How to Create Online Store from Google Sheets | Make an E-Commerce Website for Free | Store.Link

Summary

The video introduces store.link, a Google Workspace add-on that converts a Google Sheet into an online store. It walks through features like customizing the store's design, adding product details and images, configuring product variants and filters, integrating payment gateways, translating content, enabling SEO, viewing orders, and collaborating with others. The tool offers a way for anyone to easily create an e-commerce store from a spreadsheet without coding, with real-time syncing between sheet changes and the live store.

Takeaways

• 😊 store.link helps convert Google Sheets into online stores
• 👍 It has tons of features like custom domains, payment integrations, translations, etc
• 💡 The add-on works with Google Workspace accounts
• 📑 It creates separate sheets for products and orders that update in real-time
• 🖼️ You can bulk upload product images easily
• 🔀 Adding variants allows you to group products, like different sizes
• 💳 Integrate payments via PayPal, Stripe, etc. to accept online payments
• 🌐 Translate your online store into any language
• 📈 Optimize for SEO by adding meta titles, descriptions and more
• 👥 Share access with your team to collaboratively manage the online store

Q & A

What is the name of the product Bobby suggests to help Annie build her online store?

The product Bobby suggests is called store.link. It converts a Google sheet into an online store.

What kind of add-on is store.link?

Store.link works as a Google Workspace add-on, so you need to install it using your Google account.

What are some key steps in setting up a store with store.link?

Some key steps are: choosing a store template, naming your store, selecting a currency, deciding where to receive orders, publishing your store, uploading product images, adding product variants, and integrating payment options.

How does store.link enable adding product variants?

You can add product variants by creating multiple rows for the same product in the products sheet, with a different value in the variant column, such as color or size. The store will then group the products.

What payment methods can be integrated with store.link?

Store.link allows integrating payments via PayPal, Stripe, cash on delivery. Customers can pay directly via linked PayPal or Stripe.

How can you customize the design of a store.link store?

In the Store Settings, the Design section allows customizing elements like header, banner, product cards, and more. You can upload logos, images, change text, colors, etc.

Can a store.link store be translated to other languages?

Yes, in the Translation settings you can select the language to translate text components to. Product info in the sheets would also need translation.

What analytics can be integrated with a store.link store?

You can add tracking codes for Google Analytics, Facebook Pixel etc in the Store Settings > Integrations section.

How can you collaborate with others on a store.link store?

Since it uses Google Sheets, you can collaborate by sharing the sheet with others. They can then also update products, orders etc.

How can you add more product images in a store.link store?

Just add new columns like "image3" in the products sheet and upload images using the Upload Image extension feature.

Outlines

00:00

😊 Introduction to store.link and Creating an Online Store

This paragraph introduces store.link, a Google Workspace add-on that converts a Google Sheet into an online store. It shows how Annie wants to build an online store and her friend Bobby suggests using store.link. We install the add-on, create a sheet, choose a template, currency and order receipt method to publish a basic store.

05:01

😃 Adding Products and Images to the Online Store

This paragraph shows how to add products like MacBook Air to the Google Sheet, including details like price, description, images etc. Uploading images as thumbnails and additional images using the add-on is also covered. We view the updated store with the added product.

10:04

😉 Understanding Product Variants in store.link

This paragraph explains product variants - where the same product is available in multiple options like colors and sizes. It shows how to configure variants by adding additional rows and mentioning the variant column like 'color' in settings. Two examples are shown - one with iPhone 13 color variants and one with size variants for jeans.

15:04

👍🏻 Placing Orders and Configuring Payments

This paragraph shows how a sample order flows - adding items to cart, entering customer details in checkout and providing payment info. We see how order details are recorded in the Google Sheet. Enabling payments via PayPal, Stripe and cash on delivery is also covered.

20:06

✅ Other Features like Checkout Fields, Translation etc.

