Immersive Printed Catalogs: Innovative Designs for Greater Customer Satisfaction

Last Updated on October 25, 2023 by Packoi Team

Even with the prevalence of e-commerce and online shopping, customers still gravitate toward printed marketing materials to browse for products to buy.

According to a study, almost 7 out of 10 online shoppers look at a printed catalog before making a buying decision.

This shows the unwavering relevance of printed marketing materials. But that doesn’t mean you can’t integrate a bit of technology into your printed catalog.

If you want to increase sales, you’ll have to embrace innovation to create a printed catalog that’s immersive enough to increase customer satisfaction.

In this article, you’ll learn how to combine the power of printed and digital catalogs. You’ll also get tips on how to make your catalogs more immersive and engaging to provide a better customer experience.

Combining the Best of Printed and Digital Catalogs

Just because we’re already in the digital age, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t invest in printed marketing materials anymore. Believe it or not, more than 9 out of 10 households sort through their direct mail and spend an average of 30 minutes going over catalogs.

Combined with the statistics mentioned earlier, this proves that people still look for printed catalog materials. It’s even safe to say that they’re still more effective than using digital catalog software to create your product pages.

The good news is that you don’t have to choose between using printed and digital catalogs. You can combine the best of both marketing materials to provide your customers with a memorable interaction with your brand.

How? By using innovative solutions to improve your custom catalog printing material.

Immerse Customers through Tech-Advanced Printed Catalogs

Increasing customer engagement through your print catalog isn’t hard to do. After all, it’s easier to interact with something that you can physically touch. You can create more engaging activities that customers can enjoy while browsing your catalog.

But how can you integrate catalog printing with technology?

Here are three ideas that you can follow:

1. Augmented Reality

Also known as AR, augmented reality allows you to fuse print and digital catalogs. AR can bring the static images of your print catalog to life. For instance, a customer can scan the pages of a catalog using their smartphone. They can be taken to a program or piece of software that allows them to interact with the product to see how it looks.

For instance, a home furniture catalog can let the customer position a sofa or cabinet in their home. Or a clothing catalog can give customers a chance to see how they’ll look wearing it. This will give customers a better chance at making informed purchasing decisions.

2. QR Codes

QR codes can be easily applied to a printed catalog. Customers can just scan the codes, and they can be taken to a digital catalog version. Here, you can give them more detailed information about the product. This will give them a better understanding of what they’re planning to buy.

For instance, a clothing catalog can have QR codes linked to digital catalogs that will provide more details about the fabric used to create the product. Things like how to properly care for the product or different ways to style it. You can even include background stories about how the product came to be. These details will make customers appreciate the value of the product.

3. Near-Field Communication Chips

NFC or Near-Field communication chips, are used to create a connection between the printed catalog and digital catalog software. This chip is usually embedded in the catalog pages and allows customers to explore further information about the product they’re interested in.

The chip can either take the customer to digital catalogs or the brand’s website. For instance, the NFC chip in a catalog printing material can lead customers to a more in-depth description of a product. They can also read user reviews and tips to have a better customer experience.

3 Design Must-Haves for Innovative Catalogs

Creating immersive print catalogs successfully requires careful planning on your part. You have to make sure that it contains the correct elements so that your customers will have a full experience with it. As you make the catalog interaction more personalized and unique, it increases the chances that people will make purchases and eventually develop a sense of loyalty toward your brand.

Here are the three must-haves when you’re designing your catalog for printing:

1. Striking Visuals

Catalog printing provides you with the opportunity to captivate your customers with appealing layouts and product images. If you want to make it a truly immersive experience, give readers striking visuals that’ll make them interested enough to look deeper into what your brand has to offer.

The layout will also play a big role here. It has to give the readers a sense of flow and continuity as they go through the information you provide. Having a proper layout with a good blend of images and typography will make readers go through the whole thing from cover to cover.

2. Emotional Narratives

Tapping into the emotions of customers is an effective way to make them act on your offer. If you want to increase sales, use emotionally compelling photos for your print catalogs. When customers emotionally connect to your catalog, it’ll be easier to create a need for your offer.

For instance, a travel catalog shouldn’t just feature places of interest. It’s better to provide images of activities that travelers can enjoy. These are more immersive and effective at enticing people to visit.

You can also humanize your products and services by adding stories about the people behind them. Like the farmers that produce the food you sell. Or the people who work hard to provide the services your business offers.

3. Interactive Elements

Finally, your catalog printing should consider how to create an interactive experience for your target market. Things like pop-ups or pull-down tabs can be considered interactive elements. Creating hidden folds that readers have to unveil is also another way to make your catalog interactive.

Add something in your catalog that’ll make readers physically act on something to see the whole content of your marketing material.

5 Benefits of an Engaging Printed Catalog Over a Digital Catalog

Creating an interactive and immersive printed catalog for your brand gives you a powerful tool. It can be used to get new customers and keep recurring ones more loyal to your brand.

Here’s a list of the benefits that you can enjoy if you succeed in creating immersive marketing material.

1. Physical Presence Increases Engagement

A digital catalog is easier to manage because it’s easier to update when there’s a new product or something changes with the formulation of the old one. However, if you want to increase engagement, it’s better to go for printed versions, allowing customers to physically interact with the material.

People will be using multiple senses as they look at physical catalogs. This already makes it more memorable for them. They can flip through the pages and even write in the catalog if they wish.

2. Enhanced Credibility Leads to Better Brand Perception

Printed materials can also make a brand more credible and trustworthy. It looks more official and professional. Due to the fact that it costs more to create than digital catalogs, people will feel that it’s a more valid representation of your brand.

This increase in credibility will improve your market’s perception of your brand. That’ll strengthen brand loyalty and encourage repeat purchases.

3. Lower Digital Fatigue Improves Focus

Society today is so engrossed with their respective screens. This often leads to digital fatigue. By providing customers with a physical catalog to look at, it saves them from having to use digital catalog software. It allows their eyes to rest from their screens and enjoy the feel of turning every page of the catalog.

This improves their focus and allows them to concentrate on the product details. With more knowledge of your offer, this can easily drive sales and increase growth for your business.

4. Longer Shelf Life for a Wider Reach

The thing about a printed catalog is that people normally keep them. They don’t get thrown away immediately because people want to keep them around in case they want to order again. Sometimes, they even keep it in their house for years. This practice allows businesses to reach more people. It gives them the chance to engage potential customers and turn them into paying ones.

5. Design Versatility for More Branding Opportunities 

Finally, printing catalogs give you a lot of room to be creative with your design. You’re free to add elements to stimulate multiple senses. Apart from using colors and images to make it visually appealing, you can add textured prints and use scented paper. You can choose the specific paperweights you want to use to add value to the catalog. These add to the uniqueness of that catalog to make it more memorable.

Are You Ready to Design Your Immersive Catalog? Packoi Printing Has a Wealth of Examples to Share.

Having an immersive catalog will give your business an edge because it makes your brand more memorable. With the right design and materials, you can create a powerful tool that’ll engage and appeal to a diverse market.

Don’t be afraid to be innovative with your design so you can impress your customers. Partner with Packoi Printing so you can discover the creative ways that you can transform your catalogs. We have a design team and production facilities to help you create effective marketing material.

Call us so we can discuss your ideas. We’ll get back to you with a fair quotation right after.