Online sellers are now required to add a product identifier to their listings to e-commerce in the online marketplace. These are usually a brand, Manufacturer Part Number (MPN); It appears in the form of an EAN (European Product Number) or UPC (Universal Product Code). This is a relatively new requirement for online sellers.
The unique identification of your products is important to help your supply chain run smoothly in your e-commerce business.
In this blog, we will examine the difference between a GTIN and a UPC (barcode), what a GTIN consists of, and how to purchase them. Additionally, I will explain how FNSKU data structures are linked to a barcode.
GTIN Introduction: What is a Barcode?
A barcode is the image you'll recognize from most products you see every day. The pattern of light and dark areas is a form of data carrier that allows a machine to read a number that automatically identifies the product.
A barcode is a graphical representation of alpha, numeric, or alphanumeric data represented by a series of bars and spaces. There are different types of barcodes and these styles are called symbology. Each of these has different functions and uses and can be used for postal barcodes, pharmaceutical barcodes, UPC and EAN barcodes, warehouse management, etc. includes.
A barcode usually has five components:
- Quiet Zone
- Starting Character
- Data Characters (with an Optional Control Character)
- Stop Character
- Additional Quiet Zone
The original barcode source, GS1, created the confusion between UPC (Universal Product Codes) and EAN (European Product Numbers, also called International Article Numbers). The UPC-A barcode was the original format for product barcodes. Country codes were added as demand began to increase in Europe, Asia and Australia. The US and Canada received zero country codes, which were not printed below the barcode and were not entered into US and Canadian inventory and point-of-sale databases.
The only major difference is that the bottom numbers (human readable numbers) are placed as a backup only when the barcode is not scanned properly and the information needs to be manually entered into the point of sale system.
There is no difference between barcodes for retail stores and barcodes created for online retailers like Amazon or Google Merchant.
The purpose of the barcode is to provide a description that allows the item to be tracked automatically.
You will need a barcode for each product or product variant you sell.
If you're selling a product available in a variety of styles, sizes, and colors, you'll need one barcode for each variation. Each of these items is a SKU (Stock Keeping Unit). Because each SKU is tracked individually, each item needs its own barcode for tracking.
How Does the GTIN Work?
The manufacturer/distributor takes GTINs (UPC/EAN barcodes) and assigns them to their products. The UPC or EAN barcode graphic is attached to the products.
Retailers use GTINs (Global Business Identification Numbers) to simplify and automate the inventory management process. GTIN is number, UPC or EAN is type of barcode graphic with GTIN encoded in it.
UPC and GTIN are part of the same global numbering system. GTIN numbers also include EAN codes. When referenced to GTIN numbers, this may include UPC codes, EAN codes, JAN codes and ISBN codes.
There is nothing embedded in a UPC or EAN barcode other than the numbers below the barcode. When the retailer enters information about the products into the database, the numbers are associated with the product. When a barcode scanner scans the barcode, it converts the bars back into numbers and looks for the item associated with it.
There are several ways to communicate this information to retailers, your retailer will let you know how they want the information. Sometimes they'll want a printed sheet with a list of your items, sometimes they'll want an Excel spreadsheet they can upload to their database. It all depends on the number of items and the level of their technical requirements.
The information you provide is entered into the computer that connects all POS systems (electronic cash registers). All of this is done at the store level because there is no accurate and complete product database and could potentially carry billions of products, if any. This is too much data for local stores to access, so all stores only care about their inventory.
Your products are delivered to the retailer and once inventoried and can now be purchased.
Next Generation Barcode: QR Code (Quick Reaction)
The QR Code (Quick Response Code) was first created in 1994 in Japan for the automotive industry.
QR codes are two-dimensional (2D) barcodes, also known as matrix codes. The term “QR Code” is actually a trademark for a certain type of two-dimensional matrix code, but its use is so widespread that “QR Code” has become the de facto face of the two-dimensional barcode. Also known as QR code.
QR codes are machine-readable, optical tags that store information about a product. Unlike standard 1D barcodes, QR codes can store information in two directions (horizontal and vertical), while 1D barcodes can store information in only one direction - horizontally. This allows them to hold much more information: a 1-dimensional barcode can typically store around 20 to 25 characters. A QR code, on the other hand, can store up to 2,509 numeric characters or 1,520 alphanumeric characters and can store information such as:
- E-Mail Addresses
- Names
- Product Details
- Website URLs
- Dates (like Calendar Appointments)
- SMS Messages
- Geolocation Data
- Plain Text
