Personalization: Custom Text and File Uploads on Products

Personalization lets a customer make a product their own before they add it to the cart: type the name for an engraving, write a message for a card, pick initials for a monogram, or upload a photo or logo for you to work from. You decide which products offer it, what you ask for, how long the answer can be, whether it is required, and whether it costs extra. The customer’s answer travels with the order so you see it exactly as they typed it. If you also sell on Etsy, personalization syncs both ways with Etsy’s personalization questions.

On IndieMade, personalization is built with Options. An option of type Text, Text - Multiple Rows, or File Upload is a personalization field. Options that offer a list of choices (gift wrap, finish) are covered in Product Variations and Options.

Turning on Options

  1. Go to Dashboard → Settings → Store Settings.
  2. Under Variations & Options, check Enable Product Options.
  3. Save.

You will now see an Options menu on your Dashboard and an Options section on every product edit form.

Adding personalization to a product

  1. Edit the product and scroll to Options.
  2. Add a new option and give it a name under Option Name / Label. Customers see this name on the product page, so write it as the question you are asking: Name to engrave, Message for the card, Upload your photo.
  3. Choose the Option Field Type:
    • Text — one short line, for a name or initials.
    • Text - Multiple Rows — a longer box, for a message or instructions.
    • File Upload — the customer attaches a photo, logo, or PDF.
  4. Fill in the settings below, then save the product.

The settings

  • Description — A hint shown under the field, such as Up to 20 characters. We engrave exactly what you type, so check the spelling. Up to 355 characters.
  • Required — On by default. When on, the customer must answer before the product can go in the cart. Turn it off to make the personalization optional.
  • Character limit — The longest answer a customer can type. Leave it blank to use your store default of 255 characters. Etsy allows up to 1024.
  • Additional charge — Charge extra when a customer fills this in, on your site and on Etsy. Leave it blank for no extra charge. An option with a charge is always optional: the customer ticks a box to add it, so Required is switched off for you.

If many products share the same personalization, build it once as a template under Dashboard → Options and add it to each product. To put a template on many products at once, use Set Options in Bulk Editing Products.

What the customer sees

Personalization fields appear on the product page below any variation dropdowns, in the order you set. Each shows its name and your description.

  • Text fields stop accepting characters at the limit. If a longer answer gets through, the customer sees Name to engrave can be at most 20 characters — yours is 24 and must shorten it.
  • Required fields must be filled before Add to Cart works.
  • Fields with an additional charge look the way they do on Etsy: a checkbox with the option name and the charge beside it, for example Add engraving +$5.00. Ticking the box reveals the text box and adds the charge to the price shown. The box grows as the customer types and shows a counter like 12/255. If the box is ticked, the text becomes required — that is what they are paying for.
  • File Upload fields show a drop zone. The customer can upload a PNG, GIF, JPG, WEBP, HEIC, or PDF file up to 10 MB, and sees a thumbnail of what they attached. In the cart, an uploaded photo is shown as the line item’s image so they can see exactly what they ordered.

A personalized product always opens the product page, even if your store setting Add first Variation or Option to cart is on, because the customer has something to type.

Where the answer shows up on the order

  • Dashboard → Orders — Each item lists its personalization as Option name: the customer’s text. Uploaded images show as a thumbnail that opens the full-size file; other files show as a download link.
  • Order receipt email — The customer’s copy lists the personalization under the item, so they can check what they asked for.
  • Invoices and packing slips — Printed documents list each item’s personalization.
  • Production Processes — If you use the production queue, each line shows everything the customer asked for in their own words, and how many files they uploaded.

Syncing with Etsy

If your store is connected to Etsy, your personalization fields become Etsy personalization questions on the listing, and Etsy’s questions come back as Options when you import or update from Etsy. See How to Connect Your IndieMade Site with Etsy.

From IndieMade to Etsy

When you push a product, its options are sent as personalization questions in the order they appear on the product. Etsy has stricter rules than IndieMade, so some options may stay on your own shop only:

  • Etsy takes up to 5 questions per listing, and only one of them can be a File Upload.
  • The option name must start with a letter or number and be at most 45 characters.
  • Your Description is sent as the question’s instructions when it is at most 120 characters, starts with a letter or number, and does not shout three or more ALL-CAPS words in a row. Otherwise the question goes without instructions.
  • The Character limit is sent as Etsy’s maximum, up to 1024.
  • An Additional charge is sent only when the option is optional and the charge is between $0.20 and $500.
  • Etsy has no checkbox question, so Checkboxes options are not sent. A Radio Select or Select List option is sent as a dropdown only when none of its choices has a price adjustment.

When an option cannot go to Etsy, a message tells you which option and why. The option keeps working on your own site.

From Etsy to IndieMade

When you import a listing or update a product from Etsy, each personalization question becomes an option on the product. A text question becomes a Text option with the same character limit, instructions, required setting, and additional charge. A dropdown question becomes a Select List option with the same choices. A photo question becomes a File Upload option.

Tips

  • Say what you need in the Description: how many characters you can fit, whether you copy capitals exactly, what file works best. It saves a round of emails.
  • Set the Character limit to what physically fits on the piece. A 20-character limit on a 20-character bracelet is better than a conversation after the order.
  • Price the personalization with Additional charge rather than a separate product. The customer sees the charge up front, and it syncs to Etsy.
  • Use a template for personalization you offer across your shop, then change it in one place.

Questions? Email support@indiemade.com.