Matt Fey, Creative Director
Forget going to the gym more often or eating better or any other resolutions you’ll abandon by mid-February. I’ve made a list of New Year’s resolutions for 2017 … and they’re all about catalogs. Ignore any proclamations of catalogs going away. They’re still here. They’re still relevant. And they can be better than ever.
Because we can make them better than ever. Let’s make 2017 the Year of the Catalog.
So for 2017, here are 7 Creative Resolutions you can not only stick to, but that can actually make your catalog better in the new year. I was going to make it “17 Resolutions for 2017,” but, well, see #1…
1) GET TO THE POINT
Be succinct. Celebrate brevity. Move on!
2) EDIT, EDIT, EDIT
Think your catalog looks OK? Think again. Take another pass at that copy, that layout, that pagination. Make it better.
3) PROGRESS, NOT PERFECTION
While you’re making things better, don’t let perfection cripple action. Get it on the page first. Improve incrementally.
4) THWART EXPECTATIONS
When they zig, you zag. When they go down, you go up. Don’t just do what everyone expects you to do. Be true to your brand, but don’t simply color inside the lines. Embrace the creativity of your creative and relish the unexpected.
5) LISTEN AND LEARN
Consumers want to be heard. Listen to them. But not just them. Listen to your circulation team. Listen to your strategy team. Listen to your results. Listen to your client. Listen to your agency. Let those learnings inform creative decisions.
6) GET INTERACTIVE
Take the catalog experience from the page to the screen with more integration of social media, apps and other online tools.
7) TAKE A CHANCE
Shatter your comfort zone. Embrace a new idea, an unexpected format, a bold campaign. This is your chance to be brave, to do something that no one has seen before. A bold move can pay off in a bold way.
It’s 2017. It’s the Year of the Catalog. Let’s make it happen.
Finally, New Year’s resolutions you can stick to! Talk to Matt Fey at mattf@jschmid.com or 913.236.8988 to make your catalog better than ever in 2017.
Tags: catalog, catalog industry, Matthew Fey, Strategy