## Overview

The **native catalog** is your product base inside ConversaLabs. It's where you record each item with
name, description, images, price and availability, organize everything into **categories**, and keep
the data that will be used to sync with WhatsApp and to send products during a conversation.

Keeping it well organized is the first step: from it you sync with Meta, send products in the chat,
and charge orders. Even if you also use external platforms, the native catalog is the source of truth
inside the platform.

## Prerequisites

- The **Catalog & Commerce** module enabled for your account and access role.
- Permission to manage the catalog (create/edit products and categories).
- Product images in a common format (for example, JPG or PNG) and reachable.

## Step by step

1. Open the platform's **Catalog** area.
2. Create your **categories** to group products (for example, "Drinks", "Services", "Courses").
3. **Add a product**: enter name, description, category and its first variant.
4. For every variant, set a name, SKU, price and **options** such as `Color: Blue` and `Size: M`.
5. Use the arrow controls to set the display order and select exactly one **default** variant.
6. Attach one or more **images** to the product. You can then assign a specific product image to
   each variant; variants without one use the primary product image.
7. Set availability and inventory when applicable, save, and repeat for the rest of your products.

## Settings & options

- **Product**: name, description, price, category, availability, images and identifiers (such as SKU
  and external link).
- **Categories**: product grouping that makes search and list building easier.
- **Images**: one or more per product; the first is typically used as the highlight.
- **Variants**: each sellable combination has its own name, options, position, price, stock and
  optional image. The default variant is the initial choice in lists and sends.
- **Archiving a variant**: the edit form only discards variants that have not been saved yet. Archive
  a saved variant from the product detail after confirmation; choose another default first. The
  archived row and its order and payment history remain available.
- **Variant image**: can only be selected from the same product gallery. Deleting it safely returns
  that variant to the primary product image.
- **Price**: always in **major units** of the currency (see the tips section).
- **Automatic stock decrement**: when a live sale becomes **paid**, the quantity of each
  inventory-tracked variant is decremented exactly once. The charge and order for the same sale share
  one identity, so duplicate webhooks or both events do not decrement twice. Stock stops at zero;
  variants without inventory tracking are unchanged. Historical imports and adoptions do not change
  the current balance either. Tracked stock uses whole units: a fractional line fails safely without
  rounding or partially decrementing the sale and remains visible in History. Fractional quantities
  on variants without inventory tracking do not affect stock.
- **Reports**: the report view separates a deal item's quoted budget from the **realized** value of paid order
  items. The two metrics are not added together and can differ because of discounts, shipping or orders that
  have not yet settled.

## Use cases

- A restaurant or snack-bar menu with categories and photos.
- A services catalog (appointments, plans, packages) with a price per item.
- A list of physical products for a store that sells over WhatsApp.
- A catalog of digital products or courses to send directly to the customer.

## Tips, limits & best practices

- **Price in major units**: type `4.97` to mean **R$4.97**. The platform does **not** divide by 100 —
  the value you record is the value displayed and charged.
- An **order total** is the sum of `price × quantity` for each item — also without dividing by 100.
- Use sharp, publicly reachable images: the WhatsApp sync needs to be able to download them. Images
  hosted at addresses that go offline won't be imported.
- Keep names and descriptions clear — they appear to the customer when you send the product.
- In the report, read **Budget** as the proposal recorded on the deal and **Realized** as paid order items. An
  item without a paid order is not included in realized revenue.

## Troubleshooting

- **Price shows wrong (e.g. R$0.05 instead of R$4.97)**: confirm you typed the value in major units;
  don't multiply or divide by 100.
- **Image doesn't show**: check that the file is valid and the image address is reachable.
- **A variant cannot be archived or deleted**: choose another active variant as the default first.
- **The wrong image is shown for a variant**: edit the product and select one of its gallery images
  for that variant, or choose the primary-image fallback.
- **Product won't disappear from lists**: mark it unavailable instead of keeping it visible when it's
  not for sale.
- **A paid sale did not decrement stock**: confirm that the sale line points to a variant with
  inventory tracking enabled. Records that were only imported or adopted as history remain available
  for review and intentionally do not rewrite the current balance.
- **The decrement is shown as failed after the automatic retries**: an administrator should open
  **Catalog → Import & Sync → History**, locate the **Automatic stock decrement** run, open its detail,
  and click **Retry stock decrement**. The run identifies the charge or order and shows only a
  sanitized technical reference, without gateway credentials or payload. Retrying is safe: the sale's
  unique receipt prevents a second decrement if the previous attempt completed ambiguously. If the run
  is Pending or Processing, wait for the worker instead of clicking again. If the reason reports a
  fractional quantity, correct the source line to whole units — or disable tracking only when the
  variant is legitimately fractional — before retrying; the platform never rounds that quantity.

## See also

- [Catalog & Commerce overview](/hc/ajuda/articles/catalog-commerce-overview-en)
- [Sync and WhatsApp Business Catalog](/hc/ajuda/articles/catalog-commerce-sync-whatsapp-business-catalog-en)
- [Send a product and receive orders in the conversation](/hc/ajuda/articles/catalog-commerce-enviar-produto-pedido-na-conversa-en)