Key Difference: A Brochure is a short, printed document, also known as a pamphlet. It is a booklet containing descriptive or advertising material. On the other hand, a Catalogue is a document or a book containing an itemized list of name, goods, or books.

Many get confused with the two terms because both give some information about the company’s new product, hotels, shops, etc. There’s a very thin difference between Brochure and Catalogue.

According to BusinessDictionary.com, the definition of a Brochure is, a “publication consisting of one folded page, or several pages stitched together but not bound, used mainly for advertising purposes.”

Brochure originated in the early 1748. It is derived from a French word ‘brocher’ which means to sew, from Middle French. It means to prick; from Old French ‘brochier’.

A brochure is a small, thin book or magazine that usually has many pictures and information about a product, a place, etc. It is mostly of a single-sheet (bi-fold) or three sheets (tri-fold), which can be easily spread over different places. They may advertise new products, locations, shops, events, hotels, etc. It should be very attractive so that people at least have a glance over it. Nowadays, there are varieties of patterns and designs in brochures. They can be magazine style brochures, 3-folded brochures or postcard brochures.

According to BusinessDictionary.com, the definition of a Catalogue is, a “list of goods or services on sale with their description and prices published as a printed document, or as an electronic document (e-catalog) on internet or on a diskette, CD, DVD, etc.”

A Catalogue, also written as Catalog, is a document or a book containing an itemized list of names, goods, or books. The purpose of the catalogue is nothing but to sell products to the customers. It has very simple information about the particular thing and is written in points containing one or two sentences.

It contains information that helps to buy goods or things. It gives a brief knowledge about the particular product so that people don’t confuse the product with anything else. Their designing and coloring should be perfect so that at least once the customer can think about the particular product.

Basically, brochures act as a medium to bridge the gap between the company and the reader. Designers need to figure out a way to effectively inform the readers about the company with correct use of words and graphics. Catalogues are expected to provide readers with the comprehensive information on each product featured, including thorough and desirable description.

Image Courtesy: icarodiseno.files.wordpress.com, congtyinthanhdat.com