Easy Setup

The software works by assigning placeholders to text or picture information in an InDesign document. Each placeholder is associated with a key value, such as a product number or SKU. For complex tables, use the unique Table Tagger™ feature to assign placeholders quickly, or take advantage of the Lookback Placeholder feature to extract product numbers right out of the document pages. All of the setup is accessible via a simple floating panel interface, which puts everything you need right at your fingertips. When a document is updated, the DesignMerge Catalog software queries the database, retrieves the requested data, and updates all of the placeholders with revised content. Updates to the document are lightning fast, and can be initiated at any time.

Additional Bundled Features

DesignMerge Catalog provides a number of advanced features for processing, error checking and reporting. The software is bundled with our CopyFit™ module, which easily handles text overflow conditions that may occur during an update. Also included is the Rules Module, which can be used to implement sophisticated conditional logic (if/then/else) processing.

Report Generation and Data Exporting

Of course, when you are updating lots of data items, it is important to keep track of what changed. To assist, DesignMerge Catalog includes a built-in Report Generator capable of creating reports containing a comprehensive list of every item that was updated, its current value, page number, missing items, error codes, and much more. This information is ideal for proofing purposes, index generation, or you may simply wish to merge the data back into your database or spreadsheet program. For database population, the Data Exporter Module provides even more powerful exporting capabilities, allowing you to extract content into flat-file tables that can be uploaded into virtually any web or e-commerce database.

Comprehensive Picture Support

In addition to prices and other textual information, DesignMerge Catalog also supports pictures. Just click on a picture frame, type in your SKU, and click OK. When you update the document, the software will search your database, locate the pictures and automatically import the files into perfect position. For missing pictures, DesignMerge Catalog offers advanced search capabilities and error reporting.

Batch Processing Included

For larger publications that are stored as separate documents, DesignMerge Catalog provides a comprehensive batch processing feature. This is genuine, built-in batch processing, capable of processing hundreds of documents at a time. The batch processing feature is very fast, reliable, and incredibly easy to use. Just select the documents you want to update using our exclusive batch selection interface, choose your data file and reporting options, and go! The software will process the entire batch of jobs and give you a full report when it’s finished. Imagine updating every price, in every catalog page, in just seconds per page. Now that’s impressive!