The last paragraph quickly goes through other important store configuration settings like checkout fields, translation, SEO metadata, custom code injection and sharing the store. Examples are provided for some settings. Additional product images can also be added by creating new image columns in the sheet.

Keywords

💡Online store

An online store is a website where customers can directly purchase products over the internet. This video explains how Annie wants to build an online store to sell products listed in her Google sheet. Tools like Store.link are used to easily create online stores from Google sheets.

💡Google Sheets

Google Sheets is an online spreadsheet application that allows collaborative editing. Annie has a Google sheet with a list of products she wants to sell. The video shows how Google sheet data can be used to quickly build online stores using add-ons like Store.link.

💡Add-on

An add-on is an extension that adds more functionality to an existing software application. Store.link is a Google Workspace add-on that gets installed and generates an online store from a Google Sheet.

💡Template

A template in Store.link refers to pre-made store layouts for specific niches like electronics, clothing etc. The video shows Annie selecting the Electronics template to quickly build the foundation of her online store.

💡Variants

Product variants refer to the same product being available in different attributes like colors and sizes. The video demonstrates adding variants for iPhone 13 by entering color variants of blue and black in the Google sheet.

💡Payments

Accepting online payments is an integral part of running an online store. The video explains how Store.link can be integrated with payment platforms like Paypal and Stripe to accept credit card payments.

💡Orders

Customer order information like items purchased, contact details, addresses etc are captured in the Orders sheet generated by Store.link. New orders automatically get populated here after checkout.

💡Checkout process

The checkout process involves the customer providing contact and payment details to complete the purchase. Store.link offers options like Paypal, card payments and collecting cash on delivery.

💡Customization

The video explores extensive customization options in Store.link to tailor the online store's look and feel. This includes changing themes, adding banner images, translating language etc.

💡Collaboration

Since the online store data resides in a Google sheet, the store owner can collaborate with teams by sharing the sheet. New products can be added, stock status updated seamlessly.

Highlights

Store.link converts your Google sheet to a fully fledged online store in seconds

The product works as a Google workspace add-on, so you need to install the add-on

They provide over 120 currencies for you to choose from when setting up your store

You can get order information inside WhatsApp and email notifications

You can add custom form fields like "Is this a gift?" in the checkout page

Store.link enables you to translate your store into any language you want

You can add things like Google Analytics and Facebook Pixel using the custom code injection

You can add more product images by adding new columns in the sheet like Image3, Image4 etc

You can share the store link and QR code to promote your online store

You can create different types of online stores like clothing, real estate listing, grocery etc

Adding product variants is easy by creating separate rows and marking a column like 'size' as the variant

You can change design elements like header, logo, banners, button text etc from the settings

Filter products in the store by attributes like price, color etc mentioned as columns in the sheet

Switching to detailed product pages from single add-to-cart view is configurable

New orders automatically get logged into the Google Sheet with all customer and order details

Transcripts

[Music]

