns out of order, extra rows, even if the header isn’t in row one. You just map the fields to correct it.
Does the app validate the spreadsheet before processing?
Yep. It checks for missing or incorrect mappings and lets you fix them before moving forward.
Can I reuse my setup for similar spreadsheets?
You can! Save your field mappings so you don’t have to start over next time.
What are “reference columns”?
Coming soon. Reference columns are optional additional data columns within your supplier spreadsheet that you can choose to import alongside the essential product ID and cost information. This allows you to bring in supplementary details relevant to your analysis or workflow so on release we will include integrations to many existing repricers and inventory management tools.
Do you offer premium data and who gets it?
If you're already using ALQEN in beta, you get all these upgrades for free. We do provide unique insights like frequently returned items (great for Amazon sellers) and keepa historical data - 30, 60, and 90-day buybox and sales estimates. These insights are available for Amazon and Walmart.
What are community presets?
Community presets are product criteria recommended by other sellers — always from private or paid communities. If you're not sure what criteria to use, you can apply a preset based on what others with similar needs are using.
How do I start the actual processing?
After setting everything up, just click Process. That kicks off the data extraction.
Next steps
Validate your data: Ensure product IDs, costs, and any reference columns are correct.
Review brand restrictions: If you included brand columns, look for flagged items that might need attention.
Explore results: Filter or sort items by cost, brand, WPID, or any other fields you imported.
Tip: Combining brand, greenlight report checks, checking on Amazon.com and Walmart.com, and cost details gives you the full picture when deciding which items to source or list and which brands to focus on.
💡Tip
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