Mistake #1 Complicated design

Too many products on the page, too much information, too many bright colors, just too much… The product is a star of the show! So, be sure that customers’ attention is not distracted by the background. Using white color, you can’t go wrong. Not sure about the design? No worries! We have templates created for you. In addition, a simple design means one product per page. 

Mistake #2 Poor quality images

No matter how much effort you put into the lookbook, it won’t look great until you have professional-looking images. What does it mean? First of all, good quality. Higher a photographer or improve your photo skills. Secondly, use a photo to show how the product can be used. Are you selling sports clothing? An image of a happy person playing softball and wearing your T-shirt is the best thing you can do. Remember, a good brand is not selling products; it is selling a lifestyle. 

Mistake #3 Inconsistency 

From our experience, this is the most common mistake. Just because it is easy to miss a tiny detail. Pick up two main colors and three supporting shades. Same with fonts. 2 is max. Play around with bold or italic options, but don’t go with too many different fonts. Once the lookbook is ready, double and triple-check everything.

Mistake #4 No Call-To-Action

After your product has caught the customer’s attention, they should be told what to do next to receive the desired item. This clear statement is called call-to-action and can sound like “Order Now,” “Call To Orderer,” etc., depending on what the next step should be. 

Be sure there is a buy button right near the product. Remember, the easier the way is from seeing to paying, the more likely your customers will go through it. In most cases, buying cloth is rather emotional than a rational decision. However, the emotions usually do not last long enough to return to the lookbook again.

Mistake #5 Poor Product Descriptions 

Another quite popular mistake is to include too much product information. A lookbook is a highly visual marketing tool, people are falling in love with the image. In addition, people are not reading long descriptions, no matter how nicely they are written. Size, color options, price, and product identification number are all your customers need to know. 

Mistake #6 No contact information 

Even if the person can place an order online, it is highly recommended to have your business contact information included in the catalog. If a person is doubting, talking is your chance to convince them. In contrast, no ability to contact a representative looks like a business does not care about its customers.

Place the phone number or at least an email at the footer or a header of each page. It makes the impression that you are happy to talk to your customers, have nothing to hide, and are reliable. Besides, it will decrease see-buy time, the importance of which we’ve already covered.  

Mistake #7 Out Of Date

Usually, apparel lookbooks are created every season. However, it’s not enough because you don’t want to present any item out of stock. Do you think updating a whole catalog is a long and complicated process that requires tons of your time? Well, fortunately for you, you’re mistaken. You can automate your lookbook production with Catalog Machine, so you will save time and money and meet your customers’ expectations.  

Click here to create the lookbook that will sell. 

For example, if you are offering services in different packages and the list of offers included can be presented as a price list. If you are in the B2B industry, you will probably present your products to a larger retailer. This truly never-ending list shows us the importance of price lists in everyday business operations. 

Price List Structure 

The most basic and simple format of a price list includes products and a price. You can think of a menu in a restaurant that is the brightest example of a classical price list. However, it is not restricted by that. 

On the one hand, including more descriptive information could benefit and positively impact customers’ decisions. For instance, product dimensions, material, or weight could impact the selling price. So showcasing different options can easily broaden up the goods specter. Besides, a product image or available colors might have nothing to do with the selling price but are important in buying decisions. 

On the other hand, the price list should be easy to look through to find a needed product. So, including all the available product information is not the best way to create one. To find a balance, businesses are including only product details that might be highly relevant for the buyer and so are impacting a purchase decision. 

• Contact information: phone numbers, email, and business address.
• Clear information on how to order from your – call to action.
• Date when this pricing will expire.
• Indicate if there are any discounts.
• Delivery information
• If appropriate, indicate discounts for bulk purchases to attract more business.

Purpose Of A Price List

Due to its flexibility and easy design, price lists are used for different purposes. Firstly, in situations where you need to offer relatively lower prices for a loyal customer. Secondly, the larger business usually has several customer groups, in this case where separate pricing could be used for different categories of customers. 

In addition, if a business sells a fixed range of products or provides standard services, this may be the only form of pricing it uses (e.g., manufacturers). A standard price list can also be used as the basis for pricing any non-standard orders but tailored and tweaked to meet your customer’s specific requirements. 

