Exporting a catalog to a price list: creating a price list for clients and partners

Why do you need to export a catalog to a price list?

Even with a fully-fledged B2B website or online store, price lists remain an indispensable tool for working with clients and partners.

Main reasons for using price lists

• Offline work of clients — Many buyers prefer to study product range and prices in Excel, make notes, and coordinate orders with management without internet access
• Ease of comparison — customers compare offers from different suppliers in a single format
• Work of purchasing departments — in large companies, purchasers work with price lists in corporate systems, and not through web interfaces
• Quick order — the client fills in the quantity in the price list and sends the file to the manager or uploads it to the system
• Archiving and document management — price lists with dates are used for price audits and contract work
• Presentation of the product range — a beautifully designed PDF price list is used for presentations at meetings and exhibitions

Statistics on the use of price lists in B2B

Data based on a study of European B2B companies, 2024

Price list export formats

The choice of price list format depends on the target audience and how the document will be used.

Excel (XLSX) is the most popular format

Advantages:

• Convenient editing and adding quantity of products for ordering
• Filtering, sorting and searching capabilities
• Built-in formulas for automatic calculation of order totals
• Compatibility with 1C, ERP and other accounting systems
• Universality - opens on any device

Required columns in the Excel price list:

1. Article/SKU — unique product code
2. Name — full name of the product
3. Category — catalog section
4. Unit price (€) — current price
5. Availability — quantity in stock or status (in stock/on order)
6. Unit of measurement — pcs, pack, box, m, kg
7. Minimum order quantity — MOQ if applicable
8. Quantity (empty column) — to be filled out by the client
9. Sum — with the calculation formula (Price × Quantity)

PDF - for presentations and printing

Advantages:

• Professional appearance with branding
• Fixed formatting - the document looks the same on all devices
• Edit protection - the client cannot change prices
• Ability to add images, logos, descriptions
• Convenient printing and use in presentations

When to use PDF:

• Sending presentation price lists to new clients
• Materials for exhibitions and conferences
• Price lists with product photos (catalog-price list)
• Official price offers with delivery terms

CSV — for integrations

Advantages:

• Minimum file size
• Universal compatibility with any systems
• Easy import automation
• Structured data for programmatic processing

When to use CSV:

• Automatic data exchange between systems
• Bulk uploading of price lists to marketplaces
• Import to 1C, SAP and other ERP systems
• API integration with client systems

Price list templates

Creating price list templates allows you to standardize documents and automate generation.

Types of templates by purpose

1. Basic price list

A simple table document with a list of products and prices without any additional design.

Usage: Daily work of managers, quick customer requests, internal needs.

2. Presentation price list

A beautifully designed document with a logo, corporate colors, descriptions and images of products.

Usage: Working with new clients, exhibitions, presentations, commercial proposals.

3. Personalized price list

A price list with individual prices, conditions, and product range for a specific client or group of clients.

Usage: VIP clients, dealers, partners with special conditions.

4. Price list for ordering

A special template with an empty column for quantity and automatic calculation of the amount.

Usage: Sending to clients for filling and forming an order.

Elements of a professional template

Design examples for European companies

German style: A strict, minimalist design, a clear structure, maximum information, and minimal decoration. VAT is mandatory.

French style: Elegant design, use of brand colors, and more visual elements. An emphasis on quality and presentation.

Scandinavian style: Clean design, lots of white space, simple typography, focus on readability and usability.

British style: Conservative design, classic structure, emphasis on details and delivery conditions.

Filtering goods for export

It's rare for an entire catalog to be exported into a single price list. It's important to be able to select the right products for specific purposes.

Filtering criteria

Smart filtering for B2B

Automatic filtering rules

Modern systems allow you to set up rules that automatically determine which products to include in a specific customer's price list:

• Purchase history - include products from categories that the customer has purchased previously
• Price level — show only products from the price segment corresponding to the customer's status
• Regional restrictions - exclude goods that cannot be delivered to the client's region
• Seasonality - automatically add seasonal products depending on the time of year
• Remains - exclude goods that are not sufficient to meet the customer's minimum order quantity

Branding of price lists

A branded price list is more than just a list of products, but a marketing tool that enhances a company's image.

Branding elements

1. Visual identity

• Logo — placed in the document header, 3-5 cm wide
• Corporate colors — used for headings, highlights, separators
• Fonts — corporate typography for headings and text
• Graphic elements — lines, frames, patterns in the corporate style

2. Contact information

• Company name and legal details
• Physical address and warehouse address
• Sales department phone numbers
• Email for orders
• Website and link to B2B account
• Social networks (optional)

3. Commercial terms

• Minimum order amount
• Payment terms (prepayment, deferred payment)
• Cost and terms of delivery
• Warranty obligations
• Price validity period

Examples of branding elements

For Excel price list:

• Fix top rows with logo and headings
• Apply brand colors to the table header
• Use alternating row colors for readability
• Add autofilters for easier searching

For PDF price list:

• Full-color cover with logo and visual
• Headers and footers with contacts on every page
• Pagination
• High-quality product images
• Table of contents with hyperlinks for large price lists

Automatic updating of price lists

Manually updating price lists is time-consuming and creates the risk of sending outdated prices. Automation solves this problem.

Automatic update scenarios

1. Scheduled update

The system automatically generates and sends updated price lists according to a specified schedule.

2. Update when prices change

Trigger price generation in response to significant changes in the catalogue.

Trigger conditions:

• Price changes of more than 5% for 10+ products
• Adding new products to a category
• Change in availability of key products
• Launch of special promotions and sales

3. Generation upon client request

The client can download the current price list with their own prices at any time in their personal account.

Options for the client:

• Select format (Excel, PDF, CSV)
• Filter by categories
• Only products in stock or the entire range
• With or without images

Synchronization with accounting systems

To ensure data is up-to-date, price lists should be generated directly from accounting systems:

• 1C Trade Management — direct download of prices, balances and product characteristics
• ERP systems — API integration for real-time data retrieval
• Warehouse management systems (WMS) — current balances at the time of generation
• CRM systems — personal terms and discounts for the client

Conclusion