Variations in SureDone are configurable by channel depending on the limitations of the channel and in some cases by the age of the integration. This guide and corresponding chart provides an overview of how variations are configured by channel:
| Channel | Variation Management Type | Variation Fields Available | Variation Reference Name (on Channel) |
| Amazon | Mapping Based | Variable based category | VariationTheme |
| eBay | Settings Based | Configurable | VariationSpecifics |
| Fixed by SKU/GUID | None | ItemGroupId | |
| Facebook/Instagram | Fixed by SKU/GUID | None | item_group_id |
| Walmart | Fixed by SKU/GUID | Variable based on category | variantGroupId |
| Etsy | Fixed by SKU/GUID | Limited based on category | supports_variations |
| BigCommerce V2 | DEPRECATED | Configurable | Option Sets |
| BigCommerce V3 | Settings Based | Configurable | Shared Options |
| Shopify | Mapping Based | Fixed set of fields | ProductVariant |
| Magento2 | NEEDS CONFIRMATION | Configurable | attribute_set_details |
| Storefront | Settings Based | Configurable up to 3 levels | SKU |
General
The basic construct of managing a variation in SureDone is controlled by the sku and guid relationship. The sku in SureDone acts as a parent sku when it is the same as the guid, while the guid is the unique sku and acts a a variation child when different from the sku. Variation sets are grouped by a matching sku - see below for an example:
From there, a Products and Inventory setting for Variation Fields controls which attributes will dynamically create variation options. And by default, a variation option set will comprise of at least one field with varying values across the variation set. For example, a hat with SKU HAT123, and child SKUs/GUIDs of HAT345 and HAT456 would need to have unique sizes of Small, Medium and Large for SureDone to have awareness of being a variation set.
Amazon
Amazon relies on a concept of a dummy parent sku to control variations. Dummy parent skus are non-buyable products that correlate to parent ASINs and attributes that are common to the listing page. By default, SureDone will create a dummy parent sku by appending a "-AMZ" to the SureDone parent sku. This default value is configurable via the Variation Dummy Parent Extension channel setting. This may be overridden by forcing in amznparentsku with the values that already exists on the channel or is you wish to specify this value directly.
The VariationTheme field controls the type of variation set on each Amazon listing and is configurable by category. For example, a VariationTheme may be set as "Size" and then the values set in each size of the variation set will be responsible for setting the listing option values. You may set the mapped field for VariationTheme in the Amazon Manage Fields interface.
eBay
eBay variation management relies on the native SureDone variation grouping strategy in combination with the native Products & Inventory field mapping setting for Variation Fields. This means that variations generally will be setup the same across multiple eBay stores managed within a single SureDone account.
Despite this restriction, eBay variations are highly configurable and may be many levels deep. They must follow the pattern of including unique variation attribute values to create a set (ie unique sizes/colors/styles/etc) though eBay have very few restrictions as to which fields may comprise variation options.
Once set, internally ebayvariations will convey the specific variation specifics for each listing SKU and to ensure proper operation. Listings created via SureDone will rely on the ebaysku (with Inventory Tracking by SKU enabled) to control the listing variation specifics and may have ebayvariations set for reference only.
Google / Facebook / Instagram
These channels do not have configurable variation fields and are controlled by the channels internal default field configurations (ie by Size/Color/etc). The variations sets are controlled by the native SureDone variation grouping and is not modifiable at this time.
Walmart
Walmart variation management relies on the native SureDone variation grouping strategy in combination with per category attribute requirements. Each category will have a restricted set of variantAttributeNames that control variation option values.
Etsy
Etsy variation management relies on the native SureDone variation grouping strategy in combination with per category property requirements. Each category will have a restricted set of properties that supports_variations that control variation option values.
BigCommerce
BigCommerce variation management relies on the native SureDone variation grouping strategy in combination with the native Products & Inventory field mapping setting for Variation Fields as well as pre-configured Shared Options directly in BigCommerce. Each category will have a restricted set of properties that supports_variations that control variation option values. Please see How Variations Work on Bigcommerce with Suredone guide for more information.
Shopify
Shopify variation management relies on the native SureDone variation grouping strategy in combination with a fixed set of fields and mapping. **NEEDS CONFIRMATION**
Magento2
**NEEDS CONFIRMATION**
Storefront
SureDone storefront variation management relies on the native SureDone variation grouping strategy in combination with the native Products & Inventory field mapping setting for Variation Fields. Variation options on storefront product pages may be up to 3 levels deep.