December 3,2024 | Omnichannel Selling How to Create a Configurable Product on Shopify?

Offering customizable, configurable products is no longer just an option — it’s a necessity. Customers increasingly expect personalized experiences, and Shopify, as a leading e-commerce platform, provides a great foundation for creating online stores. But when it comes to offering complex product configurations, Shopify’s out-of-the-box options can feel limited. That’s where advanced solutions, such as CPQ (Configure, Price, Quote), come into play.

In this blog, we’ll walk through how to create configurable products on Shopify, the limitations of its native features, and how using a CPQ solution can enhance your store’s product configuration capabilities.

What is CPQ and Why is It Important for Shopify?

CPQ software is designed to manage complex product configurations, automate pricing adjustments, and streamline the quoting process. CPQ systems allow businesses to offer dynamic, customizable products by automating various aspects of product selection and pricing based on customer inputs.

For Shopify merchants, CPQ is particularly useful if you offer products with multiple configuration options (like customizable bundles, specific features, or conditional add-ons) or if you need to manage complex pricing rules. Shopify’s built-in product variant features work well for basic configurations, but when your product requires advanced logic — such as conditional pricing based on specific selections or bundling — Shopify’s native capabilities can quickly fall short. CPQ software fills this gap by allowing businesses to offer configurable products with advanced rules and automation, while still using Shopify as their e-commerce platform.

Benefits of Integrating a CPQ with Shopify

Integrating a CPQ solution with Shopify unlocks several key benefits that can improve how you manage and sell complex products:

1. Enhanced Product Configuration

CPQ software makes it easier for customers to navigate complex product options and configure products that meet their specific needs. Instead of using Shopify’s basic variant system, a CPQ tool allows for advanced conditional logic. For example, if a customer selects a specific feature, other dependent options (like pricing or availability) can be automatically updated in real time.

2. Automated Pricing Adjustments

When products have multiple configuration options, manually adjusting prices can lead to errors or inconsistencies. With a CPQ system, pricing is automatically calculated based on the specific configurations chosen by the customer, ensuring accuracy without manual updates. This also saves time and reduces the likelihood of pricing errors.

3. Streamlined Quoting Process

CPQ not only helps with product configuration and pricing but also generates accurate quotes instantly. For merchants with B2B customers or high-value items, this is essential. Instead of waiting for a manual price quote, customers can get an accurate quote directly from the product page, improving the overall buying experience and shortening the sales cycle.

4. Improved Customer Experience

By automating product configuration and pricing, you make the shopping process much smoother for your customers. They can see price changes in real time, explore different configurations, and immediately understand the impact of their selections. This clarity can reduce friction in the buying process and increase customer satisfaction.

What is a Configurable Product?

A configurable product allows customers to personalize items based on their preferences, choosing from various options such as size, color, material, and other custom attributes. This type of product is especially popular in industries like fashion, electronics, and home furnishings, where customers value choice and customization.

By offering configurable products, you can deliver a more personalized shopping experience, increasing customer satisfaction and boosting sales. However, managing these configurations can quickly become complex if done manually, especially when it involves intricate pricing models, conditional logic, or multiple product dependencies.

Native Shopify Options for Product Configuration

Shopify provides a basic method for configuring products through its variant feature. You can define variants for products, allowing customers to choose different versions of an item — for example, selecting a shirt’s size and color.

Here’s how Shopify’s native configuration works:

1. Variants: You can create up to 100 variants for a product, combining options like size, color, or style.
2. Custom Fields: Using apps or basic liquid code, you can add custom fields to collect additional information (like engraving text or special instructions).

While these features work for simpler product offerings, they have limitations:

• Shopify doesn’t support complex product logic (like conditional options).
• Managing large product catalogs with numerous variants can become cumbersome.
• It lacks dynamic pricing, meaning prices can’t automatically adjust based on configurations.

To overcome these challenges, businesses that offer complex or customizable products often turn to advanced product configuration solutions like CPQ.

The Need for Advanced Product Configuration (CPQ)

CPQ  is a solution designed to simplify the process of configuring complex products, automating pricing, and generating quotes. It is particularly useful when Shopify’s standard variant options can’t handle the level of complexity you require.

For example, imagine selling a configurable laptop where customers choose not only the color and size but also specific hardware options (RAM, storage, processor). Each choice might affect the price dynamically, and certain options could be available only if others are selected.

Without a CPQ solution, managing these configurations manually can lead to errors, inconsistencies, and a poor customer experience. That’s why businesses turn to tools like Logik.io to supercharge Shopify’s configuration abilities.

Steps to Create a Configurable Product on Shopify

Let’s break down how to create a configurable product on Shopify, step by step:

Step 1: Define Your Product Configuration Needs

Before diving into Shopify, it’s crucial to outline what kind of configurations you need for your product:

• What options do your customers need to choose from? (E.g., color, material, size, add-ons)
• Are there any dependencies or conditions (e.g., certain sizes available only with specific materials)?
• How will these choices affect pricing?

Having a clear understanding of these needs will guide you through selecting the right setup and tools.

Step 2: Choose the Right Tools and Apps

Shopify’s native variant system can handle basic configurations, but for more complex needs, you’ll need to integrate a third-party app or a CPQ tool like Logik.io.

• Product options apps: These apps extend Shopify’s default functionality by adding custom fields, conditional logic, and extra options.
• Logik.io CPQ solution: Logik.io allows for complex product logic, dynamic pricing, and seamless integration with Shopify, making it ideal for stores with more advanced configuration needs.

Step 3: Set Up Product Variants and Options in Shopify

To get started, you can set up basic variants within Shopify by:

• Creating a new product in Shopify.
• Adding variant options (e.g., size, color) directly from the product page.
• Defining the number of combinations (variants) based on these options.

If you’re using Logik.io or another product configurator, you’ll integrate the app here to handle more advanced configurations.

Step 4: Implement CPQ Features (Using a Tool)

Once integrated, use Logik.io to:

• Set up conditional logic for product options. For example, if a customer chooses a premium material, certain color options may not be available.
• Implement dynamic pricing where the price adjusts based on customer selections.
• Streamline the customer experience by showing only relevant choices based on previous selections.

Step 5: Test the Configuration and User Experience

After everything is set up, thoroughly test the configuration:

• Ensure the customer journey is intuitive and easy to navigate.
• Verify that product options, conditional logic, and pricing calculations work correctly across different devices.
• Make adjustments based on feedback or errors during testing.

How Logik.io Enhances Product Configuration on Shopify

Logik.io offers a cutting-edge CPQ solution that enhances Shopify’s product configuration capabilities. With Logik.io, you can:

• Create highly customizable products with complex configurations and conditional logic.
• Implement dynamic pricing, ensuring that pricing automatically updates based on the customer’s selections.
• Provide a seamless, user-friendly interface for customers, simplifying the configuration process.

For businesses looking to go beyond Shopify’s native product variant limitations, Logik.io is a powerful solution that streamlines the configuration process, enabling you to offer customizable products with ease.