foreign

Annie wants to build an online store she

has a store where she sells a ton of

items and she wants to start selling

them online

but she doesn't know how to build an

online store so she talks with her

friend Bobby hi Bobby hi Annie

all the products I want to sell are

listed on this Google sheet can you

please help me create an online store

okay there is a tool that can create an

online store right out of your Google

Sheets

great I want something that I can manage

easily with Google Sheets I don't want

to hire a web developer

gotcha

here is a demo store

yeah this is exactly what I was looking

for

any changes to your sheet will be

updated on the spot try it now

got it

the product that Bobby suggested to

Annie is called store dot link

it converts your Google sheet to a fully

fledged online store in a matter of

seconds it has a ton of features and

this is the product that we are going to

be exploring today in this video

so without wasting any time let's get

started the product works as a Google

workspace add-on

so you need to install the add-on using

your Google account

in our Channel we have discussed a

couple of other add-on products such as

watchform store locator and even form to

chatbot

so this is one similar item so once it's

installed we will start by creating a

new sheet in a new tab sheet dot new

that actually creates a new spreadsheet

in your Google Drive

let's give it a name Annie's store

under extensions you will find the

add-on sheet to shop

start from a template let's say

Electronics

this will take a bit of time

to create two sheets one is products the

other is orders

once the sheets are ready

you will be asked to give a name of your

store here we will give any the Second

Step choose a store currency they

provide over 120 currencies for you to

choose from and the third step is where

you do you want to receive orders they

this includes WhatsApp as well

publish the store

and it will say the store is ready along

with that it will give you a few quick

tips tips like how to upload product

images

how to add product variance and how to

integrate payments with the store open

the store to see how it looks right now

what you're seeing right now is the

default Electronics template that

store.link provides

let's go back

take a minute to study the content of

this sheet we don't really need to use

this data but we need to understand how

they have created The Columns and in

which format we have to enter the data

in order to create the store we'll

delete the remaining content and just

study the first row

they have the product name

actual price of the product then you can

give discounted price product

description category

color brand tag stock number of items of

the product availability is the item out

of stock thumbnail is the feature it

means and the additional images are

image one image 2 and so on

similarly they have an orders sheet

which we will be seeing when we place an

order

now let's delete the first row and start

by adding Annie's first item that she

wants to sell and that is a MacBook Air

we'll type the price actual price and

the price at which you plan to sell

that's a discounted price I already have

the description of MacBook Air so I'll

just paste it

category for MacBook Air is electronics

I have uh sorry Annie has a silver Aqua

care of Fran Apple of course it's a used

one and there are five pieces

you want to show the item on the store

now coming to thumbnail

in order to upload the product remains

you have to go to extensions sheet to

shop and then there's an option upload

image

this will open up an upload window where

you can drag and drop or just click and

select the item that you want to show as

the feature means wait for the image to

get uploaded

and if you notice it will show you the

cell value shows image of

the uploaded URL which is a Google Drive

URL we'll repeat the same process for

the secondary image

uploading means

again select the image second image for

MacBook

and yes that's how we have the second

image for MacBook now let's just take a

look at the store

it will have one item a used MacBook Air

with the thumbnail that we just added

product name brand color the actual

price is slashed out and it shows the

discounted price so far it looks good

now it's time to add the remaining

products that Annie wants to sell

so I already have the list of items

ready I'm just going to copy paste the

items iPhone 13 with a stock of 10.

and then

baggy low jeans with a stock of 20.

Sony headset with the whooping stock of

495.