The main idea is to showcase only relevant and up-to-date product information. Implementing this rule into practice might be a time-consuming process since a designer will need to manually update pricing in front of each product. To save you time, Catalog Machine has an option to upload a CSV file with updated product data on the platform. Once it’s done the information in the document will be automatically updated as well. 

Price List Examples 

A list could be created from scratch or with the help of temples. Catalog Machine has a variety of price list options divided by industry, so it’s easier to find a temple close to your business needs. However, don’t get upset if you can’t find your industry on the list. As all of the temples are fully customizable, you just need to find the one with the closest structure to what you want to see as the end result and modify it from there. Here you can see some examples of the price lists to get inspired.

Beauty Industry Price List

Food  Industry Price List

Construction Industry Price List

Home  Industry Price List

A more detailed list of industries and available template options can be reviewed on the Catalog Machine Price List Temples page. 

Wholesale & Retail Price Lists 

As we have already mentioned, the price lists are not limited by the industry they are used in. In addition, there are two different types of price lists that are used based on the target market – wholesale and retail price lists. A wholesale price list overrides the pricing in the retail one. And so should be kept separately and used only for the wholesale buyers. The main difference in the list structure is the included minimum order amount and possible discount options. 

Both retail and wholesale price lists could include several product variants that might differ in terms of size, color, etc. Some of the product characteristics impact the end pricing. For example, the larger product has a higher transportation cost, so the end price increases. In this case, the price list should include all the variants that have the described impact with the corresponding pricing option. With Catalog Machine, you can add a price for each product variant, automatically populated in the catalog. 

In addition, if a business has several custom groups, there can be pricing tailored to a specific group. With Catalog Machine, you can have the same product list with different prices and designs or any other product information. That will allow you to easily target different audiences in the most efficient way. The platform has limitations on the number of product variants or fields. 

How To Create

The primitive versions of price lists can be created with Excel or even Word. However, nowadays, businesses prefer to use accessible design software that make list creation easy and the end product looks professional. For example, Catalog Machine has predesigned templates that are fully customizable and can be quickly updated for specific business purposes. Check the Catalog Machine price list creation tool yourself. 

Structure 

The wholesale catalog presents all or most of the manufacturer’s products, so the retailer can select which one they will present in their shops. The big retailers usually have a list of the requirements for their suppliers. Which includes the list of the product fields that need to be included in the catalog. Here is the list of fields that should be presented in each wholesale catalog: 

• Product Name 
• Description 
• Product Code
• Image (one or multiple)
• Wholesale Price 

However, it should not be limited by them. Additional fields that might be necessary to include. 

• Product Parameters: colors, sizes, dimensions
• Minimum Order Amount 
• Contact Information: email, phone number, address
• Shipping and Delivery details

The list varies by industry specification and should include all the relevant information for the wholesaler.

Style

Although the wholesale catalog is considered to be marketing material, the information in it is usually presented in a less “salesy” way. In practice, it means using less descriptive adjectives and text minimization.

The main reason for that is that the buying decision of the wholesaler. They will be mostly grounded on the product qualities and characteristics and is a way less spontaneous decision than in the B2C market. 

In addition, due to the bigger number of products that are presented in the catalog, the recommended page layout contains 4 to 10 products/page. The allocated space per product is limited. So efficiency is required to fit all the details that may potentially positively influence buyers` decisions. 

How wholesale catalogs are created

Depending on the size of the allocated budget, the business can decide to hire a professional to set up a catalog for them or use one of the presented online templates and customize it for specific business needs. 

Catalog Machine is online software that can be used for wholesale catalog creation, which combines both of the presented options. The platform has specialized designers that can create a catalog based on the business’s specifications. Or it can be used by the business owners, marketing, sales specialists to generate the material by themselves. 

Compared to other platforms presented in the industry, Catalog Machine gives clients’ the list of the wholesale catalog templates divided by industry, which all are fully customizable and can be presented in online and PDF options simultaneously. In addition, Catalog Machine host the clients’ catalogs on their own domain, so the catalog can be easily shared with potential clients as a link. No additional hosting fee is required. 

