Question: We just published a 260 page print catalog. During proofing, we found a number of images not matching the products. These images are the most difficult to proof since only a few people in our organization have the necessary understanding to recognize and confirm if the images are accurately representing the products. How can Catsy solve this challenge?
Answer: Images not matching with products is common problem that many catalogers face. This results in a long and painful proofing process. Sometimes it could also be too late to catch an error. Lets first look at the root cause of this kind of an error. There are few different reasons why images don’t always matchup with their products. The main reasons are:
Case 1: When a new product is placed on a catalog page, content has to be gathered for the first time. This process of gathering images and product copy relies on a manual process. Hence, it is hard for a designer to gather the right image 100% of the time. Sometimes images might seem right but a closer observation reveals a different story. So, the first reason why images don’t match their corresponding products is due to a manual product block gathering process.
Case 2: For existing products, most designers go to a previous publication and grab the product block. This approach works most of the time but not all the time. If there is a new image for a product, then the designer has to verify for new images. Sometimes, the context of an old publication where the image is being used could also be different. Hence, picking up product blocks from old publications can lead to image inconsistencies.
Case 3: When a page is re-organized, often products on a page are moved around. Sometimes product images get overlapped, and end up next to an incorrect product. Once images are on a page, the verification of image links can be a painful process. If images do not follow a naming convention, it is very time consuming for designers to verify the accuracy of images.
Catsy Catalog Software Workflow can help in solving all the above three situations to ensure that products and images line up next to each other with greater accuracy. Catsy does not stop there. It extends the same capability to Vendor logos, “New” tags, industry certification images like UL, etc. Catsy’s solution addresses these issues with the below solution:
Solution 1: Catsy’s technology has the capability to link products with images. Using this capability along with Catsy stencils, a designer can automatically extract a complete block from the repository and place it on a page. A product block usually consists of a product, headline, copy, pricing and a set of product photos. When the product block is placed on the page, it is fully styled, and the right set of images are picked up. So, Catsy picks the right images at the point of gathering content to be put on a page.
Solution 2: When working with existing products, Catsy offers a refresh capability. This capability allows images within Catsy to be re-linked so all new photos are placed on a page if there is a new image available. This is how Catsy solves the challenge of always using the right photo.
Solution 3: And finally to deal with the page re-organization problem, Catsy’s image reporting capabilities create an easy to proof report for catalog pages. This report enables designers to do preliminary verification that is much easy to do. The image report highlights the products and displays the image name that is placed next to the product.
Using the above capabilities, Catsy is making it easy for organizations to automate and publish their catalogs better, faster and cheaper. Catsy Print Catalog Software: PRINTsource and ONEsource are the products that make this workflow feasible.
Do you have more questions about PRINTsource? Please submit a question and we will be happy answer it!
Now that you know how CATSY catalog software handles inconsistencies. Book a free demo of Catsy product information management software. Learn more about Catsy PIM and DAM systems.
