Utilizing Znode’s Attribute Families to Empower B2B Ecommerce Flexibility
B2B manufacturers and distributors require flexible ecommerce platforms to accommodate complex product data and unique business rules. Managing this complex data is critical in B2B ecommerce.
To help simplify the complexity, Znode’s dynamic data model provides businesses with five different methods to integrate unique data into the ecommerce platform. These approaches are:
- Attribute Families
- User-Defined Fields
- Dynamic Custom Tables
- Native or "Built-In" Custom Fields
- Custom Databases paired with Custom APIs
The easiest ways to create or add data types is through Attribute Families or User-Defined Fields. These are accessed through Znode’s Admin console, and these methods enable administrators to create and extend specific data types in the platform without a developer.
What are Attributes and how can they be used in Znode?
Attributes are the data foundation of any ecommerce platform. Attributes are specific to product information which is used by buyers. Znode administrators can created Attributes which are stored in Znode’s PIM. Attributes are usually broken down into three categories:
- Product Attributes: size, color, weight, price, SKU, etc.
- Category Attributes: dresses, sleeve length, children’s jackets, leather shoes, etc.
- Media Attributes: product image, gallery image, audio, video, etc.
Whether they are the default Attributes already in the Znode platform or a set of custom Attributes created by an ecommerce manager or merchant, Attributes are associated with a product so that they can be provided in the user experience. Attributes provide descriptions of products using standardized terms that make those products searchable and combined into “Groups” and “Families” within the platform.
What are Attribute Families?
Attributes are designed to be collected together into Attribute Groups based on the content of those attributes, such as in the table below:
Common Attribute Groups | |
Attribute Group Name | Associated Attributes |
“Product Information” |
|
“Product Details” |
|
“Shipping Settings” |
|
Attribute Families takes the concept of grouping Attributes a step further. While Attribute Groups are typically created around managing features like “Shipping Settings,” Attribute Families enable businesses to combine multiple Attribute Groups into larger sets called Attribute Families that can then be applied to specific products that business sells.
For instance, a business may create and utilize several native and custom Attributes based on the products they sell. These Attributes become the information buyers want while shopping. The business can then put those Attributes into several Attribute Groups, such as “Shipping Settings,” “Product Details,” “Product Settings,” “Product Info,” and “Images.”
From there, the business can combine Attribute Groups into several Attribute Families, which can then easily be applied to various products the business sells.
How can Attribute Families be leveraged?
Once Attributes and Attribute Groups have been created within the Znode platform, manufacturers and distributors can reuse and apply them to multiple products and separate Attribute Families.
For example, a business may create a “Default Product” Attribute Family composed of the Attributes that relate to the majority of its products or a set of products. Examples of this include Product Details, Product Information, Shipping Settings, and more. These Attribute Families are then applied to the appropriate specific products.
The business might also find that a subset of its products needs a few additional attributes to manage and sell them effectively, such as a Product Color or Product Size for clothing that it sells. Workwear, for example, may require an entirely different set of Attributes than the mechanical components of an electrical system or a car wash.
The ecommerce manager can easily take the “Default Product” Attribute Family it has created in Znode and create a new “Clothing Product” Attribute Family comprised of those standard Attributes along with the new clothing-specific Attributes. This Attribute Family can then be applied to the specific products it relates to.
Why do Attribute Families matter?
Znode enables manufacturers and distributors to create an unlimited number of Attributes, Attribute Groups, and Attribute Families directly within the Znode platform. With Znode, there is no need for a developer or custom development work. Once created, these Attributes, Groups, and Families can easily be applied to any number of products or product groups that a business sells.
If a need for a new Attribute arises, it can quickly be created in the Znode platform and added to new or existing Groups and Families–freeing the business up to tackle other important work.
Why do other platforms fail at B2B?
Many ecommerce platforms are not successful in the B2B sector because they were not developed for this style of business and they treat B2B as an afterthought.
For instance, most ecommerce platforms limit the number of Attributes a business can create, making it difficult to manage complex product catalogs. These platforms often have a heritage in B2C ecommerce, where large, diverse catalogs of products across multiple, unique categories were not the norm. These platforms haphazardly add B2B features and functionality to appeal to a wider audience of buyers, but often frustrate their business partners because those B2B features are half-baked, underscoring a lack of understanding about the complexity of B2B work.
B2B shouldn’t be an afterthought. Manufacturers and distributors need an ecommerce platform with the flexibility to solve for unique business use cases. Znode’s flexibility and scalability is built for B2B.