Guide to Designing a Great Label


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Labels are a great tool to catch a prospective customer's eye and inform them about a product. Customers learn about products by looking at the information each label contains. For example, the label on a bottled drink will contain the product's name, weight, ingredients, and nutritional information. Beyond explicit information, labels also impart other knowledge about the product and brand. Label design tells the consumer if this is an everyday bargain product or an aspirational brand. Designing a label means creating customer expectations of the product. This is part of why well-designed labels are so important.

The Product Label Checklist

The process of creating a label starts with the client. They must provide the designer with certain information so that the labels the designer produces meet the client's expectations and needs. The first information needed is the exact size of the product and its container, including information about the material the package will be made of and its precise shape. Any existing logo files should be shared. Labels are important, but they aren't the backbone of a brand identity: Logos are what the company should be best known for and should drive all other design decisions. The label should be designed to work with the existing logo. The logo also gives the designer information about the brand's colors and fonts for marketing. A brand must stay visually consistent across media so that websites, social media accounts, and packaging all work together to support the brand identity. The client should also provide a brief description of the product, nutritional information or ingredients (if any), icons (like those representing certifications the company or product holds) that need to be displayed on the label, and the barcode. These things are typically part of a creative brief that includes information about the style and look the client wants for the label.

Common Types of Product Labels

There are many different types of labels. Even large, one-piece labels, like the kinds that wrap around canned goods, have distinct content areas that function as different types of labels for purposes of the layout. Front labels are the most common type of labels used. Typically, front labels contain the logo, product name, brand-appropriate imagery, and the size of the product. Visuals usually dominate front labels to grab customer attention. The back label is where more technical information, like ingredient lists and other elements like barcodes, are placed. Some products use lid labels, which may require a decision between using primarily graphics or text. Bottles sometimes have neck labels, often a miniature front label or a similar design.

The Product Label Design Process

The first step in the design process is to choose a branding direction. This requires looking at any branding guidelines or design guides the client already has and considering their logo. All colors, fonts, and images used on the label should fit into the brand's overall look. It's also a good idea to consider how the label might be used in the future. For example, when making a candle label, consider that the candlemaker might make different sizes of candles or scents in the future, then spend some time thinking about how the label being designed could be tweaked to work for these variations on the current product. Then, designers should make a basic label template. The exact dimensions of the label should be used when setting up the template. It's important to use design software capable of making a printable file. What software should be used depends on what sorts of images (graphics or photographs) make up the biggest part of the label design. The file should be saved in CYMK color to be printed successfully. It's also vital to set up bleed lines for printing to avoid blank edges.

Design a Label That Truly Sticks

Many practical realities limit the design of labels. For example, working with the preexisting shape of the container is one limiting factor that must be considered when designing the label. The client's existing branding guidelines are another. However, the label must rise above these constraints to create a striking image that captures the attention of potential customers and helps the brand deepen its relationship with existing customers.

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