label artwork Archives - T&L Graphic Systems

Sometimes You Need to Blow Their Minds with a “Wow” Label

September 29, 2017 By Doug Danosky

When a simple one-sided label won’t do the trick, you need a “wow” label. Here are our favorite unique labels, that will elevate the functionality and appeal of your product.

Instant redeemable coupon labels

Whether you want to reach customers with direct mailings or at a point of purchase, instant redeemable coupon (IRC) labels are an eye-catching alternative to traditional clip or tear-away coupons. Using an intuitive, dry peel-off card design, IRC labels provide consumers with an interactive and immediate way to access promotional offers, coupon codes, barcodes, sweepstakes, rebates and more.

Ensure that your IRC label functions properly by using an ultraviolet (UV) coating to protect and secure the print below the peel-off layer and a residue-free adhesive that holds without the mess.

Scratch-offs

Scratch-off labels are another creative and interactive solution for delivering information or promotional offers. Scratch-off labels use a tear-proof film material, topped with a scratch-off primer and metallic ink layer, to create an engaging, hands-on customer experience.

High quality, fresh ink is a must. If you’ve ever encountered a poorly functioning scratch-off, it’s likely a result of low-quality or expired ink. The ink, which only has a three-month shelf life, is specially formulated and must be mixed to order, so plan on about eight to 10 days for order completion.

Piggyback labels

Piggyback labels are the ultimate convenience labels, providing users with a handy pre-printed or blank label that can easily be removed and applied anywhere. As the name implies, a piggyback label consists of two labels, where one label piggybacks, or sits atop, another label. A middle layer is used to adhere the top layer, or face of the label, to a bottom liner that sticks to the surface to which it’s applied.

Piggybacks have seemingly endless customization options, so think through the features and use cases that will help you reach your goals and a positive return on your label investment.

Variable image labels

Often utilitarian, variable image labels pack the ultimate punch for manufacturers, supplier, distributors and direct mail advertisers. Have you ever checked the status of a package to find that it’s at a particular pre-shipping location? Well, that detailed tracking was likely made possible by a scannable barcode printed on a variable image label.

These truly one-of-a-kind labels contain barcodes, personalized text, images or other information that changes from one label to the next, which allows companies to scale their operations while maintaining control over things like inventory, marketing messages, routing and complex workflows.

Thanks to advances in printing technology, variable printing is a cost- and time-effective way to customize individual labels. However, mistakes can be costly, so remember to carefully proof your data, such as sequential numbering logic or copy variations.

Self-Laminating Labels

If you’re looking for a resilient label that will withstand everyday wear and tear, dirty, or even extreme outdoor conditions, self-laminating labels stand above the rest. These durable and customizable labels typically consist of a smudge-free layer for writing and an overlying, clear laminate layer that can be self-applied by the user.

Selecting the best materials for your use case is critical to the success of your self-laminating label, so carefully consider your end users’ requirements for durability, adhesive strength, pliability, colors, pre-printed fields, permanence, and other factors.

Conclusion

Finding a trusted label supplier that can help you find the best label - no matter how unique - can be challenging. At T&L Graphic Systems, our experienced team works to understand your needs and find a solution that’s right for you. Check out our latest white paper, How To Create The Perfect Label.

Labels: 4 Common Artwork Problems and How to Avoid Them

July 21, 2017 By Doug Danosky

We’ve been in the label business since 1984, so we’ve seen a thing or two when it comes to label artwork. While we’ve received some truly stunning designs, we’ve also seen customers waste time, money and energy on avoidable mistakes. Here are the top four label artwork problems we’ve seen and how you can avoid them:

1. Font conflicts

Fonts have inherent challenges that complicate the handoff from designer to printer. Depending on the program used to create or read a font, a program or software version may interpret font styles and sizes differently. Just because a font has the same name doesn’t mean all programs will read it consistently. There are also thousands of fonts available to the design community, and many designers create custom fonts, making it impossible for a label supplier to access that font by having it preloaded on its computer.

