The Akeneo enterprise edition contains a range of advanced features to help brands and retailers deliver great product experiences – versioning and publication is one of these advanced features.

The versioning and publication feature allows you to keep track of previous historical versions of your product information, so you can revert back to any past version as and when you need to. You can also have two versions of the same item – one that is published and a second version that you can edit, for example if you have an upcoming sale.

The audit trail feature of versioning and publication is a particularly useful feature where you can review previous versions and gather an understanding of what works well for delivering the best product experience for your customers.

When to Use the Restore to a Previous Product Version in Akeneo

A common situation where you may want to restore to a previous product version is where you notice there are errors in your product information and you wish you could go back to restore a previous version where the product information was correct.

Using the versioning and publication feature, you can easily restore your product information back to a previous version when the product information was better. You are look back throughout the entire product history and select which version you’d like to revert back to. For example, if you have 10 product versions, you can go to version number 6 which will not take into account any changes done after this version.

It can be quite difficult and cumbersome to work through all the changes that have been made to find the errors to change them back. That’s where the restore feature comes in handy. It allows you to browse through the history of a product to find a version that you see as being the ideal restore point to revert to.

Restoring a version doesn’t delete any information, however, it will generate a new version representing the restored version.

Step by Step Guide to Restore a Previous Version in Akeneo PIM

To restore a previous version:

  1. Go to Products.
  2. Click on the product to restore.
  3. Click on the History menu entry.
  4. Click on the Restore button that is on the line of the version of the product you want to restore.

One thing to remember is that there is no bulk action for the restore feature. Meaning you will have to manually restore versions one product at a time.

How does the Publication Feature Work?

The publication feature lets you manage two different versions of the same product in the PIM. One published version that can be exported and a separate version that is used to prepare for example the next sale or season of products.

A simple example of this is when you are satisfied with your product information and click the ‘Publish’ button. A snapshot of the product information is taken at this point creating a published version.

You can continue to make edits to your product information if you need to change the description for the next season or upcoming sale and it will not affect the published version as two versions will be created. One version will be ‘frozen’ and exported to your eCommerce channel and the other can still be modified.

The publication feature is a really useful tool to have at your disposal.

What are the Advantages of Using the Versioning and Publication Feature?

  • Allows a team member to work on a new version of a product whilst the current version of the product is published. This means the product is always available to the public in some form.
  • The ability to revert a product to a previous state makes it easier and quicker to replace the published version of the product if the published version has some sort of detrimental error.
  • The ability of an administrator to purge a product of entities can help save memory in the application.

Summary

The versioning and publication features are available on the Enterprise and both Flexibility and Serenity Cloud editions of Akeneo PIM but not the Community edition. This feature is very useful for rectifying errors and preparing for future campaigns. If you’d like to learn more about the Akeneo Enterprise features, take a look at our blog “9 Key Features of Akeneo Enterprise Edition”

As Akeneo PIM partners, iWeb can help you consolidate all of your data into one easy to use solution. Better product information means more purchases and fewer returns.

Contact us today for a consultation on how Akeneo PIM can help overhaul your product management.

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