Please Stop Invasively Auto-Creating Item Name Based on UPC

[JoyOne]

This feedback pertains to the Square Register interface.

I've noticed that the Auto-Create and populate feature has become increasingly invasive in its effort to populate fields for you based on the UPC code that's been input into the GTIN field.

If I've filled the Item Name portion with a naming scheme specific to my business, I DO NOT want Square to auto create a new name for me. My naming scheme follows a very strict naming convention for myself and my employees. The auto-filled name is oftentimes a poorly scraped version of the item found online.

This is NOT a great UX.

Not only is there an auto-create box at the very top of the screen that I have to skip, now when I fill in the GTIN field down below, it'll behave in the same way. This is relatively new. Please, please stop this functionality.

Thank you.

[HC_Charlie]

@JoyOnethanks for your post, I'm sorry you're having trouble using this new feature. I have not used it myself yet, but have you tried to first type your item NAME, and then scan your barcode ? I'm wondering if changing the input order would override the name getting auto populated ?

[JoyOne]

Hi, YES! This is the most infuriating part. We'll type out a long name and when we scroll down to the GTIN field and input a new UPC, it'll CHANGE the item name that we inputted manually without letting us know (since it's at the top of the screen) and when we save we'll notice that it's like nothing we've wrote down. Infuriating!!

Again, this is all on the Square Register.

Sure we can input the GTIN first, but that means we have to scroll down first, input GTIN, then scroll back up to the name, input name, then scroll back down to the price and SKU. It's such a slow process when you're inputting about 100-200 new products every shipment.

[StuffInBalloons]

Is there a fix for this yet? Some of my wholesale marketplaces will link the item to my pos - handy feature when it's 100+ items...except they do not add the upc in most cases. When we go to the item that has been linked as a new item and scan the upc - square searched for the item info and changes the name if it find something. The biggest issue with this is sometimes it's not the manufacturer/vendor info - it's from someone else who sells the item online and you get a super long title with a string of keywords. 

[SugarAndSkinSpa]

Completely agree!  We changed all of our item names to non gendered services and with the most recent change the developers made they ALL went back to gendered names, so I had to change them all again!! Very annoying. I call things what I call them purposefully. Don't change my stuff!

[repopgifts]

Okay, so I didn't see your post when I searched for auto create, and I just posted the same thing. it's infuriating, there should be an off switch.

[Cheesetique]

Raising this again. We name our items in advance of them arriving so we don't have the SKU until the item arrives. We name out items specifically the way we want them to appear. Then, we scan the SKU into the register and it changes the name to something else. This did NOT happen in the past - seems to be newish with a recent update. How can we turn this OFF?

[repopgifts]

We input the GTIN for our products as sometimes we have a different sku. Lately every time we scan in a GTIN into the provided space (not as an auto create) the items title and description change. 

Is there a way to make this stop? Sometimes the name and description that auto populate (and override what I've already entered) are terribly wrong.

Is anyone else experiencing this?

[StuffInBalloons]

Yes - and it's super annoying. Has anyone come up with a fix for this "update" yet?

[rustyravenng]

When adding GTINs to existing items using a scanner, Square goes out and looks for a GTIN 'match' somewhere in the ether and if it finds it, it automatically updates the title to whatever it finds out there.  Some of them are ok, but most of them are too verbose, not detailed enough, inconsistent in format, and sometimes downright wrong!

What I end up doing is copying the existing title before I scan and then paste it back over what Square automatically pulls in.  

It would be NICE if Square would at least GIVE AN OPTION of taking what it found or keeping what is there.

PLEASE.

[RobynR]

@rustyravenng Thank you for sharing your feedback about the automatic title update feature when scanning GTINs. We understand your concern, and we'll pass this feedback along to the appropriate team.

In the meantime, I suggest continuing to use the workaround of copying and pasting the existing title to maintain accuracy.

If you have any other suggestions or encounter further issues, feel free to reach out to our support team for assistance.

[frances_a]

Hello @StuffInBalloons and @rustyravenng 👋

Just got confirmation from our team that a fix for this issue is on the way. 

While this gets corrected for our apps, using the dashboard instead of a mobile device will avoid this issue. 

Thank you ✨

[OT-HOBBY]

it's now been a month and a half, when will this be fixed?

