Questions and Answers

Q. Why would I want a printed catalog - isn’t on-line the future?
A. The future success of your business depends on your ability to build customer relationships across many communication mediums. As your customers become more tech savvy, the business imperative will be to respond with on-line solutions that enable customer self-service as well as facilitate on-line transactions.

Regardless of the format of the catalog – print or on-line – the challenge facing many catalogers is accessing timely and relevant content. For many years, print publishing and on-line publishing were considered two separate workflows requiring twice the effort and time to create and format catalog content. Today, catalogers can take advantage of technologies that support both print and on-line versions from a single workflow and content source. This saves you money and gets new catalogs to market in less time.

Q. Where does the content in the catalog come from?
A. As a distributor, often your content will come from manufacturers whose products you represent. Most manufacturers will work with you to convert their product information into content for your catalog. This may involve recreating (scanning, data entry) from hard copy or converting electronic versions of manufacturers’ information.

As a manufacturer, creating catalog content – product information, specifications and images – involves a variety of publishing technologies for both print and on-line output. By using the latest publishing technologies, you will improve the level of service provided to your trading partners throughout your supply chain. By ensuring your catalog content is easy to access and convert into new formats, you will drive more interest in your products.

Q. How do I budget the cost for a catalog?
A. A catalog – print or on-line – is a significant investment. Often, publishing a catalog constitutes the largest single marketing cost in your annual budget. Like other investments, the catalog investment needs to show a return.

The catalog will be your full-time sales representative in your customers’ offices. Statistics show that 76% of customers making buying decisions require additional product information (Cahners Research). In most cases, your sales rep has not made a customer visit in the past 20 days, and your customer must rely on other sources – your print or on-line catalog.

Successful catalog programs include both financial and product input from your vendor partners. Vendors gain significant benefits – reduced advertising costs and improved product loyalty – by having their products included in your catalog. Most Tier 1 vendors have published cooperative advertising programs that allow you to offset the direct cost of getting your catalog into the market.

Measuring the return from your catalog investment should include indicators such as improved customer satisfaction, building differentiation from competitors and entrenching your brand in your customers' minds. Some indicators are difficult to quantify, but research shows that companies that make catalog investments increase their market share, show improved bottom line results and enhance their shareholder value.

Q. How much time will I have to spend to work with Webcom on producing a new catalog?
A. Your expertise is critical, both in determining the right product mix and in understanding how to maximize the business impact of implementing a catalog program. This includes working with your vendors and manufacturers to identify and approve the catalog’s content. We recommend that you dedicate a resource within your company who is familiar with your products to answer product-related questions as they arise during production.

Your time is best spent running your business. Partnering with an experienced catalog publisher such as Webcom reduces your time commitment to the project.

Q. I am nervous about new technology and custom software – just what are the risks here?
A. Investments are risky when you are not entirely familiar with the publishing process. Webcom has been in the book manufacturing business for over 28 years and has consistently invested in innovative publishing solutions in order to give its customers access to the latest and best technologies. Webcom has made these investments in order to gain maximum efficiency in the publishing process.