Brimming with editorial, charts, photos, and symbols, Etera’s Gold Award-winning catalog reads as much like a coffee-table book as it does a sales vehicle. Simple solutions, garden diagrams, in-depth articles from a host of contributors, and detailed, easy-to-understand definitions capture even the novice gardener’s interest. “This is a source book to keep. It’s extremely useful,” said one judge. “This is an outstanding catalog!” added another.
Etera’s copy is marvelous for a gardening catalog, raved a third panelist. “Not only are the individual product descriptions very well handled, but the copy about suggested gardens is excellent, and the information about the uniqueness of the Etera production, packaging, and shipping techniques is both thorough and easy to understand.”
Compelling feature articles such as “Perennials make shady gardens sparkle” and “Container gardening: Pot up a colorful collection of perennials” also add depth and dimension to the catalog. And including photos of the writers of the articles adds to the credibility and magazine-like feeling of the publication. Graphically, vivid photographs, featured within a shaded product information grid, are aptly balanced against whimsical, watercolor-style illustrations of garden landscapes and designs.
But Etera is much more than entertainment: The cataloger includes key characteristics for each plant; a comprehensive index; and a selection guide, which classifies plants according to key reference points, such as color, height, spacing, soil, and the amount of sunlight needed. Handy maps displaying plant hardiness and temperature zones are also helpful for plotting a garden. And the company provides clear ordering instructions, guarantee and events information, and a Website address on its inside back cover.
But ultimately, this Gold Award winning catalog’s strength lies in its ability to pull all of its outstanding parts together to create a superlative whole. As one of the impressed judges put it, “Etera effectively handles several gardening catalog presentation devices and ably combines them for a truly effective catalog. I suspect every copy is filled with dirty fingerprints and has long since fallen apart as it is used over and over to answer questions for customers at garden centers throughout the country.”