I'm not sure where Annie got that many

Sony headsets

leather bag from h m with the stock of

just three now remember I used the

uploaded means to upload the images for

these products thumbnail image one that

you're seeing give the store a Reload to

see how the items look on the store

there were five items and we can see all

the five items

so that's how easy it is to create the

store

now it is time to explore the settings

of the store now this is where we will

see all the features that store.link

provides starting with design header do

you want to show the name of the store

in the header right now it's turned on

it shows Annie next the header logo

the default logo of store.link let's

delete that

and we will here upload a face of any

you can upload your own store logo or

business logo

now click on Save

and see if the change was reflected

yes

the icon the the logo header logo has

changed Banner section is what follows

below the nav bar

this is Annie's business store

you can set a subtitle

collection of items curated by Annie

there is a toggle switch to completely

disable the banner as well if you want

you can also upload your own Banner

image

once you're done you can click on Save

and then go to the store and see if the

changes were reflected

yes

we have a banner with the text that we

have set

moving on to the next thing is the

product card

this is the button text that appears you

know below each item

you you can change the call to action

text as you choose content page

product detail page

now when we look at the home page we see

the add to cart button right there on

the home page which allows for a fast

checkout

when we turn on the product detail page

this changes the workflow click on Save

go to the store and give it a Reload

the add to cart button disappears

instead each product gets a detailed

page of its own with all the details you

can see the images with much more

clarity price title we even see the

product description that we added

there is also a product specification

table which we will discuss soon

the next

setting was filter settings here we have

one filter which is price filters can be

seen on the home page here we have the

price filter

if you want to add additional filters

you will be adding the name of the

column in the drop down menu you select

the color column and click on Save and

then go to the home page again give it a

Reload and you will see that the color

filter has been added and you can filter

items based on color

the next setting that we are going to

discuss is product information

product information was a small table

that we saw inside the product detail

page

here we had one single item which was

brand so you see a single row

we can add more rows by giving

mentioning the column right here in the

drop down menu if we want we can add new

columns inside the sheet which will be

shown in the drop down menu and we can

select them as well here we are going to

click on Save and give this page a

Reload and we see that the new row has

been added which mentions the color of

the product as product information

now variance before we get into it let

me show you an example of what is

variance

in this example the iPhone model has two

variants gray and silver color

so inside the sheet we will be giving

the product with the same name

but the color of the product will be

different in the sheet

when you give this information in the

seat

and mention color as the variant column

in the settings

we will be able to show this product in

the store with the two different options

so let's try to recreate the same right

here here I'm going to make a copy of

the iPhone 13 Row in my seat

I'll paste the information

and then I will change the color from

Blue to Black

I will also change the price information

for the black iPhone 13 set the price to

8.99 as the actual price and the

discounted price will I will set it to

749

now if I were to look at the store give

it a Reload I'll find two variants of

the same iPhone 13. there's a blue color

and a black color and the price also

changes the product specification table

also changes

I'll also show you one more example of

how to add variance by adding a new

column

in this sheet you can see there is a

product baggy low jeans what if backy

load jeans came in three different sizes

so what I'm going to do is First add a

new column name size

and for this entry I'm going to set the

size as small

next I'll add two additional rows

and then I'll copy paste the same data

into the sheets

in variance remember it is very

important that the products have the

same name

and then I'll change the size to medium

and large I'll keep the stock and other

factors as the same perhaps I will

change the cost of the large one to 55

dollars

you can change description and images if

you want

now I'll go to the store

and then I will see if I was able to add

the variance for baggy low jeans

unfortunately we cannot see it this is

because the size column was not

mentioned as a variant column so I got

to go to Store settings

go to content

under variance I have to add the size

column

so now the store knows to group the

products together based on the size

column now we have the size small medium

and large and when we click on large we

can actually see that the price changes

so this is how you add variance of one

single product

under content we have one more settings

which is pages and Link you can add

links to the nav bar and in the links

can be added in three ways We'll add

show you all the three options so we're

going to be adding first the Instagram

link for Annie

and we will set the option for the link

to be opened in a new window

then click on ADD

the next option we will set the link to

be opened inside in the same window and

here we will provide the Pinterest URL

for any

you can add whichever link you want for

your store

and then open this link in the same

window and click on ADD

and finally for the embed in store

option we will add a store locator demo

so there is a product called

locatestore.com which helps you to

create store locator so we have taken

their demo link and here we are setting

the store Route which is to be shown on

our store and click on ADD and then

finally save

let's see how it actually looks on our

store

we have the Three Links the Instagram

link opens in a new tab the Pinterest

link opens inside the same window and

the locate store visit my store option

that opens right inside the store

and we can see the store route that we

have set as well