Summary 

• A wholesale catalog is a marketing material that is used to present the list of the products to a retailer, primarily used in B2B.
• The wholesale catalog presents all or most of the manufacturer’s products. So the retailer can select which one they will present in their shops. 
• The wholesale catalog has a clear structure and uses industry-specific language.
• Catalog Machine is the online software that enables a business to create wholesale catalogs easily or order them from a designer. 

Step 1. Do your research before start 

At this stage, you need to understand what’s currently going on in the market and how you can fit there. There is a 2Cs rule that will help to make effective research: clients & competitors. 

From the client’s side, you need to understand why they would never open, scan, and order something from your catalog. In other words, what’s a pain point, and how you are solving it. 

Whereas competitors are a good source of inspiration. Look through the catalogs and notice which design principles are they implementing, what photos are they using, are there any promotions. Make notes of what you like & don’t like. You don’t want to copy others’ work, but you can definitely use it as a trampling.  

Step 2. Do a catalog mock-up 

Put the results of your research on paper and see how you can use it. At this stage, you can draw the schemes of the different catalog pages. No need to put every single detail there, just make sure that you have a place for all the necessary things. Here is a list you can use as a cheat sheet:

• Product info: photo, name, price, description. Extend the list based on the industry requirements. 
• Contact info: phone, email, etc. Make sure this information can be easily found. The best places are the header or footer of every page. 
• Cover page. Include your company name, name of the catalog, and the date range, ex. Autumn 2021 collection. 
• Table of contents. Based on the categories or collections that you have. 
• Company overview. Telling your story is not necessarily, but it helps to build an emotional connection between brand and customer. 
• Call to action. Make sure you say what exactly the client is supposed to do to complete the order, ex. Call us, Order from a catalog, etc. 

Step 3. Work on your product database

There is no catalog without products. This is why you should think carefully about the order and quantity of products and information you will use in your products. 

Remember people are busy so no one will read paragraphs of the product description. This is why try to keep only necessary information on the pages of your catalog. The trick we are using, reread the description a couple of times and make a goal to cross out at least 10% of the text every time. 

One more thing, never use professional language, unless you are completely sure that your target audience is familiar with it. Firstly, people will never search on what exactly it means. Secondly, people do not like to feel ignorant. Make people feel good about themselves and only then they will buy. 

Place the best-selling products at the beginning. For whatever reason people love them, use them to make new customers like your catalog from the very beginning. In addition, you can include a special page that says “Best Sellers”. Here you include products you need to get rid of. Make people think that others like your products, which means this choice is already socially pre-approved. 

With Catalog Machine you can manage hundreds and thousands of products at once. Enjoy the power of automation. 

Step 4. Create your catalog online

At this point, you already know how your catalog should look like, what information you will be using, and how people will order. Now it’s time to put everything into the actual catalog. 

With Catalog Machine you can create your template for each product or create a custom layout for the pages. So, if you have hundreds or thousands of products, there is no need to do it manually. In addition, with the new parameters feature you can automatically allocate discounts to your products, present a catalog with different currencies and many more. 

If at this stage you are still not sure what design you want to use, select one of our predefined templates and customize it with your product fields, company’s creative assets, and your brand color scheme. Click to preview the templates and select your favorite. 

Step 5. Double-check & share the results

Make sure you double-check everything before publishing your catalog. Use your colleague or friend as a second pair of eyes, they usually notice something that you have missed. Ask them if everything is clear from your catalog, do they have any additional questions, if anything can be improved? Use the information to revise your creation one more time. 

Now you should be ready to make your catalog public and start accepting orders. Press publish button and enjoy new sales and orders coming with Catalog Machine! 

but you are not using one yet? In this article, we will answer the main question about order forms: what is it, why are other businesses using it, and what to include. In addition, in the end, you can find a simple guide on how you can create your order form.

What is an order form?

An order form is a document buyers submit to a wholesaler, manufacturer, or retailer requesting products or services. They are mostly used in two scenarios: for large amount business purchases and for high-priced products.

Aside from selling goods, an order form may be used to sell services. It can be a good way to collect customers’ information for a business customer database and find out what customer preferences are. 

Why are businesses using order forms? 

