This guide explains how to set up product categories and subcategories in QuoteCloud, helping you structure your catalogue for easier browsing and faster quoting.
Defining Product Categories and Subcategories
Defining Product Categories and Subcategories
Learn how to organise your products using categories and subcategories to improve filtering, navigation, and product management in QuoteCloud.
Steps to define and manage categories
1
Start the categories guide
Begin the walkthrough to learn how to use product categories, subcategories, and tags inside the Product Catalogue.
2
Expand Product Categories
Open the Product Categories panel to display all top-level categories available in the catalogue.
3
Understand the benefits of categories
Categories help organise products clearly, save time when searching, and improve overall catalogue management.
4
Filter products by category
Select a category from the sidebar to filter the product list and display only items that belong to that category.
5
Narrow down product results
Categories make it easier to browse smaller, more relevant sets of products instead of searching through the full library.
6
Begin editing categories
Once you understand how to navigate and filter products, you can begin editing product categories and subcategories.
7
Open the category menu
Click the three-dot menu beside a category or subcategory and select Rename Category.
8
Rename the category
Enter the new category name inside the rename modal.
9
Save category changes
Click Save to apply the updated category name.
10
Verify the updated category
The category list will refresh and display the newly renamed category.
11
Use categories in the document editor
Defined categories and subcategories make it easier to add products from the document editor.
12
Browse grouped products
Products are automatically grouped logically under their assigned categories and subcategories for faster browsing.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are product categories and subcategories in QuoteCloud?
Product categories and subcategories in QuoteCloud are hierarchical labels you apply to catalogue items to group related products and services. Categories represent broad groups (for example, "Hardware" or "Managed Services") and subcategories break those groups into more specific collections (for example, "Laptops" under "Hardware").
Using categories makes your catalogue easier to browse and speeds selection when building quotes or proposals with QuoteCloud's sales quoting software and sales proposal software features.
Why should I organise my catalogue with categories and subcategories?
Organising your catalogue simplifies navigation for sales teams and customers, reduces time spent searching for items, and lowers selection errors. That faster product discovery translates into quicker, more accurate quote and document creation when using QuoteCloud's quote software and proposal software tools.
A clear category structure also supports consistent template use, faster proposal assembly, and improved brand consistency across generated documents.
How do categories and subcategories improve quoting and document generation?
Grouping related items makes it faster to locate and add the correct products or services to a quote, which reduces manual searching and selection mistakes. When items are easy to find, QuoteCloud can assemble branded documents and proposals more efficiently with fewer edits.
Categories can also be used to filter content in templates and pricing tables so generated documents present exactly the relevant offerings to a prospect, improving clarity and conversion.
What are some best practices for defining categories and subcategories?
Use clear, customer-facing names and a logical hierarchy: start broad and make subcategories progressively more specific. Align categories with how your sales team and customers search (by use case, industry, or product family), keep naming conventions consistent, and avoid exposing internal SKUs or codes in category names.
Test the structure with real quoting workflows, solicit feedback from users, and document naming rules so the catalogue stays consistent as it grows.
How deep should my category hierarchy be?
For most organisations a shallow hierarchy works best—aim for two levels (category and subcategory). Two levels keep navigation simple and quick while still allowing useful grouping for filtering and template logic.
Only introduce a third level if you have a very large or complex catalogue where additional depth demonstrably improves discoverability; otherwise deeper trees slow down selection and increase maintenance overhead.
Can I rename, move, or delete categories, and how will that affect existing quotes?
QuoteCloud lets you manage categories after they’re created, but changes can impact discoverability and templates. Renaming a category updates how items are grouped in the catalogue, while moving items between categories may change which templates, pricing rules, or filters include them.
Before deleting categories, reassign or archive their products and test typical quoting workflows. Communicate changes to your sales team and update any document templates or integrations that reference category names to avoid broken filters in your quote or proposal software.
How do categories interact with templates, pricing rules and accounting integrations like QuickBooks?
Categories are useful metadata for template filters and dynamic pricing tables—templates can display or hide sections based on category membership, and pricing rules can be scoped to specific category groups. That makes proposal assembly faster and more accurate in QuoteCloud's document generation tools.
When syncing to accounting systems such as QuickBooks, consistent category naming helps map catalogue items to the right accounts or service lines, reducing reconciliation work and improving reporting accuracy.
How should my sales team maintain category structure over time?
Establish governance: assign catalogue ownership, document naming conventions, and set a review cadence (quarterly or biannually). Use analytics to see which categories are frequently used or rarely touched, gather feedback from sales users, and run periodic usability tests on typical quote scenarios.
Regular maintenance keeps your catalogue tidy, ensures fast quoting with your quote software, and preserves the integrity of templates and integrations used by your sales proposal software.