In this article we will walk you through everything Item Manager. Click here to watch our instructional video.
Upon login to the platform, you will be able to access a dashboard view specific to your item catalog and outstanding tasks.
Your dashboard will give you quick access to a few different activities:
Access your full published catalog to Dot.
Access to your loaded Digital Assets
Check the status of any submitted requests.
Have visibility and access to any errors with either the publication or the request.
Answer any outstanding questions from Dot.
Ask questions to Dot.
View any specific status updates from your Dot Master Data Analyst assigned to your request.
Drag and drop images or files to load to your items.
Review, ask questions, and provide updates on customer submitted requests to Dot Foods
My Widgets:
Shortcuts – quick links to access your full published catalog to Dot or your loaded Digital Assets
Supplier Item – click here to navigate to your full published catalog to Dot. You will have visibility to:
Errors on an item
Core item information.
Any loaded image or document
Digital Assets – click here to view and interact with any images or documents you have loaded for your items.
All Outstanding Requests – click here to view all outstanding requests the Dot team is actively working on for your items. These requests will encompass customer submitted requests, requests submitted within the Item Manager system, and requests submitted via email.
Supplier Action Needed – click here to navigate to any requests requiring action on your part.
More Info Needed – click here to view items that have open questions from Dot – you will be able to view and respond directly to the Analyst working on your request.
Data Errors Present – click here to view items that have errors – you will either need to address within the request or update your GDSN publication if the error is a data error. *Please note, items with errors will not flow to the Master Data team to work on until all errors are addressed.
Dot in Progress – click here to navigate to items that are in progress on the Dot end. You will be able to view any comments from Dot with status updates, the name of the Master Data Analyst working your request, as well as the Margin Analyst who will need pricing information.
In Progress – click here to see a list of items currently being worked by your Master Data Analyst
In Progress (Additional Item) – click here to see a list of items currently being worked by your Master Data Analyst – please note, “additional” would refer to items’ setup with the same GTIN for special business purposes.
Closed – click here to navigate to any completed requests – either requests setup with Dot Item Numbers or requests rejected.
Not Approved – Item requests that have been rejected for a specific reason – either Dot is unable to setup the item, or if your team has decided to no longer pursue an item number.
Completed – Item requests that have been finalized for the data portion, as well as having pricing attached. You will be able to access your new Dot Item Number here.
Outstanding Customer Requests – click here to navigate to outstanding requests that Dot has received from our mutual customers that still require action on your end.
The following two categories within this widget are:
New Request – Dot Foods has an outstanding request from a customer that has not been processed yet. We could be waiting for confirmation if we can set up the item, a compliant publication via GDSN, or other missing information.
In Progress – Dot Foods has an outstanding request from a customer that has not been finalized yet. We could be waiting on a publication error, pricing information, or other critical information.
Import Files Here – Drag and drop files or images in this box to upload and attach to your item – please note, you will need to name the file or document in a specified way to ensure the asset properly links to the item.
Interacting with My Catalog:
Your catalog will give you access to your full published catalog of items to Dot. You will have visibility to all published levels of an item’s hierarchy, any publication errors, Dot Item Number if an item is set up, as well as additional product identifiers. You can interact by sorting, searching, filtering, and more!
Error – this will indicate if an item needs your attention or is error free.
Red – Item has a severe error that needs to be addressed.
Yellow – Item has a soft warning that needs to either be reviewed or addressed.
Green – Item has no severe errors.
Source Primary GTIN – Your published GTIN.
Source GLN – Your company’s Global Location Number you are publishing from.
Manufacturer Number – Your published Manufacturer Number (Alternate Item ID)
Dot Item Number – If your product is already setup at Dot, your Dot Item number will be visible here.
GDSN Product Type – The level of the hierarchy the published GTIN is (ex. CA – case, PK – inner pack, EA – each/unit)
Brand Name – Your published brand
Product Description – Your published description (Product Description)
Creation Date Time – The date your published record was first ingested in Item Manager, often, the first publication date.
Within the catalog you will be able to search, filter, sort, and export to drill down to what you need to see:
Searching
Using the top left corner – you can type in a GTIN, Manufacturer Number, Dot Number, etc. to search for a specific number.
Search by specific attribute
Hover and click on the action button on the right corner of the attribute.
A prompt box will pop up, allowing you to search in different ways.
The search will default to Equals, which will look for an exact match, but Contains can be used for a partial value.
Sorting – click on the column header to sort A-Z or Z-A:
Filtering – use for filtering to a certain value, filtering to blank cells, or filtering to only populated cells.
For example, filtering to case items that do have a Dot Item Number assigned:
Exporting – use for extracting a list of items into an Excel document.
Selecting a grouping of items – use the checkbox in the left corner to select – please note, this will select all on the page, not all results.
To select all results – use the check box in the very top left corner to select all results on all pages.
