PHYSICAL PRODUCTION OF THE CATALOG “Producing” a catalog and catalog “production” have somewhat different meanings. Producing is all inclusive. It goes from the first discussion of the project to “back-end” analyses of results and what they mean for future efforts. Production, on the other hand, refers specifically to the period from the initial copy and design through printing and distribution.

Assignment and Scheduling Catalog production involves nine major areas:

• Writing copy

• Design and layout

• Art and photography

• Typesetting

• New art (hard copy) and/or “film-ready” computer disk

• Film preparation or direct-to-plate, and proofing.

• Printing and binding

• Distribution and mailing

• Back-end analysis Some or all of these will be assigned to outside suppliers. The first order of business will be to find and approve these suppliers and to agree on a schedule for the work to be supplied. In working with either an inside or an outside supplier, the following insight should be your guide:

Writing Copy If your products or services require specialized understanding, at least the first draft should be written in-house. Outside writers can and do add their own special touch. Let them provide the sell that dramatizes your data. The Function of Copy The function of catalog copy will be to make a direct response or in-store sale, generate a lead, and/or reinforce other promotions; that is, one or more of the following:

1. To sell the reader who is unfamiliar with your product or service (the new order).

2. To sell the reader who is familiar with your product or service (the reorder).

3. To generate a lead by persuading the reader to ask for samples or an inperson presentation (major industrial purchases, computer or phone systems, educational programs, etc.).

4. To reinforce the sales message the reader has gained from a presentation or examination of the product (the auto dealership, trade shows, etc.). For 1 and 2, the function of catalog copy is, at a minimum, to give enough information to let the purchaser order. This information probably includes an order number, price, and basic hard data, such as sizes, colors, and materials. In addition, guided by space and policy, there will be descriptions, illustrations, and, sometimes, special inducements to get the reader to buy. Show Rather Than Tell For all four functions of catalog copy, show, rather than tell, the reader if at all possible. Today’s audience is more likely to be visual and oral, instead of literary. This

does not mean that the copy must be exceptionally brief; rather, it must be as succinct as you can make it and still do its job. Train yourself to read your own copy with the mind-set of your most likely audience. Pretend that you have never heard of the product: • Would you understand the message? • Would you want to learn more about the product?

• Is there a practical way to give that information—in text or picture— right in the catalog? (Here the Internet can have the great advantage of letting the “reader” ask for and immediately get more information.) Your readers are busy and frequently impatient. Make their lives as easy as you can. Efficiency and consideration always reflect well on your company. Now read the copy with the mind-set of an audience that has been to a presentation. Have you attended such a presentation yourself within the past six months? Have you videotaped several of them—especially the audiences’ positive and negative reactions to the points being made? They may not be at all the points you would assume just from reading the presentation back at your office. Nonetheless, the positive reactions are the high points your catalog should echo. The negative are the points your catalog must try to overcome before they are raised. Finally, review your checklist of catalog imperatives. Do you have the correct stock numbers, prices, quantities, colors sizes, materials, special offers, conditions of sale, and so on? Now look at your copy as a whole, and ask yourself the following questions:

• Does your copy sell the uninformed reader?

• Does your copy confirm the partially committed reader? • Does your copy make it easy and practical to order? If the answers to these questions are yes, you’ve done your job. If the answer is no to even one of them, continue to work on your manuscript until all the answers are yes. When it comes to copy, don’t settle until you have it in writing! An Approach to Getting Manuscripts Approved Throughout the production of printed materials, getting manuscripts approved offers endless opportunities for confusion, delay, and ill will. If more than a single person is involved, the following suggestions will help alleviate all three problems.

1. Appoint a single final approver. A final authority is needed for each different aspect of the catalog—the factual accuracy of descriptions, numbers and prices, the promotional approach, grammar and spelling, the house style, and legal clearance. Determine who must, and who may, comment on each specific point and who, in case of conflict, will rule. Designate a final authority for resolution of conflicts.

2. Circulate suggested draft copy. Circulate the draft copy of the catalog to all designated parties, except those in charge of grammar and spelling. Their time-intensive editorial expertise should not be requested until all other revisions have been agreed on.

3. Negotiate . . . and settle. Where conflicting suggestions or instructions are given about the same subject (for instance, differences in promotional approach), have the suggesters negotiate a resolution among themselves. But don’t let the process drag on. That’s why there’s an authority in charge of resolving conflicts.

4. Create a single master manuscript. After, and only after, it is agreed on, clearly marked, and dated, send it to the editorial people. There are likely to be conflicts between what they know is correct and what the promotion people consider necessary. Here, too, negotiation should be attempted, but in most instances, promotion will win. Of course, you do not wish to appear illiterate, but your copy must sell. Editors are not blind to this need; they often have excellent suggestions for resolving promotion and editorial problems. Ask them. Then thank them!