As mentioned above, it can become a beneficial tool for collecting information about the client and the order. Usually, the sales team are using this information to be prepared for future conversations with clients. For example, to make sure which service they can upsell or simply to confirm before proceeding with payment. In addition, online order forms are necessary to sell your products and services online. They reduce paper waste and the amount of time it takes to collect orders. 

If you are ordering food at your house, you are filling in the ordering form every time you do so. Now put yourself in the shoes of the restaurant. Why do they call you sometimes to confirm the order? To let you know that some product is out of stock or tell you about their “buy one get one free” option. The golden rule of every business is once you are benefiting a client, you are benefiting your business. An order form can become a how-to guide to the first part of this rule.  

What to include?

It is one size fits all when it comes to what be included on an order form. Let divide the order form into different sections, which we will fill in with the questions.

Section 1: Client’s general information. 

It’s as easy as it sounds. Just think about all the information you may need from the client to contact them back and complete the order. 

• Customer’s name
• Customer contact details (phone number or email address)

The additional information in this sections can be:

• Customer’s shipping address

Section 2: Purchase Preferences 

Here, you need to ensure that the client picks up one of the highly relevant options for their order. When you build in the questions for this section, just think from your business side, what information do we need to proceed? It can include one of these examples:

• Product variants (color, size, etc.)
• Quantity 
• Shipping methods 
• Delivery date 

Section 3: Order details 

This section is appropriate opposite to the previous one because it should include the information that client may potentially need. For instance:

• Your company’s name and business address
• Date of Purchase Order
• Sales Order Number
• Note to customer

Once you have created all the questions, reread them and make sure that all are necessary to include. The longer the form, the more likely the client won’t finish it because they get distracted or simply bored. 

How to create an order form?

Once you have decided on questions to include, it will take minutes to create an order form. With Catalog Machine, you can set up a separate order form that you will need to print out or include on your website, depends on your business needs. All you have to do is select one of the order form layouts and customize it for your purposes. 

In addition, you can always present your products to the client in the form of a catalog and start receiving orders right from there. This option works great if you don’t have a website or have a large variety of products. Go to Catalog Machine and try to build your order form now. 

Summary  

Creating a customer order form begins with the end in mind: your goals. What types of information do you want to capture? Are there any disclaimers you want to include? How can you make the process easier for your customers?

Before digitalization, lookbooks used to be in the form of printed magazines, which presented the latest collections to clients. Visually the main difference between the fashion magazine and lookbook is that the last one is focused on one brand specifically. The global switch to eCommerce forced companies to start creating online lookbooks and host them on the websites. However, the initial purpose is still the same, to make the products look appealing. 

Why does your business need a Lookbook?

Long story short, you need it to boost the revenue. As with any other well-designed marketing material, lookbooks will positively sell. The trick is to keep in mind that it is a highly visual tool that allows a business to increase brand awareness and recognition, attract new customers, retain existing ones, and build an emotional perception of the brand. How does it happen? Lookbook…

• …tells your story to the customers in an effortless manner. Most people are skipping the lengthy descriptions of your business story and values. There is tons of information out there, so people have learned how to be picky. At the same time, a lookbook is a chance to put your story into catchy images. 

• …allows customers to make their opinion about a product without touching it. A business includes a large image of the product and sometimes a couple of pictures that will enable potential buyers to imagine how the product looks in real life. It becomes even more valuable since more and more people prefer buying online or are forced to do so due to the pandemic restrictions. 

• …puts a spotlight on your brand. Lookbooks offer an excellent opportunity for brands to include vibrant lifestyle images of their products as a part of an aspirational narrative.

A Lookbook Structure & Design 

A good lookbook has an eye-catching and appealing design. The main rule is to make the customers love what they see. 

Usually, designers present one product per page. It could be one large image or several smaller photos, but the focus should be clear on one thing. So once the client turns the page, they know what this is all about. 

There is minimum information on the page. It can be just the product name and price. Sometimes designers include product variants (available colors or sizes) if it is applicable to the industry. 

A lookbook has a landscape layout. You can find contact details on the top edges, such as company name, email address, phone number, website and street address, and company’s logo.

Plain background and high-quality images are two contributors to the professional-looking design of the excellent lookbook. Preferably the images should present the product in use. For example, if you are selling a shopping purse, use the image of the happy girl with the bag in the shopping alley. It’s always a good idea to put the product into context. It will make a more vivid impression on the customer. 

