WP Manifestindependent plugin directory
manifest / ecommerce / google-books-importer-plugin

Google Books Importer for WooCommerce

Import books from Google Books API into WooCommerce with CSV bulk import and manual search features.

by Mustafa Hasanain · github.com/mustafahasanain/google-books-importer-plugin · website

★ 0stars
0forks

Install

No release zip yet. The repository archive installs, but the folder name will carry the branch suffix and updates will not flow:

wp plugin install https://github.com/mustafahasanain/google-books-importer-plugin/archive/refs/heads/main.zip
Readme github.com/mustafahasanain/google-books-importer-plugin ↗

A powerful WordPress plugin that automatically imports books from the Google Books API into your WooCommerce store. Perfect for online bookstores, libraries, and book retailers.

Features

🚀 Dual Import Methods

  • CSV Bulk Import: Paste a list of books with titles, quantities, and prices - the plugin fetches all book data from Google Books API
  • Manual Search & Import: Search Google Books directly, preview results, select books, and import them with custom pricing

📚 Comprehensive Book Data

  • Book title, subtitle, and full description (English from Google Books API)
  • Author(s), publisher, and publication date
  • ISBN-10 and ISBN-13
  • Page count and language
  • Categories/subjects
  • Book cover images (automatically downloaded and resized)
  • Preview and info links

🎨 Smart Image Handling

  • Automatically downloads book cover images from Google Books
  • Resizes all images to standard dimensions (configurable)
  • Uses placeholder image for books without covers
  • Custom placeholder upload support

🔧 Advanced Features

  • Duplicate detection (by ISBN or title)
  • Choose to skip or update existing products
  • Real-time import progress tracking
  • Detailed import results with success/error reporting
  • Bulk selection and import
  • AJAX-powered for smooth user experience
  • WooCommerce custom fields for all book metadata

Requirements

  • WordPress 5.8 or higher
  • WooCommerce 6.0 or higher
  • PHP 7.4 or higher
  • Google Books API Key (free from Google Cloud Console)

Installation

Method 1: Upload via WordPress Admin

  1. Download the plugin ZIP file
  2. Go to WordPress Admin → Plugins → Add New
  3. Click "Upload Plugin" button
  4. Choose the ZIP file and click "Install Now"
  5. Click "Activate Plugin"

Method 2: Manual Installation

  1. Download and extract the plugin
  2. Upload the google-books-importer-plugin folder to /wp-content/plugins/
  3. Activate the plugin through the 'Plugins' menu in WordPress

Method 3: Direct Clone (for developers)

cd wp-content/plugins/
git clone https://github.com/mustafahasanain/google-books-importer-plugin.git

Configuration

1. Get Google Books API Key

  1. Go to Google Cloud Console
  2. Create a new project (or select existing)
  3. Enable the Google Books API
  4. Go to Credentials → Create Credentials → API Key
  5. Copy your API key

2. Configure Plugin Settings

  1. Go to WordPress Admin → Books Importer → Settings
  2. Paste your Google Books API Key
  3. Configure image dimensions (default: 400x600px)
  4. Set duplicate handling preference:
    • Skip: Don't import duplicates
    • Update: Overwrite existing products
  5. Choose default product category
  6. (Optional) Upload custom placeholder image
  7. Click "Save Settings"
  8. Test your API key using the "Test API Key" button

Usage

Method 1: CSV Bulk Import

Perfect for importing large lists of books with your own prices.

  1. Go to Books Importer → CSV Import

  2. Prepare your book list in this format:

    Book Title | Quantity | Price

  3. Example:

    1000 First Words in German | 1 | 16000
101 Video Games to Play Before You Grow Up | 1 | 8000
1, 2, 3, Do the Dinosaur | 2 | 4500
12th of Never | 1 | 3000
30 Book Samples to Change Your Life | 1 | 7000

  4. Paste your list into the text area

  5. Click "Start Import"

  6. Watch the real-time progress

  7. Review the results

How it works:

  • Plugin searches each title in Google Books API
  • Fetches: description, author, image, ISBN, publisher, etc.
  • Creates WooCommerce product with your price and quantity
  • Downloads and resizes book cover image
  • Adds all metadata as custom fields

Method 2: Manual Search & Import

Perfect for carefully selecting specific books.

  1. Go to Books Importer → Search & Import
  2. Enter search query (book title, author, or keyword)
  3. Optional: Filter by author or subject/category
  4. Click "Search Books"
  5. Browse the results with book cards showing:
    • Cover image
    • Title and author
    • Publisher
  6. Check the boxes for books you want to import
  7. Enter Price and Quantity for each selected book
  8. Click "Import Selected Books"
  9. Watch the progress and review results

Book Product Structure

Each imported book becomes a WooCommerce product with:

Standard WooCommerce Fields

  • Product Name: Book title

  • Description: Full description from Google Books (English)

  • Short Description: Auto-generated excerpt

  • Regular Price: Your price (from CSV or manual input)

  • Stock Quantity: From CSV or manual input

  • Category: Assigned to "Books" category (or custom)

  • Featured Image: Downloaded book cover (or placeholder)

Custom Fields (Meta Data)

All stored with _gbi_ prefix for easy identification:

