Google Adds Product Variants to Its Structured Data

On February 20, 2024, Google announced the addition of a new property called "product variants" to its structured data. This property allows sellers to display different variations of their products, such as colors, sizes, and models.

 

Product Variant for Product Structured Data

According to an official statement from Google, the main purpose of adding this structured data is to improve the online shopping experience for Google users.

With more complete information about the various product variations available, it is hoped that consumers will find it easier to find and select the appropriate product for their needs.

 

Adding Product Variants to Structured Data

To make use of this feature, webmasters or online store owners will need to add structured data about the product variants under the main product, or what is known as the parent product.

This step of adding properties is a bit complicated because the page types are different. To help webmasters with this grouping, Google has also added several new properties that can be used:

• hasVariant: This property organizes product variants under a ProductGroup to establish a relationship between the variant and the parent product.
• variesBy: This property is used to list the properties of the variant identifier. This allows webmasters to determine the characteristics or attributes that differentiate one variant from another.
• productGroupID: This property represents the ID or "parent sku" of the ProductGroup which serves as a unique identifier for the variant group.

For a more complete guide and examples of the resulting code, please visit the page Product Variants Structured Data Guide.

 

Benefits for Webmasters

The main benefit of the Product Variants property is for sellers who have products with many variants, such as clothing, shoes, or electronics. By providing more detailed information about each variant of a product, sellers will likely be able to attract more consumers and increase their sales through rich snippets.

In addition, Google is providing the ability to monitor the performance of web pages that use Product Variant Structured Data through Google Search Console.

This reporting page allows online store owners to track how effective the use of structured data is in increasing the visibility and sales of their products.

With the addition of the Product Variants feature, Google continues to strive to provide users with a better and more informative online shopping experience. This is also in line with the trend of increasing demand from online consumers for more detailed and transparent product