Design and Layout Design and layout are not the same thing. The design of the catalog is the overall visual and aesthetic concept underlying the material presented. The design develops reader flow and gives your catalog sales impact just from its appearance and ‘feel.’ The layout is the arrangement of words and illustrations within the overall design. The design is analogous to an architect’s sketch for a building, with the layout the later detailed blueprints for the construction crew. Design Sources and Costs The creation of design concepts is often assigned to an outside source. For important projects, such as producing a catalog, several sources may be commissioned, with the understanding that just one will be selected to complete the project. Each of these designers is paid an agreed-on amount for his or her work! When assigning this or any other project to a designer, be clear about what the designer is to achieve. Get agreement in advance from concerned in-house man agers about the goals for the catalog. Because debate inevitably occurs on questions of design,1 agree on a final arbiter for both the design goals and the results achieved. When there is more than a single designer, give exactly the same guidelines to each. If, as often happens in discussing a project with a designer, you modify your instructions or add to them, inform your other designers of these changes. Keep the playing field level, but remember who could help you think, as well as do. Whatever the final instructions, you will want to see at least the following:

• The front and back covers or the cover “wraparound” where the front and back are one

• The inside front cover and page 1—the first thing the recipient is likely to turn to • The typical treatment of a single item on a page or facing pages “spread”

• The typical treatment of multiple items on a page or spread • A one-of-a-kind page, such as the page containing the ordering information, an index, or a table of contents

• The order form or other reply device These items should be presented in fairly detailed renderings, with major headlines shown in their suggested typefaces and colors clearly indicated. Have your more important projects evaluated by one or more focus groups of typical recipients. This is generally done by a professional focus group research organization. For a less costly and quite effective approach, bring together 10 to 12 typical catalog recipients or users for a social event and have the competing catalog designs simply lying around. Observe your guests’ reactions. If you have an obvious winner—and you usually do—you’ve saved yourself thousands of dollars and rewarded all concerned with a grand party! The other pages may be presented in rough “thumbnail” sketches, usually one-quarter of the final page size, to show that the designer has resolved the major visual problems without any obvious oversights. To return to the analogy with an architect, you want to be sure that there are windows and bathrooms in your house, as well as a stairway to the second floor.

Bidding the complete job. Most designers will want to bid on the complete job, from original concept through supervision of proofing and printing. Let them do so, but get their bid to specify each of the following, even when the “package” is bid as a whole. You want the cost of each component for your own information and for future comparative shopping.

Costs included in the designer’s bid

1. Original designs.

2. Page-by-page layouts, including type specifications and necessary instructions to artists and photographers. 3. Art and photography.

4. Supervision of art and photography.

5. Typesetting.

6. All art, including digitized production or instructions for disk or film preparation.

7. Supervision of film and proofing.

8. Printing supervision.

9. Hourly or a full project rate for revisions and client meetings.

A note about profits. Outside sources cannot work for you unless they earn a profit on your projects. It is important for them to know that you understand this. If their billing structure is such that they make a small profit on each aspect of the total job—from initial concept through printing supervision—and you want less than this from them, be certain that they know this before they accept the job. They can then adjust their cost structure to permit a profit. Otherwise, they will adjust their level of commitment to give you “what you paid for.”

The conventional wisdom states that for catalogs, photography is better than art. There are some exceptions, however:

• Use art for highly styled treatment when impression is more important than reality.

• Use art where it’s better at showing necessary detail, for example, for certain hardware, colorless products, or the interior workings of closed systems, such as pumps and people.

• Use art for dreams that have not yet been realized. Unbuilt homes are a typical example.

• Talented artists are comparatively rare and expensive. They do, however, create a “feel” that few photos or computer designs can create. Unless you are an advertiser who uses art as a personalized signature, use photography for everything else. It gives a psychological as well as a visual perception of a “real” product. What to Specify on Your Purchase Order for Art

• The cost of the initial concepts. If, for any reason, the project is canceled or the final art is not assigned to a certain artist, you still have to pay the artist for his or her work. Not liking the concept does not release you from payment; after all, that’s why a “concept” is ordered.

• The cost of final art. Specify an outright purchase. If that price seems too high, check on the cost of one-time or limited use—if that is practical. Negotiate!

• The time allowed for delivery of the concept and for final art after approval of the concept.

• Any penalties for late delivery.

• Any penalties for delivery of final art that does not meet the agreed-on concept.

• Put everything in writing and have the agreement signed by the supplier. Your verbal instructions alone are not proof that they were received. Very little else focuses attention like writing one’s name on a contract.