What’s the first rule of selling online? Creating an impressive product catalog design that easily navigates the customers to their desired product. It offers them a list of products to be accessed in one place, along with product descriptions, prices, and other details.
What are product catalogs?
A product catalog is an overview of the entire range of products that you provide to target customers. Such a list typically includes product descriptions, images or illustrations, and prices. Therefore, companies use product catalogues to share relevant information regarding them.
A typical product catalog design also lists prices so that customers can compare different products and decide which one to buy.
Top tips for creating great product catalogs
When preparing your product catalogs, consider following these key tips to ensure that the catalog is helpful to the target customers:
01. Ensure a clean content layout
Customers go through a catalog to find what products and accessories they want. They should be able to access a product instantly at the first glance in a catalog. Therefore, the content layout must be clean and professional. Make sure that the layout is tailored to your target customers.
It should structure products into different sections or groups. The products, accessories, prices, and other information should be neatly placed in different columns. That will help customers find their desired products quickly.
02. Include a table of content
It would help consumers greatly if you provided price lists of the products in your catalogs. They can learn about the price then and there rather than by visiting the product page. Moreover, they can compare prices right away when looking at the catalog. They can make a buying decision in terms of prices as well. So, know that the best products catalog will have a nicely laid table of contents.
03. Use an Index for article numbers
An index/directory is a helpful tool for customers to find replaceable parts or the ones they can exchange. A customer can get the article number of the product of their choice, and then they can get the corresponding page number to get the product part. So, you need to do it manually or by using catalog software to keep the article directories updated whenever you add products and price lists to catalogs.
04. Give required product details
When listing your products in catalogs, give adequate product details. The potential buyers would like to know some crucial details right there to make a buying decision.
Regarding technical products, several technical criteria often have to be fulfilled before a purchase can be made, e.g., the dimensions fit exactly, the temperature range is suitable for the application, etc. Therefore, provide your customers with sufficient information about your products, such as sizes, materials, dimensions, standards, etc. Adding an informative description would do the job. However, ensure it’s helpful or 87% of customers are unlikely to come again if the product description is not relevant.
05. Include product pictures
Your product catalog must have high-quality product images for customers’ references. This gives them a visual cue and they can find out how the product actually looks. Customers show more confidence in a catalog that features product images.
Your catalog design ideas should have product pictures from every angle for relativity. The same products should appear on your website and other platforms.
06. Add a column for accessories
Consumers also look for what else they can buy related to a product. Most of them search for relevant accessories. Most businesses, therefore, put together a series of accessories side by side with their main products. This saves customers’ precious time as they don’t have to scan the website or other catalog for the same purposes.
So, when creating your product catalogs, ensure that all your accessories are also mentioned. This is known as cross-selling, which product catalogs should take into account. Customers will not know about those side products if you do not list product accessories. Therefore, ensure that product catalogs have columns for accessories.
07. Print article numbers
After customers know where the products they are looking for, they would like to put them in order. However, if there is the corresponding article number, customers can put that number in the search bar of the online store.
Therefore, product catalogs should have article numbers printed and their price lists mentioned exactly appearing on the web.
08. Display data in compact cross-table
Ensure that product catalogs do not have a long list of products and accessories. If there are too many products included, printing costs will increase manifold. So, when pondering how to make a catalog, keep the information concise and clear. Presenting the product data in a compact cross table would be good. That will help in reducing printing costs.
09. Use catalog software
You will use multiple catalogs with many pages if you have a long list of products and accessories. It may also be available in various languages. In that case, catalog software can handle the job quickly.
The software will create and maintain the product data. Today, technologically advanced software can develop complex catalogs with tables of contents and articles. They can also generate keyword directories, product tables, and cross tables automatically and instantly.
You can then link the product catalog software with a PIM (Product Information Management). PIM is a great assistance for businesses in managing and distributing product information.
10. Target audience
You should also use product catalogs to target your audience to turn them into loyal customer. So, create excerpt catalogs for your newly launched products. Ensure that such catalogs have a pleasant layout. That means you should generate excerpt catalogs for each new product for its target groups.
These are the major tips to follow when creating an effective product catalog. But ensure that the catalog design targets your specific set of customers precisely. The customers should be able to access their choice of products or services through its catalog.
However, you may not be an expert in designing a great catalog that lets them access the products or services they seek. So, it’s better to seek professional help.
Designhill, the leading creative marketplace, can help you design your catalog per your requirements. This site allows you to launch your catalog design contest for talented designers to participate. You can check and filter out design ideas and declare the favorite design the winner. Alternatively, you also have the flexibility to work with a designer on a 1-to-1 basis for custom catalog design.
Wrapping Up
You must adhere to some time-tested tips when creating an effective and impressive product catalog. These include providing product descriptions, relevant product images or illustrations, and prices. However, the layout should be neat and clean to help customers find products at a glance.