Why shops are putting catalogues behind QR codes
In a busy shop, most customers browse alone. Many leave without asking a price, especially for bigger items like furniture, electronics or jewellery. A code on the shelf or the price tag gives them the price, the photos and the other colours or models without waiting for a salesperson.
It also works after they leave. A customer who scanned the code in your shop still has your catalogue in their phone's history when they're comparing prices at home.
What should a product catalogue page show?
Keep each product short and useful:
- Name and the model or size, written the way customers ask for it.
- Price: exact where it's fixed, “From ₹…” where it depends on size or finish, and “On request” only where you really must.
- One good photo, ideally on a plain background.
- Whether it's in stock today.
- An “Ask on WhatsApp” button for questions you'd rather answer in a chat.
QR catalogue or WhatsApp Business catalogue?
The WhatsApp Business catalogue is free and works well with customers who already chat with you. A QR catalogue page works for strangers too, because they only need the camera. Most shops do best with both: the QR page for everyone in the shop, and WhatsApp for the conversation that follows.
| WhatsApp Business catalogue | QR catalogue page | |
|---|---|---|
| What the customer needs | Your number saved and a chat started | Just the phone camera |
| Works for walk-ins | Only once they message you | Yes, straight away |
| Loyalty card and Google reviews alongside | No | Yes, on Tapmore |
| Which spot gets scanned most | No | Yes, if each code is named |
| Cost | Free | Free tools exist; full pages are paid |
Where to put the codes in a shop
Put a code wherever a customer stops and wonders:
- On the counter and at the billing desk.
- On shelf edges or display stands for each category.
- On the price tags of big items, linking to the full details.
- In the window, for people passing after closing time.
- On bills and carry bags, so the catalogue goes home with them.
How to set one up in an hour
- Start with your 20 to 50 best-selling or featured products, not the whole stock list.
- Group them the way customers think: Sofas, Beds, Dining; or Phones, Accessories, Repairs.
- Add a price and a photo to each. A photo of your printed price list can be imported to save typing.
- Mark today's offers so they show at the top.
- Print the codes, give each one a name like “Window” or “Sofa section”, and see after a week which spots people scan.
Keeping the catalogue honest
An out-of-date catalogue does more harm than none, because a customer who sees a price on your page expects to pay it. Give one person the job of updating it, and tie it to things that already happen: when new stock arrives, when a supplier raises prices, and when an offer starts or ends. Mark items out of stock rather than deleting them, so customers can still ask when they're back.