Product Variants

1. Configure Product Variant Settings

This guide will step Administrators through the process of maintaining variants online in the CMS.

First, you'll want to ensure the Product Variant feature is configured correctly for your site. 

1. In the CMS, go to Settings → Feature Management.  
   
   
2. In Products & Categories → Product Variants, ensure it is toggled ON and click Configure.
   
   
3. Switch the Product Variant Mode to 'Online'. 
   
   
   
   
4. Configure the Shared Variant Options settings. Except for (e), these settings are shared with Subscription Products that have Master/Child relationships. NOTE - Any changes to a shared setting will automatically be applied to both features.
   
   

   1. Default Display Type: When a Master product has more than one product option, each variant with its values is offered on the Master Product's page to customers. You can select a default display for the user to move between options:    
      
      

      Dropdown List	Radio Buttons	Thumbnail Buttons	Textbox Buttons

      NOTE - Thumbnail and Textbox button options require version 4.37+.
      
      

   2. Allow Display Type Override at Variant Value: toggle ON to allow the default display type to be selected individually for each Variant. TIP - It is strongly recommended that this or Allow Display Type Override is enabled. One 'select' field type may be better for displaying some kinds of value options but another may be better for another value group.  
   3. Add to Cart Mode: select whether the Master or Child product's Code is used when a Child product is added to cart. If Master is used, the Child product is added as a note in the order line. Toggle ON Allow Child Products as Note Line.
   4. Allow Product Matrix Mode: select whether to allow display of individual child products in a matrix display mode, using the Product Variant Grid Widget. Default: OFF. 
   5. Allow Display Type Override: select whether to allow the default display type to be overridden on a product-by-product basis. Default: OFF. NOTE - If this setting and 'Allow Display Type Override at Variant Value' are both enabled, the latter will be used.
   6. Allow Child Products As Note Line: select whether to allow child products to be added without a product code. If enabled, the selected variants are added as notes against the master product on the order. Default: OFF. 
   7. Enforce Stock Security for Variants: select whether to allow stock level settings for each child product to apply. Default: OFF. 
   8. Update Master Products With Child Images: select whether to add child images to the master product gallery automatically, so that as the User selects a different variant, the relevant image will change. Default: OFF. (See: Automatic Image Tagging for Variants to configure.)
   9. Allow Manual Sort of Products Attributes: select to allow the User to sequence child products by drag-and-drop. Default: OFF.
   10. Enforce Tag Order Comparison: Toggle ON/OFF as required.
       
       
5. Click Save.

The Product Variant feature is now configured and ready to use during product maintenance. 

2. Edit Site-Wide Variants (optional)

The CMS stores a site-wide list of Variants (for example, 'Size') and their associated Values ('Small', 'Medium', 'Large') in a table. This lookup table displays when you add a child product to a master. 

1. In the CMS, go to Settings → Feature Management → Products & Categories. 
   
   
2. Configure the Product Variant feature. 
   
   

3. Hover over the Options button and select Edit Variants. 
   

   Don't see an 'Options' button? Check that the Product Variant Mode is set to 'Online', then click Save.
   

4. Click Add and enter a Variant in the input field. In our example we'll add 'Size' as a variant.
   
   
   
5. Click Save. You'll notice the button updates from 'Save' to 'Values'. 
   
   
   
6. Click Values and then Add to add a value. Our example values for 'Size' are 'Small', 'Medium', and 'Large'.
   
   
7. Click Save and repeat to add another value. Continue until all values have been entered. 
   
   
   
8. Click Back to exit values maintenance and return to your Variant list.
    
9. Repeat this process for other Variants you need, such as Colour, Capacity, Weight, Length, and so on. 
    

3. Add Child Products (Variants) to Master Products

Now let's set up some variants to a Master product!

1. In the CMS, go to Products & Categories → Product Maintenance. 
   
   
2. Search for the required product and click Edit. 
   
   
3. Scroll down to section 'Master Product'.  
   
    
   
   
4. Toggle ON Is Master Product on. The Child Products section with additional maintenance fields will appear.
   
   
5. If Allow Display Type Override is enabled but Allow Display Type Override at Variant Value is disabled, the Display As dropdown appears. This allows the default variant values display mode to be overridden for just this product. NOTE - if Allow Display Type Override at Variant Value is enabled, the default display mode can be overridden for each variant when the first child product is added.  
   
   
   

6. In the Child Products panel, add the Child Products. You can either link another product by searching and selecting it in the Product Search field, or leave this blank and just add Variant values. NOTE - if you're just using Variant values, the Master Product code will always be used for pricing and Allow Child Products As Note Line must be enabled in Feature Settings.
   
   

   The first Child Product

   The attributes of the first Child Product entered will determine how all other Child products are entered.

