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Alva Digital Downloads

Mapping Files to Products

Step-by-step guide to linking your digital files and packs to Shopify products for automatic delivery.

Before You Begin

Section titled “Before You Begin”

Ensure you have:

  • ✅ Files uploaded to Alva Digital Downloads
  • ✅ Shopify product created (or existing product to map)
  • ✅ Product published or ready to publish

Method 1: Map Files from Products Page

Section titled “Method 1: Map Files from Products Page”

Step 1: Navigate to Products

Section titled “Step 1: Navigate to Products”
  1. Open Alva Digital Downloads app
  2. Click Products in the navigation menu
  3. Browse or search for your product

Step 2: Select Product to Map

Section titled “Step 2: Select Product to Map”

Find your product in the list and click either:

  • Product title (opens product details)
  • Map Files button (direct to mapping)

Step 3: Open File Selector

Section titled “Step 3: Open File Selector”

On the product mapping page:

  1. Click Add Files button
  1. File selector modal opens

Step 4: Select Files

Section titled “Step 4: Select Files”

Choose files to include:

Option A: Select Individual Files

  1. Check boxes next to each file you want
  2. Can select multiple files

Option B: Import from Pack

  1. Click Packs tab
  2. Select entire pack
  3. Or choose specific files from pack

Option C: Search and Filter

  1. Use search bar to find files by name
  2. Filter by category or file type
  3. Select from filtered results

Step 5: Add Selected Files

Section titled “Step 5: Add Selected Files”
  1. Review your selection (count shows at bottom)
  2. Click Add Selected Files button
  1. Files appear in the product mapping

Step 6: Configure Settings

Section titled “Step 6: Configure Settings”

Set download options:

Download Type

Section titled “Download Type”
  • ZIP (default): All files bundled in one archive
  • Individual Files: Each file downloadable separately

ZIP Title (if ZIP selected)

Section titled “ZIP Title (if ZIP selected)”
  • Custom filename for the ZIP download
  • Defaults to product title
  • Example: marketing-bundle-2024.zip

Step 7: Save Mapping

Section titled “Step 7: Save Mapping”
  1. Review all settings
  2. Click Save button
  3. Mapping is created

Method 2: Map Entire Pack to Product

Section titled “Method 2: Map Entire Pack to Product”

Quick Pack Mapping

Section titled “Quick Pack Mapping”

If you’ve already created a pack:

  1. Go to Products → Select product
  2. Click Add Pack
  1. Select pack from dropdown or modal
  2. Click Add Pack
  3. All pack files are mapped

Benefits:

  • ✅ Faster than selecting individual files
  • ✅ Automatically updates if pack changes (optional setting)
  • ✅ Maintains organized file groups

Method 3: Create Product from App

Section titled “Method 3: Create Product from App”

Create and Map Simultaneously

Section titled “Create and Map Simultaneously”

Create a new Shopify product directly from Alva:

  1. Click Products → Create New Product
  1. Fill in product details:
    • Title: Product name
    • Price: Product price
    • Description: Product description
    • Product Type: Category (e.g., “Digital Products”)
  1. In the same modal, Add Files section appears
  2. Select files or packs
  3. Click Create Product and Save Mapping
  1. Product is created in Shopify AND files are mapped

Benefits:

  • ✅ One-step process
  • ✅ Product and mapping created together
  • ✅ No need to switch between Shopify and Alva

Mapping Product Variants

Section titled “Mapping Product Variants”

What Are Product Variants?

Section titled “What Are Product Variants?”

