How Do I Create a Product Catalog?
by Averi Easley | Last Updated: May 6, 2023
Customers are faced with numerous choices when searching for products. They may also find themselves searching everywhere to find all of the relevant information about a particular product. Product catalogs can be a great way to provide all of this information in a centralized location.
What Is a Product Catalog?
The definition of a product catalog, according to Gartner is it “contains all commercial product information that enables product marketing managers to define and map new product offerings. This encompasses certain sets of tools that allow configuration of new products and service bundles, pricing and discounts.” A simple way to think of a product catalogue is that it is a document that typically contains a list of all of a company’s products. It will often also include additional product information, such as a product description, pricing, features and benefits, photos, size options, etc. A product catalog or catalogue is also often referred to as a product guide or product list.
What Are Types of Product Catalogs?
You have likely used a product catalog many times and not even realized it. Product catalogs were commonly large documents that you would flip through to find a specific product. Nowadays it is more common to find product catalogs online and in digital versions. Digital catalogs can provide options for customers to be able to easily search and filter the data they are seeking.
Generally, a product catalog is delivered in one of two ways, either a PDF or a digital catalog. It is common for manufacturers to default to having a PDF version of their product catalog. They also normally use software to make the PDF a little more interactive, like a flipbook. This is a great way to provide a product catalog to your customers, however, it is still a static document and it is not connected to your product data. Another issue with this particular option is, if there are changes to specific product data, these changes will not be automatically updated in the product catalog. This means that those who are in charge of the product catalog may have to create another one to reflect the latest changes.
An alternative option is to create a fully digital version of the product catalog. By deciding to create a digital product catalog, the ideal scenario would be to tie it to a product information management (PIM) solution and a digital experience. The benefit of this would be that once the product data and the related digital assets are updated in the PIM, they would automatically update the digital product catalog.
What Is an Example of a Product Catalog?
Product catalogs can be used by any type of company in any industry. With that in mind, the most common type of company that uses product catalogs is manufacturing companies. Manufacturers commonly have various product offerings such as light fixtures, home appliances, faucets, lawn and garden tools, etc.
A product catalog example can range from a printed book that you would flip through, a PDF version, and now, more commonly a digital version of the catalog.
How Do I Create a Product Catalog?
When you begin creating a catalog for your products, there are some key steps that you need to follow:
- Figure out the structure of your product catalog and all of the information you want to include in it. This can be the name of the product, along with a description, price, size details, features, and available accessories.
- Start the process of gathering all of the product information and related assets. This particular step could take a lot of time, as you will likely have to work with various departments to gather the data.
- Add all of your product information and related assets to a product information management (PIM) solution.
- Create a digital experience that is tied to your product information management (PIM) solution and can provide up-to-date product information when the product catalog is accessed and viewed.
- Update your product data and related assets using the product information management (PIM) solution. If you are using a solution that connects your product data to a digital experience, then the product information will be automatically updated in your product guide.
Starting with creating a simple product catalog is a great place to start, especially if this is the first time you are creating one. As new products are released and feedback is received, you can work on updating the product information.
When selecting a product catalog maker, it is important to find a solution that is affordable and provides you with the features you are looking for. One of the best catalog design software options that are available is Lumavate. Lumavate makes it easy for you to manage your product data and digital assets using Lumavate’s PIM functionality. Lumavate is also a digital experience platform (DXP), which means you can tie your data from the PIM to your digital product catalog. All of this will allow you to save time and money and get to market quicker.
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