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Product Types and Variations in B2C Commerce
B2C Commerce uses different types of products to support requirements for different storefront ordering information, such as size, color, and customization options. This page includes a series of tables. The first table gives an overview of each product type and subsequent tables illustrate how each product type relates to catalogs, inventory, pricing, promotion, and search.
Product Types Overview
Product types include: standard product, base product, variation group, variation product, product set, and product bundle.
This table describes how B2C Commerce product types are presented on the storefront, how they relate to inventory and availability, and how products within orders are recorded and analyzed.
You can access catalog, category, and product details programmatically via the APIs and system attributes.
| Purpose | Active Data Calculation | Availability | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard Product | Any product that is sold and shown alone and doesn’t have variations, such as different sizes or colors. If you include a standard product in a product set or product bundle, it's considered a set product or bundled product. Set products and bundled products aren’t a standard product. | Calculated as a single product. | Product is available based on the product inventory record. |
| Base Product | A base product is a non-sellable product type that represents all the sellable variations of a product. For example, a shirt base product can have size and color as variation attributes. A shoe base product can have size, color, and width as variation attributes. Product variations are typically product attributes like size, color, style, and options. A product that represents all the variations for a particular product. For example, a specific style of t-shirt. A base product can't be purchased directly, only product variations with specific variation information can be purchased. For example, if a base product has color and size variation attributes, you must specify the color and size of a specific variant to purchase it. If you have more than three variation attributes, you can consider using options. |
For most metrics, calculated as the average of the variation products. | If a least one of its variants is orderable or in-stock, a base product us considered orderable or in stock. If the base product has its own inventory record, then inventory values are calculated based on the base product's inventory record. The calculations don't include variation product inventory. If the Base product doesn't have its own inventory record, then the inventory values are calculated based on the inventory records of all the variants. |
| Variation Group | A variation group is a group of product SKUs that shares a common attribute, such as color or size. It always belongs to a base product and represents a group of variation products. | For most metrics, calculated as the aggregation of the variants in the group. | Calculated as the availability of any variants in the group. |
| Variation Product | A product that is a specific variation. For example, a Vegas brand t-shirt in size 10, color blue is a product variation of the Vegas brand t-shirt base product. Variation products associated with the same variation base product share most of the attributes defined for the product base product, but have their own product IDs and images. |
For most metrics, not calculated. | A variation product is considered orderable or in stock based on its inventory record. |
| Product Set | A product that includes several products that appear together and can be purchased together or separately. For example, an accessories kit that includes a hairbrush, comb, and mirror, each of which can also be bought separately. Another common example is an outfit, with a jacket, shirt, and pants, which can be purchased together or each item can be purchased separately. | For most metrics, calculated as the average of products in the set. | If at least one of the product set items is orderable or in-stock, a product set is considered orderable or in stock. |
| Product Bundle | A product that includes several products that are only sold together. For example, a gaming bundle that includes a video game console and several games. | Calculated as a single product. Identical to standard product calculations. | If a bundle has its own inventory record, both the bundle and the bundled products must be available for a bundle to be considered orderable or in stock. If a bundle has its own inventory record and the Use Bundle Inventory Only option is selected in the inventory list, the bundle must be available. Bundled products are considered orderable and in stock even when products aren’t available. If a bundle has no inventory record, only the records of bundled products are used to determine availability. |
Import/Export, Inventory, and Options
This table describes how each product type is imported and exported to a catalog. You can also find a description of the inventory record, and product notes on options for each product type.
Catalog Object Import/Export |
Inventory | Options |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard Product | Has a single inventory record | Options can be configured and purchased. | |
| Base Product | Imported as the <product> element, based on the definition in catalogs.xsd. If a base product is imported without its variants, the products specified in the <variants> section remain related to the main. Other variants are unlinked from the main and become normal products. Deleting a base product doesn't delete the variants. |
Doesn’t have an inventory record. |
Options are defined in the base product, but only purchased with the variation product. |
| Variation Group | Included within the <product> element under the <variations> block as a subelement called <variation-groups>. Catalog import can assign variation groups from one base product to another in the same way that variation products are assigned to a different base product. |
Doesn’t have an inventory record. Inventory is calculated as the sum of inventory of any of the variation products in the group. | Options are defined in the base product, but only purchased with the variation product. |
| Variation Product | If a variant product is imported without its base product, the product remains a variant. A variation product has exactly one base product. You can't reliably change this ownership from one base product to another in a single import process. You can, however, release the relationship with one import process and establish the relationship with a subsequent import process. |
Has an inventory record. However, some legacy variation products, configured before version 2.10, don't have an inventory record. In this case inventory levels are managed through the base product. |
Options are defined in the base product, but only purchased with the variation product. |
| Product Set | If a set product is imported without its parent product set, it remains a member of the set. |
The set doesn't have an inventory record, but all the products in the set have their own inventory records. | Options can be configured and purchased for the product set or for each individual product in the set. |
| Product Bundle | If a bundled product is imported without its bundle, it remains a member of the bundle. Deleting a bundle doesn’t delete the bundled products. |
The product bundle has an inventory record and all products in the bundle have inventory records. | Options can be configured and purchased for the product bundle or for products within the bundle. |
Pricing, Promotions, and Search
This table describes the pricing promotions and search setting options for each product type.
