PRODUCT READINESS
How to find missing SKUs, GTINs and product identifiers in WooCommerce.
Identifiers help systems distinguish one product from another, but inventing data is worse than leaving a field empty.
Use identifiers you genuinely own or receive from the manufacturer.
SKU, GTIN, UPC, EAN, ISBN, MPN and brand fields serve different purposes. Which ones apply depends on the product. A handmade product may not have a manufacturer-issued GTIN. A branded retail product often does.
- SKU: your store’s internal stock identifier.
- GTIN / UPC / EAN: standardized trade identifiers when legitimately assigned.
- MPN: a manufacturer part number when the manufacturer actually uses one.
- Brand: the real brand or manufacturer, not a keyword added for search visibility.
Never manufacture identifiers just to satisfy a checker
If an identifier does not exist for the product, do not fabricate one. Instead, make the rest of the product data strong and accurate: title, description, images, variation details, price, availability, shipping and returns information.
Audit the catalog in batches
On a larger WooCommerce catalog, review missing fields systematically instead of opening products randomly. Start with purchasable products that matter most, confirm the source of each identifier, then rescan after edits.
Find weak product data from one screen.
Store Discovery Audit flags missing or weak product data and keeps the findings separate from crawler-access and schema problems.