next in settings we have payments before

we discuss payments let's just see what

Annie's up to

any SBC building a store

so

oh and she's quite happy about it too

let's just get ahead with what we were

doing

we are going to place an order in any

store I ordered an iPhone 13 and we will

also place an order for Sony headset and

when the user clicks on checkout

the customer is going to see the

checkout page as well as checkout form

let the customer be James

James gmail.com next James gives his

phone number he provides the delivery

address wherever he lives home office

wherever he wants the delivery

next James is going to see the order

total for iPhone 13 and Sony headset and

he clicks on checkout

and he gets an order summary with the

order number

and he says the payment method is cash

if you go to the sheet

we will see the order information right

inside Google sheet

under the order sheet the order number

one triple zero one with James details

and the items that he placed order for

are recorded

including the order rotten

and we can also show you that the stock

quantity has decreased iPhone 13 has

nine items left and Sony headset which

was 495 in number is

494. one item has been sold

now if we were to actually enable

payments

cash is a default payment so it's always

on if you want to accept payments

through PayPal or using customers credit

or debit card that is also possible

here we will add your PayPal account

email address so that you can accept

payments to your PayPal account there's

an option to set the button color

if you are familiar with stripe and you

have a stripe merchant account you can

connect stripe with store.link you need

to provide your publishable key and your

secret key right here

this will allow you to accept payments

through card

we'll add that information

and click on Save

now if we place an order for let's say

MacBook Air

and if we see the checkout page we see

there are three options

the customer has the option to choose

card and then make the payment this will

take them to the stripe billing page

similarly if they choose PayPal it will

take them to a PayPal checkout page and

that's how you add payments

in store.link

next checkout settings you can get order

information inside WhatsApp that's what

this is used for

you can get email notifications which

kind of looks like this it will have all

the information about the order

the same information that we saw inside

the orders sheet

and then collect orders in sheet that is

by default turn on

and you can add custom form fields in

your checkout page

here we will add a new question

something like is this a gift item

and we will set the field type as drop

down and add the options yes or no

they can be comma separated and then

click on ADD

we will save the new custom field that

we added and we'll just go to the our

store and see how it looks

by the way you can immediately see that

a new column has been added in the order

sheet by the same custom field

we go to our cart and we give the card a

Reload

we can see the new custom field has been

added successfully you can add other

custom fields for your store as required

next up general settings you can set the

name of the store changing of the

currency is not allowed once the store

is created you can of course contact the

stored dot link team to request the

change in currency you can change the

domain you can even request custom

domain by conducting store.link team

translation settings

store.link also enables you to translate

your store to any language you want here

we have translated to Spanish espanol

and if we give the store a Reload

we can see all the text components of

the store has been translated

this is actually step one you need to

definitely make sure of the product

information that is stored inside the

sheet that is also translated

so if you go over to your sheet

you can see the description part or

maybe the product name itself or other

information they need to be translated

for example this MacBook Air description

this is still in English you will need

to translate that to Spanish

also in the cart page you can see the

checkout Fields they are still in

English

this has to be translated explicitly by

going to store settings

and then you will open checkout

you can edit each of these fields and

then translate them to Spanish or

whichever language you want

so that's how you can completely

translate your online store into the

language of your choice here let's

revert back to English and click on Save

now moving on to SEO this is how you

make your online store better indexed

for search engines like Google and Bing

you can add your meta title

you can add a meta description there's

an option to add the favic cone right

here and also the meta image they have

also recommended the dimensions that you

need to add the images in

once you're done making the changes

click on Save Integrations gives you the

option to inject custom code this means

you will be able to add your Google

analytics code your Facebook pixel here

we are adding a chatbot to the store

chatbot that was made using collect.chat

now if we reload the store here we can

see the chatbot made in collect.chat

appears on the right corner so that's

how you use inject custom code

all right we have gone through the

entire feature set of store.link

obviously since this is a Google sheet

you have the collaboration feature where

you can share this Google sheet with

your team so that they can keep track of

orders they can update products update

the stock quantity and much more

there is one more cool feature about

store.link what if you want to add more

images for your products how do you do

that

you just need to add a new column and

give the title as image 3 with no spaces

and if you want to add further images

that will become image 4 image 5 and

more you just need to use the upload

image to add the product images so if

you want to create a clothing website

that you can do using store.link if you

want to create a listing website to

Showcase your properties and renders

that is also possible

if you want to build a grocery store

this is another demo here you can

actually see the products that have gone

out of stock in the demo and the ones

that are available

under sheet to shop extension when you

click on share store you will see

obviously the option to copy the link

also they provide you a QR code which

you can paste on your actual store

so there you have it

Annie is Happy Bobby is glad he could

help all thanks to star.link