Once items have been selected, click on export, and export again. Once the report has processed, you will be able to download and access your report!
Requesting an Item to be Setup:
Request one or many of your products to be set up with Dot numbers through Item Manager for a quick turnaround and seamless process! Please ensure the items you wish to set up are published to Dot. You will only be able to see items that are successfully published to Dot’s GLN within your catalog.
Once you have identified the item you wish to setup, simply click into the item and click Y to request a new Dot number and click “Save” in the upper left corner:
Once you have successfully requested an item for setup, you’ll be able to review the status of your request as well as your Dot Foods contacts.
You will be able to proactively communicate information to the Dot Foods Master Data Analyst working on your request:
General comments – comments added to the request will be visible to your MDA within 30 minutes.
Any responses from your MDA will be visible in the request as well!
As the logged in user, you will receive auto-notifications based on the email address you have logged in with. Auto-notifications will outline status updates or actions needed. If you want an additional member of your team included in these notifications, you can add additional email addresses:
By clicking on the ADD button in the bottom left corner, you will be prompted to type additional email addresses. Please ensure you provide an accurate email address free of commas or spaces.
Proprietary information – Indicate if this item restricted to a certain chain, distributor, region, etc. Check Yes for Proprietary Indicator and indicate within the comments section relevant information on proprietary reasoning. This information will be visible to your MDA on request.
A few key steps will need to be completed for a request to successfully flow to Dot Foods to begin processing. Once any required identifiers are made and all errors are resolved, your request will flow to your assigned Master Data Analyst to begin processing in 30 minutes!
Special item identification – is this item restricted to certain states due to a law or regulation? Are there transportation or storage restrictions? Dependent on your product makeup or the published GPC for your product, you may be prompted to select one or more of the indicators below:
Hazmat – Items classified as hazardous materials. Dot Foods requires the following for hazmat items upon setup:
SDS Document – Safety Data Sheet (please see Digital Assets below for questions on how to load)
Once an item is marked as Hazmat, you will see the following warning. This will clear once an SDS document is successfully loaded:
Packaging Type – A descriptor indicating the packaging the product is in – ex. Jug, Carton, Bottle, Tub, etc.
Once an item is marked as Hazmat, you will see the following warning. This will clear once a selection has been made from the drop-down.
Aerosol – items classified as aerosol require the following upon setup:
SDS Document – Safety Data Sheet (please see Digital Assets below for questions on how to load)
Once an item is marked as aerosol, you will see the following warning. This will clear once an SDS Document is successfully loaded:
Special Handling Type Code – two-part code that indicates the type of special handling needed for the item:
Example – under section 14 of your SDS document, there will be an aerosol class.
In this example the class is 2.1. Within the Special Handling Type Code attribute, click the Add/Manage button at the bottom left corner of the box, select “Aerosol Level 2” to correspond with the item class, click the LEFT button to move the selection to applicable, and click APPLY. Once completed, this error will be cleared.
Flammable – items classified as flammable require the following upon setup:
SDS Document - Safety Data Sheet (please see Digital Assets below for questions on how to load)
Once an item is marked as flammable, you will see the following warning. This will clear once an SDS Document is successfully loaded:
PFAS – Or Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, as a group of synthetic chemicals used in consumer products and may be restricted in certain states. Items certified as FREE from PFAS require the following upon setup:
PFAS Compliance Item Indicator – if an item is compliant, please populate YES.
TTR – or Temperature Tracking Recorders are required on some refrigerated product orders to track temperature for food safety and FDA standards. If an item requires TTR please populate the following upon setup.
TTR Item Indicator – if an item requires TTR, please populate as YES:
PSE – or pseudoephedrine, a restricted drug contained in certain medications. Items containing PSE require the following upon setup:
PSE Item Indicator – if an item contains PSE, please populate YES.
Prop 12 – or Proposition 12, also known as the Farm Animal Confinement Initiative restricts sale of items not within compliance in certain states. Items certified as COMPLIANT with Prop 12 require the following upon setup:
Prop 12 Compliance Item Indicator – if an item is compliant, please populate YES.
You will be able to see any errors within the request as well. Please note, an item request will not be submitted to Dot Foods to begin processing until all errors are corrected.
You will be able to navigate your errors quickly by using the arrows in the top left corner:
You will see red text on the attribute with errors to indicate what you need to fix:
Please note there will be two different types of errors possible on request.
The above seven (3. –> a. –> i-vii) Special Item Identification errors (if applicable) would need to be addressed in the Item Manager portal tool.
Any data issues will need to be fixed in GDSN. Please note, once an error is fixed in GDSN, Item Manager will reflect the correction within 30 minutes of Dot receiving the GDSN update within our Data Pool.
You will also be able to request a Secondary or Additional Item for business purposes where an additional item needs to be setup but shares the same GTIN. Some examples may include an item number needed for Canada or Consignment business.