  • _gbi_google_id: Google Books volume ID
  • _gbi_isbn: Primary ISBN
  • _gbi_isbn_10: ISBN-10
  • _gbi_isbn_13: ISBN-13
  • _gbi_authors: Author name(s)
  • _gbi_publisher: Publisher name
  • _gbi_published_date: Publication date
  • _gbi_page_count: Number of pages
  • _gbi_categories: Book categories/subjects
  • _gbi_language: Language code
  • _gbi_preview_link: Google Books preview URL
  • _gbi_info_link: Google Books info URL
  • _gbi_imported_at: Import timestamp

Troubleshooting

API Key Issues

Problem: "API key is invalid"

  • Solution: Double-check your API key in Settings
  • Ensure Google Books API is enabled in Google Cloud Console
  • Check for extra spaces when copying the key

Problem: "API quota exceeded"

  • Solution: Google Books API has daily limits (1000 requests/day for free tier)
  • Wait 24 hours or upgrade your Google Cloud plan

Import Issues

Problem: "Book not found in Google Books API"

  • Solution: Try different search terms
  • Some books may not be in Google Books database
  • Try searching by ISBN instead of title

Problem: "Image download failed"

  • Solution: Placeholder image will be used automatically
  • Check your server's outbound connection settings
  • Verify GD library is installed for image processing

Problem: "Duplicate book skipped"

  • Solution: This is expected behavior if "Skip" is selected in settings
  • Change to "Update" in Settings if you want to overwrite
  • Or delete the existing product first

Performance Issues

Problem: Import is slow

  • Solution: This is normal - each book requires:
    • API request to Google Books
    • Image download and resize
    • Product creation in WooCommerce
  • Recommended: Import in batches of 20-50 books
  • Large imports may take several minutes

Price Format Support

The plugin intelligently parses various price formats:

16000          → 16000.00
16,000         → 16000.00
16.50          → 16.50
$16.50         → 16.50
16,000.50      → 16000.50
16.000,50      → 16000.50 (European format)
16,000 د.ع.    → 16000.00 (Iraqi Dinar)
16,000 IQD     → 16000.00

Extending the Plugin

Display Custom Fields on Product Page

Add this to your theme's functions.php:

add_action('woocommerce_single_product_summary', 'display_book_metadata', 25);
function display_book_metadata() {
    global $product;

    $author = get_post_meta($product->get_id(), '_gbi_authors', true);
    $publisher = get_post_meta($product->get_id(), '_gbi_publisher', true);
    $isbn = get_post_meta($product->get_id(), '_gbi_isbn', true);
    $pages = get_post_meta($product->get_id(), '_gbi_page_count', true);

    if ($author || $publisher || $isbn || $pages) {
        echo '<div class="book-metadata">';
        if ($author) echo '<p><strong>Author:</strong> ' . esc_html($author) . '</p>';
        if ($publisher) echo '<p><strong>Publisher:</strong> ' . esc_html($publisher) . '</p>';
        if ($isbn) echo '<p><strong>ISBN:</strong> ' . esc_html($isbn) . '</p>';
        if ($pages) echo '<p><strong>Pages:</strong> ' . esc_html($pages) . '</p>';
        echo '</div>';
    }
}

Custom Placeholder Image

You can replace the default placeholder:

  1. Go to Settings → Upload custom placeholder image
  2. Or replace assets/images/placeholder-book.svg with your own image

Developer Notes

File Structure

google-books-importer-plugin/
├── google-books-importer.php          # Main plugin file
├── includes/
│   ├── class-google-books-api.php     # API handler
│   ├── class-product-creator.php      # Product creation logic
│   ├── class-csv-parser.php           # CSV parsing
│   └── class-image-handler.php        # Image processing
├── admin/
│   ├── class-admin-pages.php          # Admin menu & pages
│   ├── views/
│   │   ├── settings.php               # Settings UI
│   │   ├── csv-import.php             # CSV import UI
│   │   └── search-import.php          # Search UI
│   ├── css/admin-style.css            # Admin styles
│   └── js/admin-script.js             # Admin JavaScript
├── assets/images/
│   └── placeholder-book.svg           # Default placeholder
└── README.md

Filters & Hooks

Filter product data before creation:

add_filter('gbi_before_create_product', 'custom_modify_product_data', 10, 1);
function custom_modify_product_data($book_data) {
    // Modify $book_data array
    return $book_data;
}

Action after product created:

add_action('gbi_after_product_created', 'custom_after_import', 10, 2);
function custom_after_import($product_id, $book_data) {
    // Do something after import
}

FAQ

Q: Is the Google Books API free? A: Yes, Google Books API has a free tier with 1000 requests per day.

Q: Can I translate book descriptions to other languages? A: The plugin uses English descriptions from Google Books API as-is. For translations, consider using a translation plugin like WPML or Polylang.

Q: Does it support other e-commerce plugins besides WooCommerce? A: No, currently only WooCommerce is supported.

Q: Can I import books with my own descriptions? A: Not directly. The plugin fetches descriptions from Google Books API. You can manually edit product descriptions after import.

Q: What happens if a book doesn't have an image? A: The plugin will use the placeholder image (configurable in Settings).

Q: Can I schedule automatic imports? A: Not built-in, but you can use WordPress cron jobs with custom code.

Changelog

Version 1.0.0 (2025)

  • Initial release
  • CSV bulk import functionality
  • Manual search and import
  • Google Books API integration
  • Image download and resize
  • Duplicate detection
  • Custom fields for book metadata
  • Configurable settings
  • AJAX-powered UI
  • Real-time progress tracking

Support

For issues, questions, or contributions:

License

GPL v2 or later - https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-2.0.html

Credits

Made with ❤️ for bookstores and book lovers