CSM Listings - Attribute Types and Attribute Sets
eCommerce platforms describe products with characteristics such as model number, weight, color or size. CSM refers to these as CSM item attributes.
When a listing is created from an item, CSM automatically populates values for the attributes in the listing's attribute set from Business Central data.
This applies to BigCommerce, WooCommerce and Magento:
Note: Shopify does not use CSM item attributes; configurable options for Shopify are maintained directly on the listing card. WooCommerce only synchronizes attributes for configurable items.
Setup on the Sales Channel
Two fields on the sales channel's Listing Management FastTab control attribute behavior:
- Enable New Attribute Design – required. Turns on the current CSM item attribute structure (sets, attributes, options).
- Use Shared Item Attributes – determines whether one attribute definition is shared by many products or defined per product.
| Platform | Attribute model | Use Shared Item Attributes |
|---|---|---|
| BigCommerce | Non-shared – attributes are unique to each product and sent listing by listing | False |
| WooCommerce | Shared – one attribute definition is reused across products | True (set automatically by the setup wizard) |
| Magento | Shared – attributes and attribute sets exist as records in Magento | True (set automatically by the setup wizard) |
CSM Item Attributes
A CSM item attribute can be linked to: None (manual value), Item Attributes, Item Variations, Item Fields or Item Unit of Measure Fields. When linked to a field, the attribute type is derived from the Business Central field type:
| Business Central field type | CSM attribute type |
|---|---|
| Date | Date |
| Decimal | Decimal |
| Integer | Integer |
| Option | Option |
| Text, Code and other types | Text |
To view or edit attributes: open the sales channel, choose Related > Listing > Channel Item Attributes.
Attributes are created automatically by the category wizards and by the listing wizard for configurable items, or manually for field-based attributes.
This applies to BigCommerce:
- Static attributes are sent as custom fields; configurable attributes are sent as variant options.
- Load Products From Channel creates CSM attributes from each product's variant options.
- To display a color option as a swatch, set Display Type Big to Swatch on the attribute and enter a hex value (e.g.
#EBEBEB) in External Reference for each option.
This applies to Magento: attributes, attribute options and attribute sets can be sent to and retrieved from Magento from the attribute and attribute set pages.
CSM Item Attribute Sets
An attribute set is a group of attributes linked to a CSM category (which maps to a Business Central item category). When a listing is created, the category determines the set, and the set determines which attribute lines appear on the listing.
Note: BigCommerce and WooCommerce have no attribute-set concept, so sets do not need to be linked to a channel record. Magento has attribute sets and they are synchronized.
Attribute Set Behavior (sales channel):
- One Per Category – one set per CSM category, mirroring Business Central item attribute assignments.
- Single – one set for all listings, specified in Listing Default Attribute Set.
- Multiple Category – one set shared by several CSM categories.
To view or edit sets: Related > Listing > Channel Item Attribute Sets. Assign attributes on the CSM Item Attribute Set Attributes FastTab. Sets are created automatically by the category wizard or manually.
To pull new Business Central item attributes into a set: select the category and choose Actions > Data Sync > Sync Attributes For Set.
Attributes on the Listing
Attribute lines appear on the listing's Attribute List FastTab. After changing a set, run Actions > Data > Synchronize Item Attributes (multi-select supported on the CSM Listings page). Static attributes require External Attribute Value and External Name before sending.
This applies to BigCommerce and Magento: send with Actions > Send to Channel > Attribute Values. For WooCommerce, attribute values are sent only as configurable options (see CSM Listing - Configurable Item Listings).
This feature is currently not available for Shopify, Amazon and Walmart.