Overview

A lookbook is a marketing material that helps businesses to present their products to customers. This is why today, some software programs help companies with this issue. Here you can find some examples of what can be done with the help of the line sheet creation platform.

– Creating a PDF and digital version of a lookbook. 

– Automation of product detail updates.

– Professional-looking templates and advanced design functions. 

– Online Ordering and Payment System embedded in the digital line sheet.

Catalog Machine presents all the features mentioned above. Click https://www.catalogmachine.com/line-sheet-template to check it out. 

How to make a jewelry line sheet esthetically pleasing? 

For the fashion industry, it is essential to make your marketing materials beautiful. First of all, buyers are visual people. Every time they look at your product, they imagine how it will look on them. In addition, the trick is not only to persuade them your accessory is gorgeous but that it will make them look better. Secondly, creating a beautiful line sheet is one way to prove your good taste and create a unique style. 

Use these three rules to make sure that your jewelry line sheet looks good and professional. And the Catalog Machine app will help you to make your ideas real.   

Keep it clean 

Your line sheet is not the place for fancy, unnecessary graphics, difficult-to-read text, or odd colors. Keep the pink floral flourishes out. Instead, keep the design clean and simple. Buyers are looking for information, no-frills. 

To make sure that your catalog looks professional, stick with two primaries and three supportive colors as a max. The best choice here is to use your brand colors. It will help you sell with your line sheet and build brand awareness among customers. 

A good line sheet contains all the necessary information about several products on one page. Not to make a sheet overloaded with the knowledge, keep the number of products within 4-8 products per page range. It might be a good idea to 

All the information should be presented in a user-friendly way. So, think beforehand, what details can influence the purchase decision—for example, karats of gold or stone quality. If you have the same earring in silver and gold, use variants to present all the available options. One more rule to keep in mind to make it easy for the client – use short sentences. Reread it several times and cut off all unnecessary info. If the sentence is still above 15 words, divide it into two separate parts. A good line sheet is more about practicality. 

Ensure that all the necessary information is included 

Here is the list of the essential parts that should be included in the jewelry line sheet.

• Cover and business name, logo
• Product images, names, and descriptions
• Sizes, colors, or other variations
• SKU
• Wholesale prices/suggested retail prices
• Minimum order quantity information
• General ordering information, sales terms
• Contact information (email and/or phone number)
• Shipping details, including costs
• Refund, return, or cancellation policy

This list applies to most of the businesses in the jewelry industry. However, it is not limited by these points. Some of the brands would like to add an About page that includes information about their story and values. 

Usually, a line sheet is used to present items to the bigger retailers. Some of them may have individual requirements regarding the line sheets that they would like to receive. If this is your case, go to their website and search for the conditions. If you can’t find any, you can always give them a call to be sure. It is always good to double-check before the creation. Otherwise, you are risking spending hours on nothing. 

Avoid common mistakes 

Most of the mistakes that people are making creating a line sheet is tightly connected with the rush. It is a mistake to think that you will create a line sheet in 5 minutes. No matter how great the tool you are using to create a line sheet, you will need to double- and triple-check typos and decide on a design. Usually, it changes several times within the creation process and makes sure that the document looks consistent. Once you finish your jewelry line sheet, the general recommendation is to give yourself a 2-3 hours break. Then turn back and have a look with a fresh eye. In addition, you can ask your family members and friends to look at your work. 

One line sheet is not enough. As we have already mentioned, different retailers might have additional requirements regarding the line sheets. In addition, you may use them within other marketing channels – emails, trade shows, etc. Consider what job your line sheet must accomplish. Does it need convincing? Provide details? Sell? Remind? Whatever the task, tailor your basic line sheet for each specific opportunity.

Poor photographs can negatively impact sales. You don’t necessarily need to hire a professional photographer (though it can’t hurt), but they need to make sure the pictures do justice to the product. Sometimes this includes putting a product in a sample set – a home environment, an office setting, or whatever is pertinent.

