Merchant Onboarding

After you've pre-registered a merchant in the Channel Dashboard, they complete onboarding using the Violet Connect link you provide. This page explains what the merchant experiences.

The Onboarding Flow

Your Steps (Channel)

1. Pre-register merchant in Channel Dashboard with their Client ID and Client Secret

2. Copy the Violet Connect link from the Pre-Registered tab

3. Send link to merchant via email, Slack, or your preferred communication method

Merchant Experience (Under 2 Minutes)

When the merchant clicks your Violet Connect link, they go through this streamlined process:

1. Authenticate with Violet

• Enter email address

• Receive and enter 6-digit verification code

Violet Connect Login

Violet Connect 6-digit Code Authentication

2. Review Pre-filled Details

• See their store name and URL already filled in

• Confirm everything looks correct

Violet Connect Store Found

3. Connect to Shopify

• Click the "Connect to Shopify" button

• Authorize the app in Shopify by clicking "Install app"

• Automatically return to Violet Connect

Violet Connect Preregistration Detection

Shopify App Install OAuth Handshake

4. Complete Setup

• Set up payout account (if required)

• Configure commission settings (if applicable)

5. Done!

• Store is connected

• Merchant automatically moves to your Connected Merchants tab

• You receive webhook notification of successful connection

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Why This Flow Works

Benefit	Description
✅ Fast	Under 2 minutes from start to finish
✅ Error-free	No manual credential entry or typos
✅ Pre-configured	All OAuth settings handled during pre-registration
✅ Trackable	Real-time status updates in your Channel Dashboard
✅ Secure	OAuth credentials never exposed to merchant

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Alternative Path: Store URL Lookup

If you send a standard Violet Connect link (without the merchant-specific parameter), but the merchant is pre-registered, they can still connect:

1. Merchant clicks your standard Violet Connect link

2. Merchant authenticates with email verification

3. Merchant selects "Shopify" as their platform

4. Merchant enters their store URL (e.g., acme.myshopify.com)

5. Violet detects the pre-registration and shows "Store Found" confirmation

6. Merchant continues with the normal connection flow

When to use this path: If you prefer using a single Violet Connect link for all merchants instead of merchant-specific links.

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Behind the Scenes

When a merchant completes onboarding, Violet automatically:

1. Completes OAuth handshake with Shopify using your pre-registered credentials

2. Validates the connection to ensure everything is working

3. Updates merchant status from "Pre-Registered" to "Connected"

4. Sends webhook to notify you of successful connection

5. Begins catalog sync to make products available in your channel

You don't need to handle any technical OAuth details — Violet manages the entire process using the Client ID and Client Secret you provided during pre-registration.

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Link Format

Your merchant-specific Violet Connect links follow this format:

https://connect.violet.io/YOUR_APP_ALIAS/platforms/shopify/connect?preregistration=ENCODED_DATA

The encoded pre-registration data automatically connects everything to your pre-registration in the Channel Dashboard.

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Next steps:

• Troubleshooting & FAQs — Common issues and solutions

• Back to Pre-Registration — Set up more merchants