Articles on: What's new?

How To Create Consolidated Listings

Plans: Pro, Starter, Growth, Enterprise latforms: Shopify**Sales channel**: TikTok Shop, SHEIN


Overview


Consolidated Listings in AfterShip Feed is designed to help Shopify merchants optimize how their products appear on TikTok Shop and SHEIN by merging multiple individual Shopify products (SPUs) into a single product listing (PID). This reflects how their products appear on their DTC sites, improving traffic conversion and GMV (Gross Merchandise Value).


Why it matters


DTC merchants often create separate product listings for each variant (e.g., different colors or sizes), which leads to fragmented visibility and inefficient management when syncing to platforms like TikTok or SHEIN. This feature solves that by allowing merchants to group related products into one listing, improving user experience and increasing traffic conversion rates without additional marketing spend.


Key benefits


  • Streamlined product management: Consolidate multiple individual Shopify products (SPUs) into one listing (PID).
  • Automatic updates: Sync product updates (images, variants, inventory) automatically to TikTok and SHEIN without manual intervention.
  • Increased conversion rates: Optimizes the Product Detail Page (PDP), improving visibility and traffic conversion.


This integration is currently in beta, and we are actively refining it. Your feedback is invaluable in enhancing its functionality, so we encourage you to share your insights.



What you’ll learn





Set up steps


Step 1: Create product groups using Shopify collection


Before you can merge products, you’ll need to group them into Shopify Collections. These collections serve as the basis for creating consolidated listings.


  • Using existing collections: If you already have relevant collections in Shopify, you can directly use them.
  • Creating a new collection: If no collection exists, create a new one by going to Shopify Admin > Products > Collections. Consider using Smart collections for easy automation.



Step 2: Create consolidated listings in AfterShip Feed


Once your collections are set, the next step is to use AfterShip Feed to consolidate them into a single product listing.


  1. Select Shopify Collections: Choose the collections you want to merge into a consolidated listing.


  • Ensure that no collection exceeds three options, as TikTok Shop and SHEIN require a maximum of three.



  1. Check the consolidated listing status


  • Active: No duplicate SKUs or missing option values.
  • Draft: Duplicate SKUs or missing option values.
  • Inactive: No active SPUs in the collection.


  1. Editing consolidated listings in AfterShip Feed


When creating or managing a **consolidated listing (i.e., combining multiple products into a single product listing for a sales channel), AfterShip Feed provides flexibility in how titles, descriptions, images, and options are configured. Below are the key configuration points:


  • Title


Default: Uses the Shopify collection title.
Alternative: Can be switched to use the first product title from the collection.


Tip: Use this if the first product name better represents the entire listing.


  • Description


Default: Uses the Shopify collection description.
Alternative: Can be changed to the first product’s description.


Tip: Helpful if product-specific details are more important than the general collection description.


  • Image


Default: Uses the Shopify collection image.


Alternatives:


  • Use the first product's image.
  • Use the main images from all products in the collection.


Tip: Choose the option that best represents the visual variety of the products in the listing.


  1. Option name and values (e.g., size, color)


Case 1: Option values are missing or SKU conflicts exist.


  • Shopify will prompt the merchant to fix:


  • Missing option values (e.g., missing sizes or colors)
  • Duplicate SKUs (same SKU assigned to multiple variants)


  • Merchants can resolve this in two ways:


a. Manual editing


Simple and fast, but does not auto-update if product/SPU/SKU changes are made in the future.



**b. Auto-fill rules **


Merchants can set up smart rules to automatically populate option values:


  1. **Auto-fill using a Shopify metafield **


Choose a relevant metafield (e.g., product.size, custom.color) to populate values. If a product doesn't have a value for 'the option', it will automatically be filled using the Shopify metafield value you selected.


In Shopify, product metafields are custom fields that allow you to store additional information about products that Shopify doesn’t support by default. They are incredibly useful for customizing the storefront, apps, and workflows with specific product data that can be unique to your store's needs. Know more


  1. **Auto-fill using product titles **


Extract values from product titles and split them using a defined delimiter (e.g., comma, space). If a product doesn’t have a value for “the option,” it will be automatically filled using a value extracted from the product title.


Example: The option Color is missing a value.


  • Auto-fill rule: Use the fourth segment of the product title, split by -
  • Product title: AfterShip-test-bag-black
  • Auto-filled value: black


Tip: Auto-fill is ideal for dynamic catalogs that change frequently.


Case 2: All option values are complete, and SKUs are unique.


  • Merchants can save the configuration directly.
  • Then they can:


  • Map the listing to their desired sales channel’s category
  • Publish it to a sales channel (TikTok Shop, SHEIN, or both)
  • Add new options if needed



  1. **Preview: **Before finalizing:


  • Review the consolidated listing in preview mode.
  • Double-check title, images, and variant structure.


Tip: This helps ensure accuracy before publishing to sales channels.



Step 3: Publish new product


After creating the consolidated listings, the final step is to publish them to your desired sales channels.


  1. Map to sales channels:


  • Navigate to the new Product Center to map your consolidated listing to TikTok Shop or SHEIN.



  1. Edit information


  • Make required information edits based on sales channel's recommended guidelines to be able to successfully publish the consolidated listings.


