ONIX Feeds

ONIX (ONline Information eXchange) is the international standard for sharing book metadata. OnixFeed helps you create and manage ONIX feeds for your distribution partners.

Understanding ONIX Feeds

There are two types of feeds in OnixFeed:

• Outbound Feeds - Export your book data as ONIX XML to send to retailers and distributors
• Inbound Feeds - Import ONIX data from external sources

Navigate to Feeds in the sidebar, then choose Outbound or Inbound.

Outbound Feeds

Creating an Outbound Feed

1. Go to Feeds > Outbound
2. Click Create Feed
3. Fill in the settings:

Basic Settings:

Field	Description
Publisher	Which publisher this feed belongs to
Feed Name	A descriptive name (e.g., "Amazon ONIX Feed")
ONIX Version	Usually 3.0 (the current standard)
Default Language	Language code (e.g., eng for English)
Default Currency	Currency code (e.g., ZAR, USD, GBP)
Default Price Type	ONIX price type code
Message Prefix	Optional identifier prefix

Options:

Option	What It Does
Include Covers	Add cover image URLs to the ONIX output
Include Inventory	Add stock/availability information
Auto Validate	Check the output against ONIX standards
Active	Enable or disable the feed

Access Configuration (Optional):

If your recipient needs to fetch the feed automatically, you can configure:

• FTP - Server address, credentials, and directory
• HTTPS - URL and authentication token
• Recipient Details - Name and email for the feed recipient

4. Click Create Feed

Adding Books to a Feed

From the Feed:

1. Go to Feeds > Outbound
2. Click Manage Books on your feed
3. Search for books to add
4. Click Add Book for each one

From the Books List (Bulk):

1. Go to Books
2. Select multiple books using the checkboxes
3. Choose Add to ONIX Feed from the bulk actions
4. Select the target feed
5. Click Add Books

Generating ONIX XML

1. Go to Feeds > Outbound
2. Click Generate on your feed
3. Wait for generation to complete
4. You'll see a confirmation with the filename and book count

Downloading ONIX Files

1. Click View XML on your feed
2. You'll see a list of all generated files with:
   • Filename
   • File size
   • Generation date
3. Click Download to save the XML file
4. Use Delete to remove old files

Managing Feeds

• Edit - Change feed settings
• Delete - Remove the feed permanently
• PDF Catalog - Generate a PDF catalog from the feed's books

Inbound Feeds

Import ONIX data from external sources like distributors or aggregators.

Creating an Import Feed

1. Go to Feeds > Inbound
2. Click Add import feed
3. Configure the source:

Basic Settings:

Field	Description
Name	Descriptive name (e.g., "Distributor X Feed")
Publisher	Which publisher to import books under
Source Type	URL (HTTPS) or FTP
Active	Enable or disable the import

For URL Sources:

Field	Description
Feed URL	Full HTTPS URL to the ONIX file
Authorization	Optional auth header (e.g., Bearer TOKEN)

For FTP Sources:

Field	Description
FTP Host	Server address
Port	Usually 21
Username	FTP login
Password	FTP password
Directory	Path on the server
Filename	Specific file, or leave blank for newest

4. Click Save

Running an Import

1. Go to Feeds > Inbound
2. Click Import now on your feed
3. Wait for the import to complete
4. Review the results showing:
   • Products found
   • Successfully imported
   • Failed imports (if any)

Managing Import Feeds

• Edit - Update source settings or credentials
• Delete - Remove the import configuration
• Import now - Manually trigger an import

Feed Settings Explained

ONIX Version

• ONIX 3.0 - The current international standard (recommended)
• ONIX 2.1 - Older version, still used by some partners

Price Types

Common ONIX price type codes:

Code	Meaning
01	RRP including tax
02	RRP excluding tax
41	Supplier's net price
42	Supplier's net price (tax exempt)

Currency Codes

Use standard ISO currency codes:

Code	Currency
ZAR	South African Rand
USD	US Dollar
GBP	British Pound
EUR	Euro

Tips for Managing ONIX Feeds

1. Create separate feeds for different recipients (Amazon, local distributors, etc.)
2. Use descriptive names so you know which feed is which
3. Check the generated XML occasionally to ensure data quality
4. Keep feeds active only when in use to avoid confusion
5. Set up inbound feeds to keep your catalog updated from suppliers

Troubleshooting

Feed won't generate:

• Check that books have been added to the feed
• Ensure required fields (ISBN, title, publisher) are filled in

Import fails:

• Verify the source URL or FTP credentials
• Check that the ONIX file is valid XML
• Ensure the file is accessible from your server

Missing data in output:

• Review book records for complete information
• Check feed settings (are covers/inventory included?)

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