If you are not sure that you have all the necessary skills to create a beautiful jewelry line sheet, you can always take one of the Catalog Machine free templates and customize it to your business needs. In addition, Catalog Machine will give you a chance to create a line sheet for thousands of products faster than any other platform. Start your journey towards a professional jewelry line sheet today https://www.catalogmachine.com/line-sheet-template! 

An online store, also known as an online showroom, is an online platform or a website where you list your products and enable customers to make orders from them. Besides, an online store usually has other more advanced features, such as filtering products by categories and collections or product characteristics. 

From the company’s point of view, two main challenges have to be faced. Firstly, the online store should have a user-friendly structure and be easy to navigate through. In addition, it should be crystal clear how the customers are placing orders and making payments. 

Secondly, an online showroom is a highly visual platform for your business, so the business owner needs to make sure that products have appealing photos that look good together. Moreover, each product should have all the information potentially important for the buyers, for instance, price, material, size, etc.     

This article will tell you how to face both of these challenges so that the online store would become a breath of fresh air for your business. 

How to build an online store that would be easy for navigation? 

Tip 1. Use a side menu for navigation

A navigation sidebar is one of the most frequently used tools for navigation across online showrooms. The main idea is to include the name of the big categories that would group products. Make sure that name is short and is precisely describing products that belong to it. For example, you are selling women’s clothing; the potential categories are skirts, tops, underwear, etc. 

For other businesses, the variety of products may be more expansive. Let imagine that you are selling cloth for men, women, and kids. In this case, the side menu should include parent categories and sub-categories. For instance, you may want to create three main parent categories, women’s, men’s, and kid’s clothing, while each of them will have sub-categories, such as T-shirts, shoes, etc. 

There are many options for organizing your side menu, and there is no one size fits all tip. Try to put yourself in your customers’ shoes and see if it’s intuitive for you to search for the product in this category. The better option is to ask your customers what they think and how they would group your products. You may be surprised how creative your audience is. 

Tip 2. Enable customers to look closer at each product

Usually, an online showroom has two levels: a list of all your products and each product with a detailed description. What to keep in mind when you are creating these levels?

When you are listing all the products together, make sure that they look good together. Some of the design tips for making your online store look fancy you will find in the next section of this article. Here, let’s focus on the structure. You want to have two elements on this level: a photo of the product and its’ price. For most industries, there are the main factors that are influencing the buyers’ purchase decision. However, if you know that there is other highly relevant information for your customers, you may want to include it in the general list of the products. Our suggestion would be to keep it under 3 different product fields, ex. Photo, price, color variants. 

Once the buyer clicks on the product that seems interesting to him, he should receive all the possibly relevant information and get a closer look at the product. This is why we recommend you showcase 2-3 photos of the products from different angles and a couple of products that present how other people are using your product. Besides the general information about the product, it might be a good idea to include testimonials from your customers to prove your words. 

Tip 3. Include a feature to filter your products

Once a client is looking for something specific, it is crucial to make it easy to find, especially if you have a large number of products. A filter feature is one of the most effective ways to enable customers to navigate through your product database quickly. 

There are several types of filer options—the first one when a client selects specific groups based on the product’s characteristics. For example, size has 3 different options: S, M, L; the client is only interested in product size M. So, he would be happy to exclude products out of stock in this size from his search. The second one, type in the search bar. This is a more advanced feature that may help you to improve clients’ on-page experience. However, when you create a product description, keep in mind the key phrases that your clients tend to search for. 

How to make your online store look professional?

Here we will focus on the design part and some best practices to ensure that the showroom looks harmoniously and appealing. 

Tip 1. High-quality images 

This is the most common advice, but it is one of the most valuable. The safest option is to hire a photographer. If you don’t have enough resources for that, use technology that would allow you to make sure that the image’s resolution is high enough.

If you are taking photos by yourself, make sure you use the proper light. The best time for the photographs is a sunrise, a sunset, or just a cloudy day. You want to avoid sharp shadows, as they are visually distorting a product. 

Tip 2. The unique color scheme for the online store

Select a color scheme that would present your brand. Colors and brand identity are both tightly connected to emotions. Make sure that the selected colors are evoking the needed emotion. For example, yellow is happiness; red is passion. What color is your brand?  