  1. Publish to sales channels:






Only for TikTok Shop


This feature is designed for merchants who are migrating to a consolidated listing structure on TikTok Shop but already have existing products that are in use.


Example: Let’s say a seller has a product already listed and:


  • It's linked to TikTok videos,
  • It’s actively running ads,
  • It’s performing well.


Now, they want to add new variants (e.g., new sizes or colors), but they don’t want to lose the existing listing and its performance data.


  • Merchants can link an existing SPU (the product group identifier) to a new consolidated listing. This keeps the original Product ID (PID) intact.
  • The original listing continues to work with ads, videos, etc., and new variants get added under the same umbrella.



Limitations:


  • Only available for TikTok Shop.
  • Not applicable to external marketplaces or other platforms.


Step 5: Auto-update consolidated listings


Consolidated listings will be automatically updated when SPUs or SKUs are added to or removed from the associated Shopify collection, provided the consolidated listing meets all of the following conditions:


  1. At least one SPU is present in the collection.


  • If no SPUs remain, the consolidated listing will be set to Inactive.


  1. No more than 3 options (e.g., size, color, etc.) are present.


  • If this limit is exceeded, the listing status will be set to Active – Failed to update.


  1. No more than 100 active SPUs in the collection.


  • Exceeding this limit will also set the listing status to Active – Failed to update.



Important considerations

These rules apply to products. Whether listings are automatically updated depends on the specific configuration in the listing system.


  • TikTok products: Auto-update behavior depends on whether it's enabled in the Listing settings.
  • SHEIN products: Listings do not support auto-updating, as SKC details cannot be modified after publication.


Use cases


  1. Bag and luggage store


A merchant sells backpacks in multiple colors (black, blue, red, etc.). Instead of having separate listings for each color, they can consolidate these variants into one listing, providing a unified shopping experience for customers.


  1. Beauty products


A cosmetics brand offers foundations in various shades. Consolidating these products into one listing allows customers to select their preferred shade, improving the ease of product discovery and reducing storefront clutter.


Troubleshooting tips


Issue: Missing option values


If the consolidated listing does not display the correct options (e.g., missing sizes or colors), verify that the Shopify collection contains all necessary option values. You can either manually add them or configure auto-fill rules.


Issue: Listing status not updating


If your consolidated listing status is Inactive, check that there is at least one active SPU in the collection. Otherwise, the listing will be marked inactive.


Issue: Auto-update not triggering


If the auto-update feature is not functioning, confirm that your collection does not exceed the 3 option limit and that no more than 100 active SPUs are present in the collection.


FAQs


1. Can I use the Consolidated Listing feature on other eCommerce platforms besides Shopify?


Currently, this feature is available only for Shopify. We plan to support more platforms in the future.


2. What happens if my collection has more than three options?


To make the collection compatible with TikTok Shop and SHEIN, you will need to reduce the number of options to three or fewer.



To add new variants to an existing product, you can use the Link SPU feature on the Listing details page. This keeps the product PID consistent and ensures it continues to track correctly.


Key takeaways


  • Consolidated Listings allow merchants to combine multiple individual Shopify products (SPUs) variants into a single product listing (PID) on TikTok Shop and SHEIN.
  • The feature improves product visibility and conversion rates by offering customers a streamlined and optimized shopping experience.
  • Merchants must use Shopify collections to group products before creating consolidated listings via AfterShip Feed.
  • This feature is currently only available for Shopify merchants using TikTok Shop or SHEIN, with future plans to expand to more platforms
  • Products must not exceed three options and 100 active SPUs per collection to ensure compatibility with TikTok Shop and SHEIN.


Appendix


  • **Consolidated listings: **Consolidated Listings allows Shopify merchants to combine multiple individual Shopify products (SPUs) variants into a single listing on sales channels like TikTok Shop and SHEIN.
  • **SPU (Stock Keeping Unit): **The unique identifier for a product group in Shopify. SPUs are used to group similar products together, such as variants of a single item (e.g., different colors or sizes of a bag).
  • **SKU (Stock Keeping Unit): **A unique identifier for a specific product variant within an SPU. For example, a red backpack in size medium may have a different SKU than the same backpack in size large.
  • **Shopify Smart Collections: **A type of Shopify collection that automatically updates based on predefined rules (e.g., product tags or categories). This helps automate product grouping for consolidated listings.
  • **SPU linking: **A feature specific to TikTok Shop that allows merchants to link an existing SPU to a new consolidated listing, ensuring that the product's performance data (such as views and ads) is preserved when adding new variants.
  • **Product ID (PID): **A unique identifier for a product on TikTok Shop, used to track product performance, including views, ads, and sales.
  • **Metafields: **Custom fields in Shopify that allow merchants to store additional information about products (e.g., size, color). These are used for populating product options in AfterShip Feed’s consolidated listings, especially when auto-filling option values.
  • **Auto-fill rules: **Rules defined to automatically populate missing option values for consolidated listings. Merchants can use Shopify metafields or product titles to auto-fill these options.
  • **Duplicate SKUs: **A situation where multiple product variants share the same SKU, which can cause issues with managing inventory and updating consolidated listings.


Additional resources



Updated on: 13/06/2025