Advantages of digital catalogs and how to use them in ecommerce

Print catalogs are becoming obsolete, thanks to the rise of digital catalogs. They are at the heart of the marketing and growth plans of successful retailers. Digital catalogues are quite useful since they allow your company to communicate its items with website visitors in a couple of seconds. By allowing existing and potential customers to readily discover your digital ecommerce shopping catalogs and browse through your product offers, the digitization of your print catalogues brings a whole new level of ease for all your stakeholders. 

In this article, we’re talking about what digital catalogs are and how they are different from print catalogs. Finally, we’ll list the biggest benefits of having a digital product catalog. Let’s dive in. 

What are digital catalogs?

Digital catalogs are online tools that allow brand owners and their employees to have updated and easy-to-access product data. It encompasses all the brand’s products and services and it should be easy to navigate, even with thousands of products. 

However, brand owners and employees aren’t the only stakeholders that need to access product data. Customers should be able to discover products in just a few clicks. Thanks to digital catalogs, customers can easily find particular product data, such as descriptions, pricing, and photos, in just a few seconds. This helps them get a more engaging experience, making them more likely to complete their buyer journey. 

Suggested read: Product catalog management 101 [definition + 6 tips to improve]

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Why is it beneficial to use digital catalogs in ecommerce?

Ecommerce sales had reached $4.891 billion by the beginning of 2021. Experts estimate that by 2024, we will witness an increase to $6.388 billion every year. For years, there has been an increase in demand for adaptable, easy, and convenient purchasing options. Companies have been gradually shutting physical stores in favor of more cost-effective ecommerce stores. 

In fact, by 2040, ecommerce is predicted to account for up to 95% of all sales. Everything is going digital, and so are product catalogs. Retailers must stay up with trends and set up digital product catalogs to deliver appealing shopping experiences to potential consumers as more people shop digitally.

Paper vs digital catalogs: 5 key advantages of digital catalogs

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With ecommerce on the rise, paper catalogs are declining. IKEA was one of the last companies that decided to drop printed catalogs. Here are the X key advantages of digital ecommerce shopping catalogs compared to paper catalogs. 

Greater accessibility

Whether they're shopping for a new dining table or a music record, customers are used to browsing for info online. You must ensure that products are discovered and available online if you want to establish a strong ecommerce product portfolio to match their habits. 

With everyone using several devices, it's critical to make online catalogs available on any smartphone or tablet as well as a desktop computer. This sort of cross-platform adaptability is what sets digital catalogs apart in today's market. They can be accessed from any browser and device. 

Furthermore, you may promote digital catalogs through any medium you want, including your website, social media profiles, blog, ads, and email. 

More structured product data 

A well-organized and informative digital product catalog will help you become a market leader and establish confidence with your customers. Buyers will locate the information they need quickly with a clean and structured digital catalog. If you have a large catalog with many categories and articles, you should establish a table of contents and allow text search so that your customers can easily find what they're looking for. 

‍Pro Tip: You can get structured and well-organized catalogs by using AI-based automatic tagging. This tool eliminates the manual process of adding data to your catalog by processing all your products in seconds. ‍

Up-to-date product data at any given moment

If your company still uses a printed catalog, you're probably struggling with how pricey and inconvenient it is to alter it. Even a little adjustment, such as a price modification or the availability of a product in a different color or design, might be bothersome. You'll usually have to reproduce or manually notify your consumers about the changes through phone or email.

Digital catalogs make this a thing of the past. Update product descriptions, photos, pricing and everything you want to in just a few clicks. Your data becomes accessible in real-time, in a very straightforward manner. 

Make products visually attractive

Brands may advertise their products in the most creative and appealing way possible by implementing digital catalogs. People are often driven by visual elements. Digital catalos allow you to add high-quality photographs, videos, graphics, and other interactive components to your product presentations. 

As a result, customers will have a full grasp of your product and are more inclined to make a purchase.

Save time and money

Paper catalogs are very costly. Organizing the printing, shipping, and other accompanying processes is complex and involves many stakeholders you need to pay. Moreover, it can all take a lot of time. Implementing an ecommerce product catalog can help you eliminate wasted time and money. All you have to do now is promote it to your customers when you have it online. You can do email campaigns, ads, and other promotional campaigns to invite customers to your website, where your catalog is published. This will save you both time and money. You will be able to update your catalog in real-time instead of waiting for the next print to come.

Wrapping up

Digital change is happening all around us, and digital catalogues are here to help organizations save money, improve operations, enhance sales, and implement effective e-commerce growth strategies by using new technologies. In ecommerce, including second hand ecommerce, digital catalogs may be a key touchpoint in the user experience.

Make sure your customers have a positive experience, because a well-organized catalog is a tool that showcases the greatest features of your items and aids customers in making faster decisions. Well-structured catalogs are powered by great data. Try our automatic tagging engine to find out how to add data to your digital catalog in seconds.