Product and Variant Restrictions: A Game-Changer for Shopify Store Owners

According to SiriusDecision, 67% of the B2B buyer’s journey is now done digitally. You need to keep your store user-friendly and easy to use. So, aren’t product and variant restrictions making things harder for customers? Actually, the actual scenario is quite the opposite. They make things easier for B2B businesses. How? Continue reading to find out!

In this article, you’ll learn what product and variant restrictions are, and why they are important for your wholesale business. We’re also going to talk about how to set these restrictions easily. Hope you find this article helpful.

Understanding Product And Variant Restrictions

In Shopify, Product and Variant Restrictions refer to rules and limitations you can set for products or product variants in your store. These restrictions help control how products are sold, and how customers interact with them and can be used to manage inventory, pricing, or purchasing rules.

What Are Product Restrictions?

Product restrictions refer to rules on the amount of the product. You can establish the minimum and maximum quantities. Minimum and maximum order quantities have their impact on any eCommerce business. Wholesalers impose various business limitations on their customers to maximize income. Restrictions on the minimum and maximum order quantities are two common tactics. These restrictions assist in making up for wholesalers’ reduced profit margins. We are aware of how important bulk orders are to the wholesale sector. More control over your customers’ orders will increase your revenue.

Why You Should Think About Product Restrictions as a Wholesale Business

Let’s say I own a cupcake bakery. In the morning, I make seventy cupcakes. I might be unable to sell every cupcake if everyone purchases two or three. 

What happens if I limit the quantity to a minimum? Let’s say a consumer has to purchase six cupcakes. I’ll sell more than I did in the previous situation. There will be less of a possibility of the cupcakes spoiling. I’ll make more money.

With the limitations, it becomes simpler to predict the item’s demand. Sometimes, we have to keep goods for a long time, which increases inventory costs. Setting restrictions will reduce the price. Your consumers will find it easy to bulk purchase with MOQ.

What Are Variant Restrictions?

Product variants are diverse options. Your online store will accommodate a variety of consumer tastes. Product variants are variations of the same product. These options give consumers more choices. Size, color, style, material, and other product features are examples of these choices. These choices may alter the product’s look or functioning.

You can limit the number of variations a customer can buy by imposing limits on them. Imagine that a consumer wishes to order red T-shirts from your clothing company. You have three sizes of red T-shirts: L, M, and S. You establish two as the minimum restriction. They must purchase two distinct sizes.

Effects of Variant Restrictions on Your B2B Business

Sometimes, one of the variants of your product becomes very popular. The demand is getting higher every day. It might get stocked out soon. But other variants of the same product aren’t doing well. The stock isn’t going the way you want them to. 

Now what are you going to do in this situation? A variant restriction might help you. 

Suppose, you’re the owner of a clothing business. Your black pants are the black sheep of your business. But other colors, let’s say, white, red, and navy blue aren’t performing well. You put a minimum restriction of 3. That means your customer has to buy three different colors of pants.

It will clear your inventory easily. You can stock new products. It will also increase your average order value.

Easily Set Product And Variant Restrictions For Your Wholesale Business

If you’re comfortable with coding, you can add custom JavaScript or Shopify’s Liquid code to implement variant or product restrictions directly on your theme files. You can use apps also. Now, the restriction app makes it easy to implement product and variant restrictions for your Shopify business.

Setting Order Quantity Limits For Products

An item can have both minimum and maximum limits. Or you can set only one of them to suit your requirements.

Setting order quantity limits for a product:

• From your admin panel, create a rule set.
• After the display settings, click on the “Set restrictions”
• In the quantity restrictions section, you’ll see three options – per variant, per option, and total combination

                  Per Variant: The number of items your buyers can select from each product variant.

                  Per Option: The number of options your customer chooses.

                 Total Combination: If you set the maximum quantity as 6. The maximum number of items your buyer can purchase is six. 

• Put your limitations on the boxes. You can set both maximum and minimum here.
• Save the changes.

That’s it! Your store now has order quantity limits. To check if the restrictions are effective for you, navigate to the product store view.

The minimum amount per variant in this case is two. When the customer selects the “add” button after the order minimum has been established, the count will begin at 2.

Setting Order Quantity Limits For Product Variants

Now, you can put restrictions on the number of variants your customer can buy.

To set order quantity limits for a product’s variant:

• From your admin panel, go to the rule set section.
• Click on the “set restrictions”
• Scroll down to the Variant Restrictions section.
• You can set a minimum limit and a maximum limit.
• Enter your preferred number to limit variants.
• Save it. That’s all.

How Product And Variant Restrictions Work For Customers

Product and variant restrictions are two of the most commonly used inventory management strategies. But, how do your customers see these limitations on your product page?

Suppose you have restrictions on a particular product. A buyer added more or less units of a product to their cart. The error notification that follows will appear to them.

When they meet the limits, they will see a “good to go” message.

Use Cases for Product and Variant Restrictions

Product and variant constraints can be quite useful in various scenarios. They enable businesses to provide a personalized purchasing experience while maintaining control over inventory and price.

Wholesale Pricing: Customers frequently face certain constraints, such as a minimum order quantity (MOQ). You can prevent retail consumers from getting bulk prices. It ensures that only wholesale buyers can buy larger amounts.

Exclusive Products: You can restrict limited-edition variants to specified client segments or areas, such as distinctive colors or sizes. For example, special access to certain varieties of VIP or loyalty program members can be a good idea.

Inventory Management: If a product version is currently out of stock, you can limit its availability on the storefront to avoid disappointing clients. You can also limit the number of things a consumer can purchase, particularly for in-demand items.

Regional Restrictions: Some products or versions may be geographically limited owing to shipping restrictions or local laws. Using limits guarantees that only approved buyers can buy these things.

Implementing these constraints can create a smooth, personalized shopping experience that increases productivity and achieves business objectives.

Final Thoughts

In essence, product and variant restrictions can create a lot of opportunities for any wholesale business. You can use these restrictions to clear your inventory, increase your order value, predict demands more accurately, maximize your profit margin, etc. An easy way to set the limits is using a bulk order app. 

Setting Product And Variant Restrictions FAQ