Archive for the ‘Catalogue Design’ Category

A large catalogue is often a significant undertaking as it involves bringing together a wide range of text and imagery into a single perfect document. When you are working with so much material, it is vital that you plan everything out properly and spend some time making sure everything is organised prior to the design stage. This will ensure that the final catalogue design is as strong as possible and that every product is easy to locate and understand for your audience. After all, it is this ease of selection which is likely to result in orders from your time-restricted audience.

In this article, we take you through the most important things we recommend you think about when planning your catalogue design.

Number of Pages and Structure

In order for your catalogue design to be a success, you need to give some thought to its structure. It should be laid out in such a way that it is easy to navigate and understand, so that readers can find their way logically through the information. The presentation of each product also needs to be relatively consistent so the information doesn’t look jumbled and related products can be easily compared by customers. We always recommend that you sketch out a plan of what you want to include on each page before you begin. This is exactly what we do. Before any of our graphic designers start on a large brochure or catalogue design they will create a plan to make sure the information is structured logically across the pages. Remember, as catalogues are printed in sets of four pages, you need to ensure that your document doesn’t end on an uneven number of pages, and also remember to include your covers, contents list and index when counting up.

Images

The images you use in your catalogue design are really important as they give people a quick snapshot of what they can expect from the delivery. Where are you planning to get your images from? If you are getting them from manufacturers, then you will need to make sure they have everything you need and that they are happy for you to use then in your document. You should also make sure that they’re of a really high quality. Images taken directly off websites are rarely good enough quality for printing. If you plan to take the pictures yourself, then you should give some consideration to whether it would be worth hiring a professional photographer. This is important as you need to make sure your presentation is consistent throughout the whole catalogue and including a range of different styles of photographs can really affect the overall quality of the catalogue.

Text

Obviously, the text will play a large part in your catalogue design so you should ensure all your content is completed to a high standard so people feel confident about the information you are providing them. The style of text should also be consistent throughout the catalogue, so make sure all the key points are included and that, if you are describing multiple products, you provide the relevant points for comparison on all of them. It’s a good idea to use bullet points and keep text as brief as you can so it’s easy to read and readers can find exactly the features and points of information they are looking for.

Choice of Paper/Card

The type of company you are and the products you sell will have an impact on the choice of paper or card. For instance, if you are a high-end company that focuses on expensive individual items, you might want to go for a really high quality card to reflect the quality of your business in your catalogue. Conversely, if your company focuses on value and volume, then the quality of your paper is unlikely to have such an impact when printing your catalogue so it is best to go for the most cost-effective option.

Our extensive print experience means that we can advise on the best and most cost effective options on paper and finish for your project.

Delivery Date

When do you plan on distributing your catalogue? It’s important you have a specific date in mind so you can leave sufficient time to design, compile and print it. You can also save money by being prepared, as express printing incurs extra charges whereas discounts can often be offered if you are able to accept a longer print time.

Catalogue Design – Add Design’s graphic designers create smart, eye-catching catalogues that inform, persuade and inspire. Click here for full information on our catalogue design services.