   • If the first Child product is another product, then all other products must be other linked products and not just product variant values. 
   • All other Child products must have the same variant types as the first Child product but with different sets of values.  

   
   
   
   
   

7. In the Variant dropdown, select the variant name.
   
   
   
   
8. If Allow Display Type Override at Variant Value is enabled, then the Display As dropdown appears. This allows you to override the default display mode for this variant by selecting another mode if required. 
   
   
9. In Variant Value, select a value or type in a new one for this Child product. The dropdown list will be populated with values previously saved to the lookup table. 
   
    
   
   
10. If there is another variant and value applicable to this Child Product, enter it in the next line, repeating steps 7 -9. 
    
    
11. If a third variant is needed, click the Add Variant button. 
    
    
12. Once all variants have been entered, click Add Child Product. 
    
    
13. If a Child Product is to be the default variant displayed in the Product List and Master Product Details page, select its Set as Default Child button.
    
    
14. REMEMBER to save any work done to the Master Product section. Click Save at the top of the maintenance page. 

The child product(s) are now listed in 'Show Existing Child Product Attributes'. There are also options to make each child product active/inactive, remove it or set it as the default option.

Make a child product active/inactive

A child product can be toggled 'inactive'. This hides it on your website. For example, a particular variant might be temporarily unavailable so you do not want your customers to select it for the time being.

1. If you're already in the 'Master Product' section for the Master product, go to step 4. Otherwise, go to Products & Categories → Product Maintenance, find the Master Product and click Edit.
   
   
2.  Scroll down to the 'Master Product' section.
   
   
3. Click Show Existing Child Product Attributes. 
   
   
4. Toggle OFF Active for that child product. You can toggle this ON again at any time.   
   
   
5. Click Save at the top of the page.
   
    
    

Remove a Child product from a Master product

Removing a Child product deletes it permanently from the Master product. 

1. If you're already in the 'Master Product' section for the Master product, go to step 4. Otherwise, go to Products & Categories → Product Maintenance, find the master product and click Edit.
   
   
2.  Scroll down to the 'Master Product' section.
   
   
3. Click Show Existing Child Product Attributes. 
   
   
4. Click Remove for the Child product.
   
   
5. Click Save at the top of the page. 

Import Product Variants

To perform a bulk upload of product variants data, you can use the import function. 

1. Go to Settings → Feature Settings → Products & Categories.
   
   
2. Click Configure the Product Variant feature. 
   
   
3. At the top of the page, hover over the Options button, then select Import Variants. 
   
   
   
   
4. If you need the CSV template to work with, click Download Example Template. IMPORTANT - The columns included in the template will change depending on options selected in Feature Settings. Ensure the template used matches your Product Variant Settings. 
   
   
   
   
   
5. Paste your data into the spreadsheet, re-entering the master product ('Parent Product Code') once for every variant combination available. 
   
   
   
   
   
6. Save the file somewhere locally as .csv format.
   
   
7. Select an Import Type from the dropdown: 
   a. Override Imported Only - all master products in the spreadsheet will have their variant data replaced with what's in your spreadsheet. No other products will be affected.
   b. Override All Products - the product data in in the spreadsheet will become the COMPLETE product variant data for your site. Current variants not in the spreadsheet will be deleted.
   
   
8. Click 'Select files...' to browse to your saved .csv file.
   
   
9. When the import is complete, the message will advise whether the import was successful. If errors occurred, fix the data and try again. 
   
   
   
   
   
10. To verify a successful import, go to Product Maintenance and search for one of the master products on your .csv file. 
    
    
11. Check the variant data to ensure it matches up with what you've just imported.
     
    
    
    

Hide Child Products from Product Searches (optional)

When a site visitor runs a product search on your site, the standard option is to display the master product and each child product with own product code separately: 

Another option is to have child products hidden in search results, and only show the Master product: 

If 'Hide Child products' is active, this message appears next to the 'Display Online' toggle in the Product Maintenance page: 

Include Child Product Reviews in Master Product Page

From version 4.31+, Child product reviews can be included in their Master product detail pages when both Child and Master products are displayed on your website. 

To enable this option,

1. Navigate to Content → Pages & Templates → Products → Product Detail.   
   
2. Find either the Product Reviews or Product Rating widget. (NOTE - If either widget has not already been added, you can always add it to the zone you want them displayed in.)
   
   
3. For one of the widgets, click Edit. 
   
   
   
4. Toggle ON Include Child Reviews on Master Products.
   
   
   
5. Click Save. The setting will be saved in both widgets.

Additional Information

You can display variants on their own individually or as variants in a single product page.

Related help

• Page:
  Product Maintenance Settings
• Page:
  Product Maintenance
• Page:
  Add Video to a Product Page
• Page:
  Variant Tags
• Page:
  Product Variant Grid

• Page:
  Product Rating Widget
• Page:
  Product List Rating Widget