Setup & user guide.

Everything you need to go from sign-in to live products, plus troubleshooting and support. Setup takes about 30-60 minutes.

Before you begin

ArtDrop™ connects several services together. You'll need accounts with each one before starting setup. Have them open in your browser, you'll be copying keys from each during the wizard. The wizard has five steps: Storefront, Storage, Printers, Social, and Copy, in that order.

How it works

Every drop runs the same five-step pipeline automatically. Here is what happens from the moment you drop a file.

Step 1, Storefront

Connect your Shopify store so ArtDrop can publish products there. This is the first step in the wizard.

Self-serve Shopify install (recommended)

The fastest path: install ArtDrop as a Shopify Partner app from your Shopify admin. The wizard hands you the install link, you click through, approve the scopes Shopify shows you, and you land back in ArtDrop with the connection done. No copying keys, no manual scope checklist.

Store URL

The visible URL field on the Storefront step is the source of truth. Paste your .myshopify.com address there, not your custom domain. Example: yourstore.myshopify.com. Find it in your browser bar when logged into Shopify admin. If the field is empty when you continue, ArtDrop shows an error toast pointing back at it.

Manual access token (alternative)

If you'd rather not do the Partner install, you can connect with a custom-app access token. In Shopify admin: Settings → Apps and sales channels → Develop apps → Create an app. The wizard tells you exactly which permissions to check. Copy the access token, it starts with shpat_ and is shown only once.

Required API scopes (manual path only)

If you go the manual route, make sure the following scopes are enabled on your custom app:

read_products write_products read_collections write_collections read_files write_files read_online_store_navigation write_online_store_navigation

The navigation scopes are needed because ArtDrop automatically adds new collections to your store's navigation menu when products are created, so customers can browse by artwork category right away.

Targeting a different menu

By default, ArtDrop adds new collections to the main-menu. To target a different menu, set the SHOPIFY_NAV_MENU_HANDLE environment variable to your menu's handle. You can find the handle in Shopify under Online Store → Navigation, it's the slug shown in the URL when you click on a menu.

Step 2, Storage

Connect your Backblaze B2 bucket. ArtDrop uploads your artwork files here so your print providers and store can access them. When B2 is the chosen storage backend, every field on this step is required, the wizard won't let you continue with anything blank.

What you need from Backblaze

• Key ID and Application Key, create these at App Keys → Add a New Application Key in Backblaze. The Application Key is shown only once.
• Bucket Name and Bucket ID, found on the Backblaze Buckets page.
• Endpoint URL, click your bucket in Backblaze to find this. Looks like https://s3.us-west-004.backblazeb2.com.

Step 3, Printers

Connect ArtDrop to the print providers you want to use. You need at least one. ArtDrop ships live integrations with three POD providers: Gelato, Printful, and Printify. Connect any combination. Each one you connect lets you configure its product templates inline, what gets printed (poster, canvas, phone case, tote, etc.) and at what retail price. Every image you drop creates one product per active template at every connected provider.

Gelato

In Gelato: click your profile icon → Developer → API Keys → Generate Key. Copy the full key. ArtDrop will automatically find your stores once you paste the key in.

For each Gelato template you add, give it a Name (what you call it, like "Fine Art Poster") and a Template ID (found in the URL when you edit a template in Gelato).

Printful

In Printful: go to Settings → API → Generate Token. Copy the token. Your Store ID is the number in the URL when you click on your store in the Stores section.

For each Printful template you add: a Name, one or more Catalog Variant IDs (comma-separated), a Placement (usually "default"), and a Price. Find variant IDs in the Printful product catalog, the wizard links you directly there.

Printify

In Printify: go to My Account → Connections → Generate API token. Copy the token. Your Shop ID is in the URL when you visit your shop, looks like /shop/12345678/dashboard.

For Printify templates, pick a product from Printify's catalog, enter its Blueprint ID and Provider ID, then click Lookup, ArtDrop will find all available sizes for you. Select the sizes you want and hit Add.

Step 4, Social

Optional. ArtDrop can auto-publish every drop to your social accounts with a preview image and caption. Each platform takes a few minutes to connect the first time, then it runs hands-off.

Step 5, Copy

The Copy step is where you decide whether ArtDrop should write your product copy for you, and tell it who you are so it sounds like your brand. The AI piece is optional. Core publishing to Shopify and your print providers works either way.

Yes, let ArtDrop write my copy

Paste an Anthropic API key. Go to console.anthropic.com → Create Key. Copy the full key, it starts with sk-ant-. Make sure your account has credit loaded ($5 is plenty to start). Each drop costs roughly $0.01 to $0.05 in credit.

No, I'll write my own copy

For each field (title, description, SEO title, SEO description, alt text) pick one of two modes:

• Filename: ArtDrop uses the artwork's filename as the text. A file called abstract-sunset.tif becomes the title "Abstract Sunset".
• Template: define a reusable string with {artwork_name} as a placeholder. For example, {artwork_name}, fine-art print by Your Name.

Store Identity

Fill in your name, store name, what kind of art you make, and how you make it. The more detail you give, the better the AI writes about your work. Example placeholder text shows how a portrait studio might fill this in.

Copy Rules

Optional but powerful. Set the tone of voice, tell the AI what to focus on, give it examples of good copy, and list words you never want used. Leave any field blank to use ArtDrop's defaults. You control every word, with a small floor that always blocks profanity, slurs, and similar terms regardless of your settings.

EXIF camera data

If your image files carry EXIF metadata (camera model, lens, ISO, shutter, GPS), ArtDrop can mention it in the Shopify listing. Three options: Full (include specs in the description and add them as tags), Tags only (hidden tags, clean description), or Off (never mention it). The default is Full, many photographers turn it off for a cleaner presentation.

What you lose when AI is off

AI-generated copy and the Voice Trainer. Core publishing still works exactly the same.

Voice Trainer (post-wizard)

The Voice Trainer lives under Copy and Data in the sidebar after setup. It's how you teach ArtDrop your style without writing rules from scratch.

How it works:

1. Give it something to read, a website URL or a passage of your existing copy
2. Click Analyze Voice, ArtDrop reads the input and extracts concrete style rules
3. Rules apply directly to the form, the Copy and Data fields fill in automatically. The page scrolls to the first field that changed, and the status reads "Voice profile applied, review the fields below"
4. Review and save, scan the filled fields, edit anything that looks off, and save

The saved rules apply to every future drop automatically. Come back to the Voice Trainer any time to refresh on a different sample.

Dropping artwork

1. Click Start Worker on the Dashboard, the status dot turns green
2. Drag and drop your artwork files directly onto the Dashboard, or use the file browser
3. Watch the live log, it shows every step as it happens
4. When complete, your products are live in your store

Supported formats: PNG JPG JPEG TIF TIFF

Minimum resolution: 300 DPI at your largest print size. For 24x36" that's 7200x10800px.

In-app assistant

Every screen in ArtDrop has a built-in assistant. It gives context-aware help for whatever you are looking at: setup steps, error codes, template configuration, all of it.

Common issues

The most frequent setup snags and how to fix them. Tap any issue to expand.

License & devices

Your license covers up to 2 devices. To move to a new device, open ArtDrop on the old device → License tab → Transfer Device. Then activate on the new device with the same key.

If you can't access the old device, email support@getartdrop.com and we'll reset it for you.

Still need help?

We respond to every message. If the guides above do not cover your issue, reach out directly.

Setup guide, troubleshooting, and support in one place. For pricing and pre-sale questions see the FAQ.