Today, we’re absolutely delighted to say that product variations are available to all Made By Mums sellers!

• Product variations are here! Add size, colour, type options and more to your listings
• The personalisation box has now been removed from all product listings; to include one for your product, you will now need to specify within the listing
• Your feedback is sought! Please try them out in your listings and let us know your thoughts

It’s the feature we’ve been asked about more than any other, and to be honest it has hovered right near the top of our priority list ever since we launched back in 2018.

However, adding product variations was always going to be a complex and time consuming undertaking and required careful thought. The last thing we wanted to do was compromise the simplicity of adding and editing products by overburdening it with excessive options nobody uses! Yes, we have your time (and sanity!) in mind, always, when making these decisions.

Given this, we were reluctant to introduce such an intricate and potentially confusing feature to the platform until we were satisfied that it was right for our sellers. Happily, we believe that point has now been reached.

What are product variations for?

The main reason to use product variations is to be able to offer your product at different price points and in varying configurations. Up to now, sellers have needed to create entirely separate listings for each variation (e.g. t-shirts in different sizes). This was never intended to be a long term solution and if you’ve been doing this, we salute your perseverance!

Please know that product variations aren’t intended to replace the ‘add personalisation/customisation’ function already in place – if your product variations are not price dependant, you can still use this as before (in fact that’s also had a little revamp, see below! 🙂)

Where you come in…

This is a brand new feature built on top of our ecommerce system, completely bespoke to our platform. Product variations are designed to enhance your listings to better serve your customers, from an interface that allows you to do so in the same convenient and intuitive way, whether from your phone, tablet or computer.

As a result, we hope you’ll find them simple and fast to incorporate into your product listings. 

And yet, as just a two person core team, we lack the testing resources of larger organisations. So this, dear seller, is where you come in!

If you’ve been one of the many who have been hankering after this new feature, we’d so appreciate it if you could road test it, see how you get on… and let us know your impressions! Anything we missed? Anything not working, or just not quite right? 

By trying it out and giving your feedback, you’re helping to make our platform work better for everybody. So, a big ‘thank you’ in advance 🙂

So, what’s new?

From today, it is now possible to list up to two variation types for your product when listing it in your shop. For example, you could now list clothing items in different sizes, or wall decorations in different dimensions, with each one at a different price point.

The first variation you select will allow you to choose from a wide range of product attributes, such as ‘size’, ‘colour’ and ‘type’, for which you can set options at different price points. 

We created these options in close consultation with community members, so we do hope that what we now have to offer is suitable for your needs. However, if you feel you could benefit from a particular attribute not currently available, just holler and we’ll do our best to accommodate.

A second variation is also available to enable you to provide an additional level of flexibility for your customers, affording them a further element of choice when ordering. 

Please note only the first variation is price amendable.

How to create new listings that utilise product variations

The add product screen, which we’re sure you’re familiar with by now, has a new option called ‘Variations’ (it’s about half way down the page).

Tap ‘add variation’ and select your variation from the dropdown box.

Choose an option from the ‘select variation’ choices that matches the available options for your product (e.g. ‘size’ for a baby cardi). Add a choice (e.g. ‘small’) and set a price/optional sale price for it. Next, tap ‘add another’ to create the next option, and repeat until all your options are added.

Sale prices

If you add sale prices, these will override the standard price indefinitely, or until you update your listing by removing them at a later date. In addition, as with traditional listings, you have the option to schedule a sale, by using the ‘Sale Duration’ option (which shows immediately below the product variations if you have specified them).

Done all that? Congrats! Hit save, make a brew (and a biscuit?) and check out your shiny new variations on your item listing!

How to edit existing listings to include product variations

Product variations are compatible with all your existing listings; to add them is (hopefully!) a simple and quick process – edit the product, add your variations, then save to update.

From your Sellers Dashboard, navigate to the ‘Products’ tab. Find the product you want to add variations to, and tap/click ‘edit’. Next, follow the steps mentioned in the ‘create new listings’ section immediately above to add the variations to the listing.

Once done, your customers will see the options you’ve set on your products right away.

What about customisation and personalisation options?

As well as the new product variations update, we’ve also overhauled the way you can ask customers to specify personalisation in their orders. By default, the ‘Personalise your order” box will now be removed from all product listings, so if you do nothing, this option will no longer display in your listings.

We chose this approach simply because the majority of our product listings don’t have customisation options. The box was therefore irrelevant to a great number of our listings, which we’ve understood for a while to be a potential source of confusion to our visitors (we’ve also had feedback from some makers expressing the same views).

Of course, we also understand that personalisation and customisation are intrinsic elements of many listings – so instead we’re making it easy to add back to your listings via an option in the product edit screen. As an added bonus, you can now add a little commentary note to specify exactly what options your customer should provide when ordering!

How to add customisation and personalisation to your listings

As with product variations, adding customisation field for your product is possible for new and existing listings.

You’ll find the new ‘Personalisation / Customisation’ field immediately below the ‘Downloadable Products” option when you add/edit a listing. To enable, check the ‘does you product have personalisation options?’ box, and provide options for your customer in the ‘customer instructions’ box immediately below.

Once you save your product, the personalisation box will magically appear in your product listing.

Wrapping up

We really hope that you find product variations a useful addition to our offering. Creating a full featured selling platform to help our mama makers and carers showcase their creations in the best possible light has always been our overriding aim.

We think this is a major step towards doing just that (although the ‘to-do’ and ideas lists have truly never been longer!) 

We’re delighted to be adding this much requested feature to our platform today.

As mentioned, we highly value any feedback and opinions on this latest addition, so please – give it a try, and let us know what you think!