Datafeedr API Customisation

Project Overview

Datafeedr is a WordPress plugin that enables store owners to build affiliate or product-feed stores that automatically update from multiple merchant networks.
While powerful, its update mechanism overwrote manually defined WooCommerce product categories each time it refreshed the feed — a critical problem for FashionandBusiness.nl, who curated categories post-import for better organization and SEO.

The goal was to retain manual taxonomy assignments through Datafeedr’s automated sync process, without altering the plugin’s core structure or future update compatibility.

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Technical Challenge

Each API sync re-imported selected products from Datafeedr’s product sets, automatically resetting taxonomy term IDs (product categories) back to defaults.
Since the client manually assigned categories after import, every update cycle undid hours of work.

The challenge was to preserve these manually set taxonomies while allowing the Datafeedr API to continue updating product content and pricing.

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Solution Architecture

Phase 1: Investigation

By inspecting Datafeedr’s source and update logic, I located the hook responsible for triggering product updates, which also cleared existing taxonomy relationships.

Phase 2: Metadata Preservation

Before each update:

• A custom PHP function captured the current taxonomy term IDs (product categories) for each product.
• These IDs were stored in custom metadata attached to that product’s post record.

Phase 3: Controlled Update Injection

During the update cycle:

• The plugin’s default taxonomy term array was unhooked.
• The preserved term IDs were merged back into the update payload, ensuring categories remained intact.
• The product post was updated with new API data, without losing its assigned categories.

Phase 4: Validation

After applying the solution:

• All products retained their manually curated categories.
• Datafeedr’s scheduled and manual syncs continued to function normally.
• Database integrity and plugin update compatibility were fully maintained.

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Technical Highlights

• Custom WordPress Hook Integration: Non-intrusive and future-proof
• Metadata Backup Layer: Category term preservation without external tables
• Selective Array Unset Logic: Prevented default taxonomy reset
• Backward Compatibility: Fully aligned with WordPress 4.7+ core API standards

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Outcome

“Anton resolved a long-standing Datafeedr issue that most developers overlooked. Our manual product categories now persist perfectly after every update.”
— Chris, FashionandBusiness.nl

Key Results

• Categories persist after Datafeedr product updates
• Streamlined workflow and reduced manual reclassification
• Non-destructive solution, plugin update-safe
• Fully compatible with future Datafeedr versions

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Legacy Context

This project illustrates Anton’s early focus on plugin extensibility and non-invasive architecture, solving real-world business problems by adapting to existing ecosystems rather than overriding them — a principle that defines Villiers Vision Works’ current engineering approach to modular, API-first development.