| Pricing | Promotions | Search | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard Product | Single price unless configured for options. Option prices are configured as part of the product option. | Any standard product can have an associated promotion. | If the search preference Show Orderable Products Only is selected, only orderable products appear in the search results. Otherwise all products appear in the search results. |
| Base Product | Base products can't be purchased. However, if you’re showing a base product, the price for the base product is calculated as the price of all variants. The calculated price is usually a price range. |
If you configure a base product as a discounted product, the discount applies to all variation products of the base product. Base products can't be used as bonus products because they aren’t orderable. However, they can be used for choice of bonus product promotions. |
The base product only appears in search results if no slicing is used. In this case, it uses the information and images of the default variation. If none of a base product's variants in the current search result is orderable, the base product doesn’t appear in search results |
| Variation Group | A variation group price is calculated as the price for all variants that are represented within a group. This calculation applies even if the base product has an entry in the price book. This calculation is usually a price range. |
Variation groups | Variation group only appears in search results if no slicing is used and the variation group is assigned to the category. |
| Variation Product | Separate prices for all variation products. Option prices are configured as part of the product option. | Variation products can have individual promotions that are managed separately. | If slicing is used, the variation product appears in the search results. |
| Product Set | A product set has one price for the product set and separate prices for each of the products in the set. The product set price is always the sum of the product prices that make up the set. You can't set a product set price. If any of the individual products have a promotional price, the promotional price is used in the calculation of the product set price. | A product set can't have promotions, because it isn't orderable, but the products within it can have promotions. | If none of the products in the product set, as represented in the search results, are orderable, a product set doesn't appear in search results. |
| Product Bundle | One price for the bundle. Individual products within the bundle don't have prices. | A product bundle has its own promotions, but the products within it can't. | A product bundle depends on its availability status to determine whether it appears in search results. |
- Create a Base Product
To create a base product, you create a base product first, then assign variation products to it. This topic applies to B2C Commerce. Scenario 1 - Product Variations
Most products are available in a variation of sizes or colors. B2C Commerce represents all variations as a single product, called a base product. - Create a Variation Product
Variation attributes can be Local or Shared. You create shared variation attributes in the scope of a catalog, and you can apply them to some or all products of that catalog. You create local variation attributes for a specific product, and apply them only to that product. This topic applies to B2C Commerce. - Variation Attribute Values
You define the variation products for a base product by creating a variation attribute. This topic applies to B2C Commerce. - Assign Variation Attributes
You can assign attributes to base product, groups, or products. This topic applies to B2C Commerce. - Managing Variation Groups
A variation group is a product type that represents a subset of variation products that are part of a base product. This topic applies to B2C Commerce. - Create a Product Variation Group
You can import variation groups or create variation groups. This topic applies to B2C Commerce. - Configure Variation Groups Display Mode
Enable the display settings for variation groups. This topic applies to B2C Commerce. - Apply Variation Groups
You can apply variation groups to your storefront in different configurations. This topic applies to B2C Commerce. - Variation Group Pricing, Inventory, and Promotions
You can assign promotions and pricing to variations groups. This topic applies to B2C Commerce. - Script API Support for Variation Groups
The B2C Commerce Script API supports variation groups. - Merchandise by Product Variations
Variation Groups represent subsets of Variation Master products based on attributes like color or size, for example, all blue size-small items. Each variant must be its own product. Groups derive inventory from their SKUs, and function like sets or bundles in categories and promotions. - Base Products for Scenarios
The Base Product and Variation Group Scenarios and Base Product and Variation Product Scenarios topics both use the products described here. This topic applies to B2C Commerce. - Base Product and Variation Product Scenarios
The following scenarios describe different ways to present variation products in your storefront. This topic applies to B2C Commerce. - Base Product and Variation Group Scenarios
The following scenarios describe different ways to present variation groups in your storefront. This topic applies to B2C Commerce.