Variants are different versions of the same product:

  • Sizes (Small, Medium, Large)
  • Colors (Red, Blue, Green)
  • Formats (PDF, EPUB, MOBI)
  • Editions (Basic, Pro, Premium)

Default vs. Variant-Specific Mapping

Section titled “Default vs. Variant-Specific Mapping”

Default Mapping

Section titled “Default Mapping”

Applies to ALL variants unless overridden

Example:

Product: "eBook Bundle"
Default Mapping: Files A, B, C
→ All variants receive files A, B, C

Variant-Specific Mapping

Section titled “Variant-Specific Mapping”

Each variant gets different files

Example:

Product: "Printable Planner"
  Variant: US Letter → planner-us.pdf
  Variant: A4 → planner-a4.pdf
  Variant: A5 → planner-a5.pdf

How to Map Variants

Section titled “How to Map Variants”
  1. Open product mapping page
  2. Look for Variants section
  3. Toggle Variant-Specific Mapping
  1. Each variant gets its own file selector
  1. Click Add Files for each variant
  2. Select appropriate files per variant
  3. Save

Default + Variant Pattern

Section titled “Default + Variant Pattern”

Combine default and variant-specific:

Example:

Default Mapping: Instructions.pdf (all variants get this)
Variant Mappings:
  - Small → template-small.psd
  - Medium → template-medium.psd
  - Large → template-large.psd

Result: Each variant gets instructions + size-specific template

Editing Existing Mappings

Section titled “Editing Existing Mappings”

Modify Files

Section titled “Modify Files”
  1. Navigate to Products → Select product
  2. Existing files are displayed
  3. To add more files:
    • Click Add Files
    • Select additional files
    • Click Add Selected
  1. To remove files:
    • Click X or trash icon next to file
    • Confirm removal
  1. Save changes

Reorder Files

Section titled “Reorder Files”

Files appear in ZIP in the order shown:

  1. Hover over file
  2. Click and hold drag handle (⋮⋮)
  3. Drag file up or down
  4. Release to set position
  5. Save

Best Practice: Put important files first (instructions, main content, then extras)

Mapping Multiple Products (Bulk)

Section titled “Mapping Multiple Products (Bulk)”

Bulk Mapping Workflow

Section titled “Bulk Mapping Workflow”

Map the same files to multiple products:

  1. Go to Products → Bulk Mapping
  1. Select multiple products (checkboxes)
  1. Click Bulk Actions → Map Files
  2. Select files or pack to map to all selected products
  3. Configure settings (apply to all)
  4. Click Apply to Selected Products

Use Cases:

  • Same bonus files for multiple products
  • Similar products with same core files
  • Product line with consistent deliverables

See: Bulk Product Mapping for full details

Testing Your Mapping

Section titled “Testing Your Mapping”

Why Test?

Section titled “Why Test?”

Always test mappings before going live:

  • ✅ Verify files download correctly
  • ✅ Check ZIP contains all files
  • ✅ Ensure file order is correct
  • ✅ Confirm customer experience

Testing Methods

Section titled “Testing Methods”

Method 1: Test Order in Shopify

Section titled “Method 1: Test Order in Shopify”
  1. Go to Shopify Admin → Orders
  2. Click Create Order
  3. Add your mapped product
  4. Select test customer (use your email)
  5. Mark order as Paid
  6. Click Create Order
  1. Check email for download link (if emails enabled)
  2. Or check Thank You page
  3. Download and verify files

Method 2: Preview from App

Section titled “Method 2: Preview from App”
  1. Open product mapping page
  2. Click Preview Download button (if available)
  1. Download generates as if customer purchased
  2. Test ZIP extraction and files
Section titled “Method 3: View Download Link”
  1. After creating test order
  2. Go to Orders in Alva app
  3. Find your test order
  4. Click to view details
  5. Copy download link
  6. Open in browser to test

Mapping Checklist

Section titled “Mapping Checklist”

Use this checklist for each product mapping:

Pre-Mapping:

  • Files uploaded and ready
  • Product created in Shopify
  • Product details complete (title, price, description)

During Mapping:

  • Correct files selected
  • Files in logical order
  • ZIP title set (if using ZIP)
  • Download type chosen
  • Variant mappings configured (if applicable)

Post-Mapping:

  • Mapping saved successfully
  • Test order created
  • Download link works
  • All files present in download
  • ZIP extracts correctly
  • File names clear and appropriate

Common Mapping Patterns

Section titled “Common Mapping Patterns”

Pattern 1: Single eBook

Section titled “Pattern 1: Single eBook”

Setup:

