Image Approvals gives your team one place inside PXM to send images for review, collect sign-off from the right people in the right order, and keep a clear record of who approved what and when.
Reviewers inspect, comment on, and approve or reject images directly in PXM, with zoom-in inspection, comments, and versioning built in. No more chasing feedback over email and Slack.
You can send images for approval two ways:
New images as you upload them. They stay off the product until every step approves them.
Existing images that are already visible in PXM. They stay visible while they're being reviewed.
Looking for product information? See PIM Approvals: Review and Approve Product Information in PXM.
Watch: Image Approvals
How to upload a new image into an approval, review it, request a corrected version, and approve it onto the product.
Key concepts
Approval flow — a single review request: the images being reviewed, plus the steps and people who need to sign off.
Step — one stage of review (for example, "SEO team" or "Brand team"). Steps run in order. When a step is complete, the next step's approvers are notified.
Approvers — the people assigned to a step. Each step can require all reviewers to approve, or let any one approver move it forward.
Workflow template — a saved chain of steps and approvers you can reuse, so you don't rebuild it every time.
Watcher — someone, such as a manager, who follows progress and gets notified but doesn't approve or edit.
Description — instructions for your reviewers (for example, "Review bullets 1–3 and add bullets 4–5"). It's included in the notification they receive.
Activity — the comments and history for an approval, showing what changed, who changed it, and when.
Who can use Approvals
Approvals is available to all Pattern PXM customers. PIM Approvals and Image Approvals are included with every account, along with Drafts for choosing exactly which attributes to send for review.
Starting an approval: only users with the Admin or Super Admin role can start an approval, for both product information and images. If you don't see Start Approval Flow or Enable Approvals Upload Flow, check your role. If a teammate needs to start approvals, a Super Admin can update their role.
Reviewing an approval: anyone an Admin or Super Admin adds as an approver or watcher is notified and can open the approval from their notification. To approve or reject, you need a Pattern PXM login on your company's account and the content approval permission, set by your admin, and you must be an approver on the step that's currently active. The Review link in the email asks you to sign in.
People without a PXM login: share links, and watcher emails sent to people without Pattern PXM access, are view-only. They can see the approval but can't approve, reject, comment or save.
Learn more about roles in User Roles and Permissions in Pattern PXM.
Send images for approval
You can send images for approval in two ways: as part of a new upload (Option 1), or by selecting images that are already in PXM (Option 2).
Option 1: Send a new image for approval when you upload it
Start an upload the usual way from Upload.
Check Enable Approvals Upload Flow, then click Next.
Fill in the approval details: a name (for example, which product and view, such as "front-facing"), a description with instructions for reviewers, and an optional watcher.
Select a saved template, or build your steps: name each step, add approvers, choose whether all reviewers must approve, and add or insert steps. Click Save template if you'll reuse it.
Click Send.
Drop in your image as you normally would. It won't appear on the product yet, because it's waiting for approval.
Note: When Enable Approvals Upload Flow is checked, you can upload images only, up to 50 at a time.
Option 2: Send existing images for approval
Use this when images are already visible in PXM and you want them reviewed, for example before a seasonal refresh or a marketplace push.
Go to asset management and select the image or images you want reviewed. You can select several at once.
Choose the option to send the selected images for approval.
Fill in the approval details: a name, a description with instructions for reviewers, and an optional watcher.
Select a saved workflow template, or build your steps: name each step, add approvers, and choose whether all reviewers must approve.
Send the approval. Approvers on the first step are notified.
Note: Existing images stay visible in PXM while they're being reviewed. Sending an image for approval doesn't hide it. An image that's already in an open approval can't be sent again.
Review and approve an image
Open the notification you received and click Review.
Check the file details, including file name, date created, size, uploader, and file type.
While reviewing, you can:
Use Inspect to zoom in for a closer look.
Add comments and tag teammates: open the COMMENTS tab, type in Write a comment..., then click SUBMIT. Teammates can reply and mark the comment resolved.
Add the image to another folder or add label tags.
See the history of what happened and when.
Choose Approve, Reject, or Save changes to come back later.
When your step is complete, the next step's approvers are notified. When the final step approves, the approval shows as complete. For an image sent at upload, this is when it appears on the product, where you can work with it as usual (for example, setting it as the primary image).
Upload a corrected version
If a reviewer asks for a change, you don't need to start over:
Open the image in the approval and select it.
Click Version and upload the corrected file as the next version.
Resolve the reviewer's comment so they know it's been addressed.
Note: Only the person who created the approval can add a new version.
Track your approvals
In the left sidebar, click Approval Flows to see every approval, including its status, number of steps, who created it, and whether it's a product information or image approval.
Click View Details on an approval to open it.
Open Activity and switch between Comments and History.
History records approvals, rejections, and changes with who made them and when.
Tips and best practices
Use unique filenames for images. Uploading a file with the same name as an image already waiting for approval creates a conflict. Rename the new file before retrying.
Start small. Pilot Approvals with one team or product line, then expand once your steps are working well.
Write clear descriptions. Tell reviewers exactly what to check, such as "check for SEO" or "review bullets 1–3 and add bullets 4–5."
Save workflow templates for approval chains you run often, such as content team → brand team → final review.
Use watchers for managers who need visibility without approving.
FAQ
Why can't I send an image for approval?
Usually one of these: the image is already in an open approval, or you aren't an Admin or Super Admin. Only those roles can start an approval.
I uploaded an image with approvals turned on and it's not on the product. Is it lost?
No. It stays off the product until every step approves it, then it appears on the product.
Can I send an existing image for approval?
Yes. Select images that are already in PXM and send them for approval (see Option 2: Send existing images for approval). Unlike new uploads sent with Enable Approvals Upload Flow, existing images aren't hidden; they stay visible in PXM while they're being reviewed.
Can a reviewer reject an image?
Yes. Image approvals support both approve and reject. If a reviewer asks for a change, the creator can upload a corrected file as a new version.
Can different people approve at different stages?
Yes. Each step has its own approvers, and steps run in order. Each step can require every approver or any one of them. Approvers can also move between stages in an approval.
Does a watcher need to approve?
No. Watchers follow progress and receive notifications, but they can't approve or edit. Watchers without a Pattern PXM login get a view-only link.
Can someone without a PXM login approve an image?
No. Approving or rejecting needs a Pattern PXM login on your account and the content approval permission, set by your admin. Share links are view-only. To add an outside reviewer, ask a Super Admin to add them as a Pattern PXM user, then add them as an approver.
Who gets notified, and how?
Approvers get an email and an in-app notification when their step starts. The creator is notified when the approval is complete. Tagging someone in a comment doesn't send a notification yet.
Can I add or change approvers after an approval has started?
Yes. The creator can add or remove approvers on the step that's currently active.
Need help?
Want a walkthrough or help setting up your first approval workflow? Reach out to your Customer Success Manager or email pxmsupport@pattern.com.