Start with a question the visitor recognises
A useful interactive catalogue helps someone answer a question. “Which solution fits this space?” is a better starting point than a grid of model numbers that only your sales team understands. Keep detailed specifications available, but let the first choice use language familiar to the intended audience.
Define one main outcome for the station: a shortlist, a guided explanation, a configuration or a request for further discussion. Trying to present every document, collect every contact field and run a brand film in the same opening screen makes the first action harder to find.
Give the catalogue a small, visible structure
| Step | Visitor question | Useful interface content |
|---|---|---|
| Start | Is this relevant to me? | A brief purpose, language choice and clear start action |
| Choose a need | Where should I look? | Recognisable use cases or a few meaningful categories |
| Explore a product | What does it do? | Image, concise explanation and the essential differences |
| Compare | Which option fits better? | The same attributes in the same order |
| Finish | What can I do next? | Agreed handover to staff or a tested way to take information away |
This is a starting structure, not a required number of screens. A small catalogue might combine steps. A technical catalogue may need filters, but filters should narrow a real decision rather than reproduce every field in the source database.
Make each action easy to find and recover from
Keep recurring navigation predictable. The W3C explanation of consistent navigation recommends preserving the relative order of repeated navigation. For a kiosk, apply that principle when deciding where visitors find home, back, language and help. Do not move those controls around to fit a different product photograph.
Use explicit labels such as “Compare selected products” and show a visible response after a touch. Distinguish a selected item from an unavailable one. If loading takes time, show that the action is underway so visitors do not repeatedly tap and create an unclear state.
The W3C target-size guidance is a useful reference when reviewing controls. Test spacing and activation on the actual touchscreen as well. A design approved with a mouse may behave poorly when a finger covers the label or a neighbouring button sits too close.
Worked example: a catalogue of 36 products
Assume a hypothetical exhibitor has 36 products across three use cases. The original proposal shows all model names alphabetically. A visitor who knows the application but not the names must open several records before understanding the range.
The revised prototype begins with the three use cases. Within each, product cards show a photograph and one distinguishing benefit. The visitor chooses two products and compares four agreed attributes. More detailed documents remain a secondary action. The full inventory is still available, but the first decision is less dependent on prior product knowledge.
Run a trial task: “Find two options for this use case and explain one difference.” Observe where participants hesitate and whether they can return to their shortlist after viewing a detail. If several users choose the wrong category, revisit the label or grouping before adding more animation. The numbers here describe an example, not a universal catalogue limit.
Plan the end and the abandoned session
A completed session needs a clear outcome. A QR code might lead to a public product page, while a personalised shortlist needs its own tested delivery and data-handling design. Do not assume that showing a code proves the correct information reaches the visitor's phone.
Decide what happens when someone walks away halfway through. An idle warning can offer more time before returning to the start, with behaviour chosen for the task and audience. Personal entries must not appear in the next session. Staff also need an obvious recovery action that does not expose administration to the public.
Prepare content and approve by task
Assign an owner for product names, images, specifications and each language version.
Use consistent units and attribute names so comparisons remain meaningful.
Test long names, missing images, no matching results and the final content volume.
Complete a session, abandon another, then start again as the next visitor.
Confirm which information and actions remain available without internet access.
Common mistakes include using a PDF as the entire interface, hiding navigation inside gestures, adding a form before visitors see value and leaving translation until the layout is fixed. Content approval and interface approval should meet in a working prototype.
Bring a sample of the real catalogue and the intended visitor decision to an interactive installation discussion. Pair the prototype with the proposed touchscreen so readability, reach and session behaviour are reviewed together.