  • One PDF file
  • Simple product

Mapping:

Product: "Marketing Guide eBook"
Files: marketing-guide.pdf
Download Type: Individual File

Pattern 2: Template with Multiple Formats

Section titled “Pattern 2: Template with Multiple Formats”

Setup:

  • Same template in different formats
  • Instructions included

Mapping:

Product: "Resume Template"
Files:
  - resume-template.docx
  - resume-template.pdf
  - instructions.pdf
Download Type: ZIP
ZIP Title: resume-template-bundle

Pattern 3: Course Module

Section titled “Pattern 3: Course Module”

Setup:

  • Video lessons + workbook + resources
  • Using Pack for organization

Mapping:

Product: "Course Module 1"
Pack: "Module 1 Pack" (contains 5 videos, 1 PDF, 1 ZIP)
Download Type: ZIP

Pattern 4: Tiered Offering

Section titled “Pattern 4: Tiered Offering”

Setup:

  • Basic, Pro, Premium variants
  • Each variant gets different files

Mapping:

Product: "Template Bundle"
  Variant: Basic
    Files: Templates 1-10


  Variant: Pro
    Files: Templates 1-20, Bonus Pack


  Variant: Premium
    Files: Templates 1-30, Bonus Pack, Exclusive Guide

Pattern 5: Language Versions

Section titled “Pattern 5: Language Versions”

Setup:

  • Same content, different languages
  • Variants for each language

Mapping:

Product: "User Manual"
  Variant: English
    File: manual-en.pdf


  Variant: Spanish
    File: manual-es.pdf


  Variant: French
    File: manual-fr.pdf

Mapping Errors and Warnings

Section titled “Mapping Errors and Warnings”

Common Errors

Section titled “Common Errors”

”No files selected”

Section titled “”No files selected””

Cause: Tried to save mapping without adding files

Solution: Add at least one file or pack before saving

”Product already mapped”

Section titled “”Product already mapped””

Cause: Product has existing mapping

Solution: Edit existing mapping instead of creating new one

”File not found”

Section titled “”File not found””

Cause: Mapped file was deleted from library

Solution:

  • Remove broken file from mapping
  • Upload file again or replace with different file

”Variant mapping incomplete”

Section titled “”Variant mapping incomplete””

Cause: Enabled variant-specific mapping but didn’t map all variants

Solution: Either:

  • Map all variants, OR
  • Disable variant-specific mapping and use default

Warnings

Section titled “Warnings”

”Large ZIP size”

Section titled “”Large ZIP size””

Recommendation: Consider splitting into smaller packs or products

”Many files in mapping”

Section titled “”Many files in mapping””

Cause: Product mapped to 100+ files

Recommendation: Test download to ensure ZIP generation works

Mapping Best Practices

Section titled “Mapping Best Practices”

1. Logical File Organization

Section titled “1. Logical File Organization”

Order files logically in mapping:

Good Order:
1. README.txt
2. Main-Content.pdf
3. Bonus-1.pdf
4. Bonus-2.pdf
5. License.txt


Bad Order:
1. Bonus-2.pdf
2. License.txt
3. Main-Content.pdf
4. README.txt
5. Bonus-1.pdf

2. Clear ZIP Titles

Section titled “2. Clear ZIP Titles”

Use descriptive, lowercase, hyphenated names:

Good:

  • social-media-templates-2024
  • video-course-module-1
  • business-card-bundle

Bad:

  • Download
  • Files
  • PRODUCT 123 FINAL

3. Test Before Launch

Section titled “3. Test Before Launch”

Never publish a product without testing the download:

  1. Create test order
  2. Download as customer
  3. Extract ZIP
  4. Verify all files present and correct

4. Document Mappings

Section titled “4. Document Mappings”

Keep internal notes about complex mappings:

  • Which products use which files
  • Variant configurations
  • Update schedule

5. Regular Audits

Section titled “5. Regular Audits”

Monthly review:

  • Check for broken mappings
  • Update outdated files
  • Remove discontinued product mappings
  • Verify new products are mapped

Next Steps

Section titled “Next Steps”