Follow the same process as setting up a traditional item by selecting Yes to request Dot item setup.
You will be prompted with the following warnings asking if you want to set up an Additional Dot Item Number and if so, what reasoning.
Once populated, the request will follow the exact same process as a normal request as outlined above!
Items that are already set up in Dot’s system but discontinued are also visible within Item Manager. These will be indicated by a yellow warning message stating you will need to reach out to your MDA as the item is unavailable.
Interacting with Item Status Widgets:
On your dashboard view, you will be able to see an overview of all of your requests as well as where they currently are in the setup process!
Supplier Action Needed – click here to navigate to any requests requiring action on your part.
The following two categories within this widget are:
More Info Needed – Dot Foods has requested a response for more information. The question asked can be found within the request in this section and responded to.
Data Errors Present – The item request has not been submitted due to either an error within the request.
Dot n Progress – click here to navigate items that are in progress on the Dot end. View any comments from Dot with status updates, the name of the Master Data Analyst working on your request, as well as the Margin Analyst who will need pricing information.
The following two categories within this widget are:
In Progress (Additional Item) – Your Dot Foods Master Data Analyst is currently working on your request for an additional Dot item number sharing the same GTIN as another Dot item. Your MDA will provide any relevant status updates in the comments section.
In Progress – Your Dot Foods Master Data Analyst is currently working on your request and will provide any relevant status updates in the comments section!
Closed – click here to navigate any completed requests – either requests setup with Dot Item Numbers or requests rejected.
The following two categories within this widget are:
Not Approved – The item request has been rejected for whatever reason. Either the item is no longer needed on your end, or Dot Foods has decided to not pursue.
Completed – Your request has been completed, and a Dot Number has been provided!
Outstanding Customer Requests – click here to navigate to outstanding requests that Dot has received from our mutual customers that still require action on your end. You will be able to comment on any outstanding requests as needed. For example, you could ask for more information regarding who is requesting, let us know of any publication delays, or let us know if and why an item is unavailable through Dot.
The following two categories within this widget are:
New Request – Dot Foods has an outstanding request from a customer that has not been processed yet. We could be waiting for confirmation whether we can set up the item, a compliant publication via GDSN, or other missing information.
In Progress – Dot Foods has an outstanding request from a customer that has not been finalized yet. We could be waiting on a publication error, pricing information, or other critical information.
Within the request, the Request Decision Comments will be populated with notes from the MDA working on your request. They will provide details about what is missing or any updates with the request.
You will also be able to make comments to provide updates on the request or ask for further information. The MDA working on the request will be prompted to respond to your comment within 30 minutes.
Once the request has been completed and the item has been set up for the customer or rejected, the request will fall out of your widget!
Auto Email Confirmations:
Once you have submitted an item request through Item Manager, you as well as any additional email contacts added will receive an email notification as an item progresses through the setup process. Please note, there is a 30-minute processing time so any update emails will be sent a maximum of 30 minutes after an update has been made:
In Progress – Once an item request has successfully been received by Dot Foods, you will receive the below confirmation. This indicates the item request is free from errors and is now within your Master Data Analyst’s queue.
Have Data Errors – If an item request has been submitted with errors in the request, you will receive the below confirmation. This will outline the data errors in need of fixing before the request flows to your MDA’s queue.
New Message – If your MDA has requested more information on a request, you will receive the below notification. You will need to respond to the question within your widget in Item Manager.
Rejected – If you, or your MDA have decided to no longer pursue the request, you will receive the below notification outlining the reasoning as to why the request has been rejected.
Completed – Once the item request has been completed and setup with a Dot number, you will receive the below confirmation. You will find the Dot Number provided in the Item Number column.
Unactioned – Each day, you will receive an auto confirmation of any requests with outstanding action needed on your end. Any pending errors or questions from your MDA will be included in the table below.
Interacting with Digital Assets:
You can also upload an image or document using Item Manager! Simply drag and drop a file into the Import Files Here widget on your dashboard, and assuming the file is named correctly, the asset will automatically link to your item.
The image and document loading feature should be used if publishing via GDSN is unable to occur. Please note if you already have or plan to publish an image or document via GDSN, loading the same asset via Item Manager will duplicate the image or document in our system and website.
Documents – Drop spec sheets, certifications, nutritional documents, etc. for display on our dotfoods.com/shop website. Please see our standard naming options below, but please contact us if you have additional document type needs!
10684476049540_Safety_Data_Sheet
10684476049540_Spec
10684476049540_Nutritional
10684476049540_Kosher
Images – Drop product images for display on our dotfoods.com/shop website. Please name images according to GS1 Naming Convention so our system will assign and order properly on our website.
Once you have successfully loaded your document, the status will show “Completed” and you can exit the dialog box via “Clear” or X out of the window.
Need Help?
We’re happy to assist! To request a demo, one on one support, or ask questions about the platform, please contact Item Manager Support at [email protected].