A product like a shoe, an item of clothing, a phone, a refrigerator, a portable speaker, a cell phone, or a laptop computer can come in a variety of colors. These colors have no bearing on the product’s functionality. It’s the same product design and made of the same material (s). The colors are just there for aesthetic appeal because people have different tastes. 

Functionally identical products are the ones that should be interlinked. They are the same product. Let’s assume you sell t-shirts. 

If a customer clicks on a basic blue round-neck t-shirt from Designer X, then the other identical t-shirts from designer X that come in red, black, green, and red should be loaded as well. They just need to be identical in everything but color. Their photographs should be part of the image gallery.

When that customer clicks on the image of the red t-shirt for example, it shouldn’t load another page because it’s the same product. But if you do opt for a design separating variants in different product pages, they should be interlinked, and thus easily accessible from any of the variants.

Why is interlinking product variants important?

• It allows you to cater to customers of differing tastes.
• It makes your products easy to find.
• It simplifies your product page by grouping identical products together. There are a few things more annoying than scrolling down a list only to find the same product listed in a hundred different colors.
• Customers who don’t see product variants on the product page are more likely to assume you don’t stock the variant they are looking for. 
• Some customers tend to regard product variations as a highly relevant recommendation for alternative products.

Examples

Adidas

Amazon

Crutchfield

Home Depot

JCPenney

LL Bean

Macy’s

Nordstrom

REI

Sears

Wayfair