Check structure before product rules
Confirm that the file can be decoded, the delimiter or workbook sheet is understood and one header maps to each required field. A malformed file or wrong header mapping can make thousands of correct products appear invalid.
Separate errors, warnings and safe fixes
An error blocks a valid row or required field. A warning identifies something that deserves review. A safe fix should be deterministic, reversible and visible before export. Examples include normalising a recognised availability spelling or a price syntax where the value and currency are already explicit.
Never invent business facts
A validator should not create a GTIN, brand, MPN, shipping value, condition, availability date or product description. It can identify a missing or malformed field and show the affected product ID, but the merchant remains responsible for the true value.
Review identifiers carefully
- Product IDs should be stable and unique inside the feed.
- GTINs need a valid length and check digit when they are used.
- Brand and MPN combinations depend on the actual product identifiers.
- Variant item groups need consistent relationships.
A file audit is not an account audit
A standalone feed tool cannot see Merchant Center diagnostics, website crawl results, landing-page consistency, checkout, shipping configuration, policy history or account suspension reasons. Passing a file-level audit never guarantees Google approval.
Keep a reviewable correction package
Export the corrected feed together with the issue list and a manifest of applied changes. That makes it possible to distinguish automatic formatting from merchant-supplied facts and to repeat the audit after the source system changes.
Inspect a prepared feed audit
The WoluTools demo uses synthetic products and shows the same issue categories and safe-fix boundary as the real worker.
Open the Merchant feed demo