Tip 3. The unique color scheme for the online store

Pick one filter for all your photos. By doing this, you will make your page look consistent and attached to one visual theme. There’s no one-size-fits-all filter, so it’s important you play around and figure out what filter is the best fit for your photo.

Tip 4. Use readable fonts

Not always fancy fonts are a great decision. Among all your online stores, use 1-2 fonts that look good together and do not require additional effort from the buyer to understand what is written there. Remember, the main purpose of the product description is to tell the information, not to look good. Besides, try to use short sentences; it will make the information easier to read.  

How to create an online store?

Now you know all the best practices to keep in mind creating your online store. The question is how to make it. Most of the companies are creating it as a website. The drawback of this choice is that you need to hire at least one person to create it and update it within time. In addition, you will need to pay a hosting fee for the website. As you can see, this option is good for medium-size businesses. But what to do if you don’t have enough resources for that or want to allocate them to the other parts of your business? 

Catalog Machine is an online platform that allows you to create an online store fast and easily. You won’t need to care about the structure and navigation. It already has all the necessary elements: sidebar with your categories and collections, filter feature, and ability to present a list of products and each product separately. All you are left to do is upload your products to the system and set up the template to create a unique view of your online showroom. 

Catalog Machine offers a free 14-days trial, so you can make sure that this is the right solution for you. Click here to start creating your online store today. 

In this article, you will find more information on how the catalog designer could make a difference for you and some tips you want to keep in mind if you’re going to build a catalog by yourself.

Why do you need a catalog designer?

1. To make your catalog look attractive 

There are thousands of catalogs out there, and one of your main goals is to stand out. An excellent and professional-looking design is one of the first steps on your way towards the selling catalog. 

This point is tightly connected to the idea of branding. Using simple words, your brand is the emotion that would associate with your products among the customers. An experienced designer knows how color and font could provoke the ‘right’ feeling. If you still have not decided on the main branding components – logo, color scheme, font, design of icons, the Catalog Machine team could help you do it. Vice versa, if you already have established branding attributes, we will make sure that they are used in your online or PDF catalog. 

Tip: Use similar branding attributes among all your marketing materials and your landing pages. By doing this you are creating brand recognition among your target audience.   

2. To decide on the most relevant content 

The main difference between the general designer and the one specializing in the catalogs, line sheets, lookbooks, and price lists is understanding the most relevant content for your clients. Of course, you know your business from the bottom, so before designing marketing material, an experienced catalog designer will discuss the most crucial information with you. For example, the target audience’s understanding and the action that should be taken after reviewing a catalog will affect the result. 

The main reason for that is the limited amount of space for the information. A designer presents it on the page the way, so the most important pieces will be evident from the first glance. For example, if your goal is sales, the information on how the client should do it must be formulated as a call-to-action sentence and include supportive materials – ‘Call us to make an order, +1XXXXXXXXX’

Tip: You may want to include the call-to-action sentence and supportive materials on each page of your catalog, footer, or header, especially if your catalog is a 100-page-long. 

3. To stay unique 

The is always an option to use a pre-designed template for your catalog. On the one hand, all the templates are general, and they won’t consider your specific business needs. It means that you will need to update product fields and/or branding colors manually. 

On the other hand, you want to avoid the situation when you and your competitor are using the same template. As we have already discussed, the design of your line sheet, lookbook, etc., is strongly associated with your brand. You don’t want to confuse the client to confuse you with the other brand just because you are using the same template. 

What we are doing to avoid this situation is the competitor analysis. Firstly, you can tell us what part of the design you like. There is nothing wrong with taking advantage of the publicly available materials. Secondly, we will make sure that there is no one like you out there. 

4. A catalog designer will save your time and money 

A time part is pretty obvious. Transferring the responsibilities to the professionals makes you available for other urgent business needs. Creating a professional-looking design requires specific skills, which is another time-consuming action you will need to take if you want to create a good-looking catalog by yourself. 

The distinctive characteristic of the Catalog Machine platform is automation. What does it mean in practice? Once our designer has a ready catalog for you, you don’t need to order another one next season or once you update your product database. You can connect the catalog to your website or Shopify page with the help of Zapier. So, it will include only up-to-date products. No need to pay the designer twice!  

