Custom app to fetch available meeting seats from api to sell online educational classes

Technical Q&A
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Topic summary

Goal: Integrate a custom web app that sells live educational class seats with Shopify, using tools/APIs that support dynamic availability and personalized display.

User roles and flow:

  • Teachers: Onboarded online; create live meeting seats with parameters (date/time, subject, duration, max seats, location, travel radius). Example: 11/11/2024 5:00 PM, Mathematics, 2 hours, 20 seats.
  • Customers: Search for available seats by location, course name, date, and time; purchase selected seats.

Key requirements:

  • Products (meeting seats) are highly dynamic; availability changes in real time as bookings occur.
  • Inventory must immediately reflect full/empty states; items may become unavailable once fully booked.
  • Product listings should adapt per customer based on search filters and location.

Constraints noted:

  • Standard Shopify Admin Product API with CSV-based updates is insufficient for near‑real‑time, per‑customer dynamic listings.

Request/outcome:

  • Seeking guidance on which Shopify tools/APIs to use to fetch and display dynamic availability from their system within a Shopify storefront.
  • Status: Open; no solution or decisions yet.
Summarized with AI on December 14. AI used: gpt-5.
1

Hi Everyone!

We are new to developing Shopify apps and are seeking guidance on the best tools and APIs that Shopify provides. We already have a custom web application where we sell online educational classes, and we’re looking to enhance our customers’ shopping experience through Shopify. We have two main user types, outlined below:

Teachers – We interview and sign them up online. They create live educational meeting seats on our website based on their availability, location, and a set travel distance radius. For eg. 11/11/2024 5:00PM - Mathematics - Duration 2 Hours - Maximum booking seats 20.

Customers – They search for available live meeting seats based on location, course name, date, and time. They can purchase the seats they are interested in.

In our scenario, the list of Shopify products (live meeting seats) is dynamic. Availability changes based on customer input and booking capacity, meaning that products may become unavailable when fully booked. Therefore, the standard Admin Product API with CSV updates does not suit our needs, as we need a solution that allows products to display dynamically for each customer.

Thank you for reviewing our request—we look forward to any guidance or solutions you might suggest.

Best regards,
Soumik