Tutorial: Creating Your First Items in Arda
Learn how to add external items to your Arda Instance using four different methods: manual data entry, Amazon URL import, Amazon search, and scanning a UPC. This tutorial will guide you step-by-step so you can quickly populate your items table.
Prerequisites
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Access to your Arda.cards workspace
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Navigation to the Items Table
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External item details such as name, source link, UPC, or search keywords
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A scanner for UPC method (optional)
Steps
1. Adding an External Item Using Manual Data Entry
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From your Items Table, click External Items.
Figure 1.1 – Navigating to External Items from the Items Table -
Tip: Switch to Fewer Options view for a simpler layout.
Figure 1.2 – Switching to Fewer Options view -
In the Name field, type the item name (e.g., Box Knives).
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Fill in item details — purchase source, quantity, and other relevant fields.
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If you have an image URL, paste it into the Image URL field.
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Choose Create (Create & Add Another or Create & Print) when complete.
Figure 1.6 – Finalizing creation of a manually entered item
2. Adding an External Item by Scanning a UPC
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In the External Items view, click into the UPC field.
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Scan the item’s UPC barcode using your scanner.
Figure 2.2 – Scanning a UPC into the External Items view -
The system will automatically populate the UPC field and retrieve the product details.
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Review the details and click Create to finalize.
3. Adding an External Item Using an Amazon URL
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In the External Items view, locate the Amazon Link field.
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In Amazon, find the product you want to add (e.g., Box Knife Blades).
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Copy the product URL from your browser.
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Paste the URL into the Amazon Link field.
Figure 3.4 – Pasting an Amazon product link into the Amazon Link field -
Click Import — Arda.cards will pull in product data automatically.
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Shorten the product name if needed (e.g., change long SEO title to Dried Apricots).
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Assign a Location (e.g., Office), then click Create.
4. Adding an External Item Using Amazon Search
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In the External Items view, locate the Amazon Search field.
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Enter a keyword for the item you want (e.g., Box Knife Blades).
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Wait for results to appear, sorted by price per ounce.
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Select the item you want and click Add.
Figure 4.4 – Selecting an item from Amazon search results -
The new item is now added to your table.
Summary
You’ve learned how to add external items in Arda.cards using:
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Manual data entry
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Scanning a UPC
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Importing via Amazon URL
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Searching Amazon from within Arda
By using the method that best fits your situation, you can keep your inventory up-to-date efficiently. If you'd like to bulk import items. See the tutorial Bulk Importing and Updating Items.