How to Use Bulk Actions on the Product Page for Effortless Ecommerce Management

Photo by Daniil Komov on Unsplash

Quick overview

Managing a growing product catalog can quickly consume time and attention. We found that moving away from manual, one-by-one edits to bulk actions transformed how we run promotions, manage inventory, and keep our storefront organized. Bulk actions let us apply the same change to many products at once, reduce errors, and free up hours for strategy and customer service.

Why bulk actions matter for small businesses

Running inventory, promotions, and product updates is a constant task. Bulk actions matter because they:

• Save time — Reduce repetitive edits across dozens or hundreds of items.
• Reduce errors — Apply consistent settings and pricing across similar products.
• Improve agility — Launch seasonal promotions or remove discontinued items quickly.
• Centralize control — Manage tracking, stock behavior, and storefront visibility from one place.

Where we access bulk actions

In our business software, bulk actions live on the product management page. The typical navigation looks like this:

• Open your account and go to the left-hand menu.
• Select the Payments or Commerce section, then choose Products.
• From the product list, select the items you want to update.
• Use the bulk actions menu to apply a change across the selected products.

Core bulk actions and when to use them

Here are the most useful bulk actions we rely on, with practical scenarios for each.

Include or exclude products from the online store

Use this to control which products are visible to customers. This is ideal when:

• Launching a soft release and you want only a subset live.
• Removing seasonal items without deleting them from inventory.
• Temporarily hiding items while images or descriptions are updated.

Change prices across multiple items

Pricing changes are common during promotions. Bulk price edits can be done in two main ways:

• Fixed amount — Add or subtract a set dollar value from selected items.
• Percentage — Increase or reduce price by a percent for sales or markups.

Example: For a seasonal sale we reduced the price of our three T-shirt styles by 25 percent using a single bulk action. The process required selecting the products, choosing price change, selecting percentage reduction, entering 25, and confirming. Prices updated immediately across the catalog view.

Update comparison or display price

This field helps show customers the original price next to the sale price for perceived value. You can:

• Set a compare-at price for a group of similar products.
• Standardize how discounts appear across a category.

Create and manage collections

Collections group related items to simplify browsing and promotions. Bulk actions let us add many products to a collection in one step. The workflow we use:

1. Create the collection with a name and optional image.
2. Select the products for that collection.
3. Choose the bulk action "Add to collection" and confirm.

This works well when grouping by season, product type, or campaign.

Bulk delete

When clearing out discontinued or duplicate products, bulk delete removes them quickly. We recommend using this only after exporting backup data or confirming inventory records to avoid accidental loss.

Bulk edit in a spreadsheet-style view

For broad catalog changes, the bulk edit view is a powerful way to:

• Edit descriptions and prices quickly.
• Upload or replace media assets across multiple products.
• Change stock counts and tracking settings in one table.
• Enable or disable products for the storefront with checkboxes.

You can manage visible columns by selecting which fields to display. For example, add dimensions or weight columns under Shipping and Delivery to update shipping settings for all selected items without opening each product individually.

Step-by-step example: Running a 25 percent seasonal sale

Running promotions used to mean editing each product page. Now we take four steps:

1. Select the products you want to discount (for us, three T-shirt styles).
2. Open the bulk actions menu and select Price Change.
3. Choose Percentage Reduce and enter 25.
4. Confirm the action. Prices update automatically.

The whole process takes under a minute and the sale appears instantly in our catalog and storefront.

Practical workflows we use every week

Here are workflows that replaced time-consuming manual tasks for our business.

• New season prep — Create a seasonal collection, select new items, and add them in bulk before the launch date.
• Flash sale — Select items, apply a percentage price reduction, run the sale, then restore prices by repeating the process with the inverse percentage or using saved backups.
• Inventory audit — Use the bulk edit table to update stock counts after a physical count.
• Store tidy-up — Hide out-of-stock or outdated products from the storefront without deleting them.

Best practices to avoid mistakes

Bulk actions are powerful, so we follow simple rules to reduce risk.

• Always preview selections — Confirm you selected the right products before applying changes.
• Work in small batches — When testing a new type of change, apply it to a few items first.
• Keep a backup — Export your product list or keep a record of previous prices and descriptions.
• Use clear collection names — Naming conventions prevent accidentally grouping unrelated products.
• Document steps — Create simple internal notes for repeatable promotions so teammates can follow the same process.

How bulk actions changed our day-to-day operations

Shifting to bulk updates reduced our operational friction. Specific benefits we noticed:

• Less time on maintenance — Weekly catalog maintenance that used to take hours now takes an hour or less.
• Faster promotions — We can launch and rollback sales within minutes.
• Smoother onboarding — New team members learn the product workflow faster because changes are predictable and centralized.

Common questions we had, answered

Can I apply a discount as a percentage to many items at once?

Yes. Choose the products, open bulk actions, select Price Change, then choose Percentage Reduce and enter the percent. Confirm to apply the change immediately.

How do collections work and why should I use them?

Collections group related items for customers and marketing. Create a collection, then add items in bulk. It simplifies seasonal campaigns, curated storefronts, and category pages.

Can I customize which columns appear in the bulk edit view?

Yes. Use the Manage Fields option to add or remove columns like price, compare-at price, weight, dimensions, and stock. This lets you tailor the view to the task at hand.

What happens if I accidentally delete products in bulk?

Treat bulk delete with caution. Before deleting, export or back up your product data. If deletion is supported by a trash or restore feature, use it. Otherwise, re-create products from backups or saved records.

Can bulk actions change shipping settings like weight and dimensions?

Yes. Add shipping-related columns to the bulk edit view and update weight and dimensions in one pass for selected products.

Simple pricing and offerings approach that helped our decision

When evaluating solutions to manage bulk actions we looked for straightforward pricing and predictable value. The factors that convinced us were:

• Clear subscription model — A simple monthly plan without hidden fees made budgeting easy.
• All core commerce features included — Bulk editing, collections, and inventory management were part of the package rather than add-ons.
• Accessible support — Helpful documentation and a support contact reduced the time we spent troubleshooting.
• No surprise charges — Predictable billing meant we could scale without worrying about unexpected costs.

We recommend evaluating similar criteria when choosing software: transparency, included features, and reliable support.

Short testimonial from our experience

As a small retailer, we used to spend hours updating prices and hiding seasonal items. Using bulk actions simplified those tasks, reduced mistakes, and freed the team to focus on customer experience. The change was practical and immediate.

Next steps to get started

If managing a growing catalog is taking time away from selling, try these steps this week:

1. Identify one repetitive task you do weekly, such as updating stock or applying a discount.
2. Use the bulk selection and apply the corresponding bulk action in the product page.
3. Work in small batches the first few times to build confidence.
4. Document your process so team members can repeat it consistently.

These small changes compound quickly. Within days you will notice fewer manual errors and more time for growth-focused work.

Closing thoughts

Bulk actions are one of those practical features that change how a business operates. They reduce repetitive work, prevent inconsistent customer experiences, and make promotions and inventory changes fast and repeatable. We found value immediately and now use bulk updates for everything from seasonal sales to routine inventory adjustments.

Try setting up a collection and applying a simple price change this week. It is a low-risk way to evaluate how much time and stress you can save.