[Candlestore]

@OT-HOBBY ;

Its only been a been since 4-24-2024 that Square acknoledged the problem to fix it.  The original post of the problem was 02-24-2023 08:24 PM, or over 1 year and 3 months ago.  So i would not count on this update fixing it but causing another issue possibly.   What I have done to avoid this is using a spreedsheet to download my catalog, Figure out the nameing of the columns and what they did.  Then enter the new items with no Token field or the other 1st or 2nd column if using excel.  This then enters the Name and Description you would like without any auto create scanning of the GTIN field.  If I have a vedor that has the GTIN on the invoice this makes it easy as Excel can scan an invoice PDF and turn it into a spreedsheet.   Copy Paste the data to your Square Catalog template in the correct Square Columns and your done.  If you use the same vendors you can make a Power Query to scan and reorganize the spreedsheet to Squares Catalog format and then upload it all with no typing or miss typing vendor data.  If no GTIN is available till you get the products, open the spreedsheet scan the barcode for the correct item then upload to Square.   Since the Item Name and GTIN are already filled in on a computer, the square robot does not change the filled in data.

Good Luck !!

[OT-HOBBY]

Mine started recently, I'm hoping maybe there's a setting I can use to turn off the autofill, I don't mind typing in each item, the autofill would be nice, but not how it's working now, plus all of my items are IN ALL CAPS .. the new AI doesn't follow my rule of ALL CAPS, and when I do put an item in with ALL CAPS and I then scan the upc code, it changes the variation, and the item that the variation is.  I don't know if i'm making sense.

[Candlestore]

@OT-HOBBY ;

I installed 2 Square updates This past week.  I am currently on 6.43.3 and updated this morning to this version.  As of this version if I type in a Item Name Then scan the GTIN field it does Still change the name after looking up the GTIN.   I also just tried to create Item Dr Thunder using Auto Create and it Still Auto InCreates the Item to something like Face Your Fun..... no idea where Square gets its Data from or if it just searches the internet instead of using the actual GTIN data base of items.  Instead of Scanning the Barcode to the GTIN field have you tried using the SKU field?  When I did that with the Dr Thunder can it left the Item Name Alone.   So maybe till Square gets this fixed you can use the SKU field instead of the GTIN field when scanning in new items?   I do most of my Items through a Spreedsheet upload on a computer and not actually scanning in the items as a new item.  I use the Vendors Invoice with SKUs or Barcode fields and Description or Name I think of when first seeing it on a website.  Like we have a 3 in one cake / Drink / Vegitable Tray.... I may just name it a 3-in 1 Party Tray for my name.... have it on display in all 3 fashions.  I have been finding out that some of the people smarter than me have used AI with their software to read Invoices and place it into a spreadsheet.  So Now I can just scan a PDF or a mailed invoice into my software and it is now asking me if this how it may look in a new spreedsheet.  Most of the time it is right other times I may have to delete a few rows or columns depending what all it reads into the new spreedsheet.  Meaning it may enter the Vendor and My info as small tables which I do not need.  Spreedsheet Heading may not exsist so I add what Square uses for the headers from an older download I did.  Then upload to Square.  I just hate this new system when adding new items through the POS system or a dedicated Tablet for receipt of items.  

[rustyravenng]

I don't understand your workaround.  The barcode scanner is attached to the terminal (ipad), never a laptop.  Adding the barcode via the scanner rather than entering in the numbers by hand is our preferred method (less human error).  However, doing this causes a variation to be added in some cases rather than just updating the one main item.

[Interluxe]

Can you tell me if this is happening to you from the Dashboard? I also create new items ahead of receiving the physical item with its sku. However, as long as I click into the SKU field and then scan the barcode nothing else in my listing changes. It just adds the sku. The AutoCreate feature is specifically designed to go and pull information from a worldwide database to make it easier to populate listings and have images. But if you already have all your info there's no need to use that feature at all. Just click in the SKU or GTIN field and scan your barcode and save. I'm sure I'm probably missing a nuance of what the issue is, but I just haven't been able to recreate your situation without using the AutoCreate feature...which is working exactly as intended and is completely optional to use.

[IsabelleN]

This just started for me today and it is making me crazy.  I am adding a variation, scanning the SKU auto-creates a name that is completely inaccurate (a completely different brand) AND it changes the original product name at the top.  All I want to do is add a new variation!!  When I scan the same product as a stand-alone item, it gives me the option to auto-create but as a variation it does not.  Give me back my variation!!  

[OT-HOBBY]

Exactly my same problem,  Good luck to us eh! LOL Don't hold your breath.

[besus]

Chiming in here to hopefully get Square to respond.  Using a barcode scanner to create items in the system is worthless.  There should be, at the very least, a toggle to turn off auto-generated information for items.  Usually the name is incorrect and often the item picture changes from what we set up to the absolute worst, lowest definition picture out there.  We were told at our onboarding in March that Square was aware of this, but here we are in June with no changes.