Woodworkers Catalog Can Easily Go From Good to Great

Osborne Wood Products positions its catalog as a full-service resource for woodworkers and artists, be it layman consumers looking for products to spiff up their homes or interior designers looking on behalf of their clients. With a few improvements and alterations, this catalog can attract an even broader audience and increase response.

Front Cover
There are several elements of the catalog’s front cover that give it a workbook appearance, from the holes punched near the spine (suggesting this is a reference tool to draw on time and again) to the photo of woodworking hands.

The cover photo, positioned slightly askew with tape willy-nilly along its edges, implies this is a book for true artists. The Osborne logo, reminiscent of friendly hardware stores from earlier days, suggests this is a business that’s been around for generations.

The remainder of the cover is ambivalent. The painterly ground with the superimposed leaf is confusing. The “Wood Turnings” tagline is obscured. There’s a faint image of a bun foot (a very small percentage of the mix inside) that resembles an urn rather than what it is.

Inside Front Spread
Osborne fails to use its opening spread to its maximum potential. With some reorganization and redesign, this can be a very effective platform for selling and enforcing its services, philosophies and products.

And then there’s the company story to tell. A quick look at the company’s history on its Web site (www.osbornewood.com) shows Leon and Janice Osborne founded the company in a garage on Parkway Drive in Toccoa, Ga., in 1979. The opening spread is the perfect space to let this be known while personalizing the book.

The introduction, which doesn’t need to repeat the “Important Information” lead-in, can be more benefit-driven, while still emphasizing the company’s convictions. Since it states, “We strive as a business to operate under the Lordship of Christ,” what better example of God’s gifts than natural wood products and the expertise to craft them? Add a couple of qualities that set the company apart (e.g., made in the USA, handcrafted nature, custom availability, variety of woods and finishes, etc.), and the message is clear and informative.

To free up space and avoid redundancy, Osborne should eliminate its table of contents — a 20-page catalog doesn’t need it. Some of the copy blocks and elements of the copy blocks, such as “We require a 50% deposit on all custom orders” and “Custom Turnings,” can be combined. Charge card and check information can be added to the “Pricing” feature. One or two of the customer-service points, like the “Measurements” feature and small photos of actual furniture made with Osborne’s table legs, can be used to expand the workbook concept and add visual interest.

Merchandising
From the variety of designs to the vast selection of woods available to the custom turnings possibilities, there’s no doubt Osborne Wood Products is the ultimate authority on wooden accessory legs and wood turning items. And since no one is adverse to a bargain, the suggestion that this is a wholesale catalog (the order form is labeled “Wholesale Price List”) with quantity discounts is a clever motivational tool.

As with the opening spread, however, the overall collection can be reorganized and repaginated to create continuity and visual balance. The category Kitchen Island, pgs. 8-11, obviously is the most popular group and shouldn’t be divided by the order form. In fact, since service for Osborne is such a critical aspect of selling its product, it would be far more effective to position all service-related elements (i.e., available woods, new and custom designs, and skirt assembly) on the pages surrounding the order form.

Photography and Design
With a niche as narrow as Osborne’s, it’s a challenge to create visual balance and variety without adding distracting design elements. In this case, the individual page headlines are too large for a book this lightweight. And where a two-page spread features one category (e.g., “Kitchen Island,” pgs. 8-9), it’s appropriate to use the heading just once.

The paint swipes along the vertical trim of every page are monotonous and space-consuming. Because of the nature of the product, a clean format is far more appealing, and varying the sizes of some of the legs, corbels and appliqués (in correspondence with their height disparity) can more effectively give the pages the visual impact desired.

Back Cover
While the choice of woods available is a major part of the product Osborne offers, the back cover is not the place to display them. Since the order form lists all the woods alongside each catalog part number, these wood chips (tightened up) should precede or follow this where they can have major visual and informational impact.

In keeping with the photos and illustrations boxed off with tape throughout the catalog, the back cover is a good place to duplicate this design element. A variety of photos, such as actual product and product categories, or employees picking or packing product or product utility, can be displayed to reinforce the message that this is the only place to shop for woodworking.

It’s evident quality and customer care, along with stewardship, are paramount to Osborne Wood Products. By applying a few strong creative and merchandising strategies, the potential for increased sales and profits is imminent.

Leila Griffith is a freelance merchandising and creative consultant based in Jacksonville, Fla. You can reach her at (904) 389-7752 or leilagriffith@bellsouth.net.