Now you know why you would ever hire a catalog designer and why Catalog Machine is the right choice. To order your catalog, log in to catalogmachine.com, upload your products to the system, and message us about the type of your catalog (line sheet, datasheet, lookbook, price list, etc.) and share your design ideas. It usually takes us 3 to 7 days to finish your order.  

You have full flexibility to decide with Catalog Machine – when you need our professional help with creating a catalog or when you are ready to do everything yourself. Both options are open!

What is a purchase order form? 

A purchase order form is a template that is used for a purchase order. Generally speaking, it is a written agreement between the buyer and the seller about quantity, quality, time of delivery in the form of a document. It is mostly used at the B2B market when wholesaler, manufacturer, or retailer sells a high number of products at once.  

Products & Services

An order form is used when businesses purchase both products and services. For example, you need to print out a brochure as a part of your marketing campaign. A printing agency will ask you to fill out a document where you will tell how many brochures do you need, what type of paper the agency should use, etc. 

Online & offline 

We have defined a purchase order as a document. However, it does not mean that it should be printed out. Lots of businesses that are operating online use a digital purchase order form. The difference is that in the online world it can be used for people, not just companies. Imagine the last time you bought cloth online? You need to select a size, color, and quantity before submitting. In other words, you are filling up an order form. 

What to include in your order form?

Based on the Purchase Control article, a general order form should contain the following fields. 

• Information about the seller – the name of the company, address, contact info.
• Information about the buyer – the name of the company/person, address, contact info. 
• Purchase order number – a unique numerical identifier of the order. 
• Information about the products – quantity, characteristics, etc.
• Pricing – total and for each particular product.
• Shipping details – when a product will be shipped, approximate date of arrival, address for delivery. 

After filling up a form, the customer usually received a confirmation via email, message, or even a phone call, if a seller needs to confirm any details.

How to create an order form? 

Catalog Machine is online software that allows you to create an order request form ready for printing or design a catalog with an embedded order form. Let’s see how you can create a PDF purchase order form in 3 Steps.

Step 1. 

After logging in to the system, go to Catalog and click Crete New on the top right corner. 

Select the Blank option on the very left. Click Create your catalog. 

Step 2. 

Now you need to select a proper layout. 

Click More types on the right part of your screen. 

Select Order form from the appeared page layout options. 

Now you need to select a template that suits your business needs: with product images, wholesale or static order forms. All of them are fully customizable, so no worries if you need to add extra information or change the design. 

Step 3. 

Customizing order form. 

Add products you would like to include. 

You can add products one by one, all products at once, or a group (collection or category). 

After adding, you can click Update Products to finish creating. The other option is to select Fields and Design to add more or delete some product fields and change the design. 

Play around with the available options to find the one that you like the most.

To preview how it will look like a PDF document or download it to your device, go to View/Download, PDF section, and select the option you need.

Adding an order form to an existing catalog

… is even more comfortable. 

Go to the catalog, click on the Orders on the left sidebar.  

Here you can enable orders right from the catalog. 

As you can see from the image below, it will appear here once someone makes an order. 

Advanced Settings 

Configure order request settings from the Order Requests page.

• Custom caption for the button and order form
• Enable product prices and totals for order requests
• Enable product variants (displayed for products that have variants) with fields
• Fill in the order form header and footer.
• Add custom fields
• · Select product fields that will be added to a notification email, presented at the order request form for your client and order request details page for you.
• Configure a notification email sent to your customer

Order Request List, Details, and Management

Go to the Order Requests page from the right sidebar to access the list and details pages. 

On the list page:

• Manage simple order request life-cycle: Accept, Reject or Close order requests or delete them. These actions are available from list and details pages.
• Filter orders by text, status, products, and dates
• Export orders in CSV format

Order Details

Click on Order ID to access the Order Request Details.

You can add your notes on the Order Request Details page.

Manage order numbers

Change order request number by clicking on it and entering the number that will be synchronized with your system. After that, all new orders will be automatically enumerated using your system (ex. Renamed last order is 1234, the next one will be 1235). The system recognizes only the numerical part of the order name. So, if you name the order ABC1234, the next one will still be 1235. 

Now you know what a purchase order form is, why you need it, and how you can easily create one with Catalog Machine.