The only way to avoid these issues is to provide your label printer with the font file or convert your label’s text to paths.

2. Color replication imperfections

If you see a color you like, perhaps on a website or article of clothing, it’s difficult to flawlessly reproduce that color in print unless it’s a solid color like the red, white and blue of the American flag. Introducing any variation of color, like a lighter blue, gradients of a flag waving, or shadows, complicates the color composition. Similar to when you match paint for your home, artwork colors can be reproduced using a color matching system, but it isn’t perfect.

For a perfect color replication, provide your label printer with the Pantone Matching System (PMS) colors. By specifying the Pantone name or number, you can guarantee that your color is exact.

3. Low-quality images

If an image looks great on your website or Facebook page, it doesn’t necessarily mean that the quality will translate to your label. For a crisp and professional look, the pixels or tiny dots of color need to be smaller and closer together than for the web, which typically only requires a resolution of 72 to 120 dpi (dots per inch).

Before sending your artwork to your label printer, make sure you include high-resolution images or photos that are a minimum of 600 dpi.

4. Drop shadow preset styles

A drop shadow, or a visual effect that looks like a shadow, allows artists to add depth or a raised effect to an otherwise flat object. While this effect looks great on a computer, it doesn’t always translate to print. Drop shadows look black on a computer monitor but actually require a four-color process to make the effect convincing. Design programs like Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator make it easy to add effects like this with preset styles, but they typically default to lower quality images with ambiguous color makeup.

When including special effects like drop shadows in your label artwork, create high-resolution images that are at least 600 dpi; control your color values by providing your label printer with a Pantone name or number (PMS).

In conclusion

Advancements in technology have paved the way for design innovation, but have also opened up room for digital issues with fonts, colors, image quality, and design effects that, if not caught, can result in a label that misrepresents your brand. To make your next labeling project a success, be mindful of these tips and also download our eGuide, How to Create the Perfect Label: The 5 Most Important Questions to Ask.

Avoid these common label design mistakes

May 2, 2016 By Doug Danosky

custom commercial labels Even the best-planned, most attractive label designs can become problematic when it’s time to print them. Keep these factors in mind when planning your next label project, counsels Greg Galeles, Manager of Plant Purchasing and Art Coordinator for T&L Graphic Systems:

Q: What should customers keep in mind regarding label design?

Galeles: Type should be simple in color. Black is best. A single color is fine. Multiple colors of type that would require a four-color printing process can look fuzzy and can be hard to read when printed.

Fonts should be easy to read. The type should not be so close together that it would be easily fill in. If your artwork includes screens with gradients, you should avoid gradients that go to zero value (fully transparent), especially into a large blank space. The longer the transition to zero, the harder it is to reproduce during printing.

Q: When it comes to artwork, what type of image files do you prefer to work with, vector or bitmap?

Galeles: Vector files are sharp and clean at any size. But they also have several other advantages that are specific to label printing. Color is easier to control. Sometimes it’s better to convert a color to a PMS solid color rather than run it as a four-color process.

Adjustments, bleeds and traps can easily be made to the file to take advantage of the flexo printing process.

In addition, vector files are more stable and are less likely to have compatibility issues from computer to computer. They are always high resolution.

Q: Who usually designs the label at the client company? How often do you get involved in designing labels for clients?

Galeles: We are not graphic artists. We do not design labels. From time to time, we have designed labels and product lines in the past, but they have been very simple in nature.

I have been in the graphics industry for 34 years in several capacities. In addition, our art department staff has a great understanding of what designs will work in the flexo process and what will not give favorable results before we go to press. We can help and advise our clients and even modify their designs within reason to help ensure that the finished product meets their expectations.

Q: What are the most common problems you encounter with client artwork? What are some simple fixes to these challenges?

Galeles: Low-resolution files under 600 dpi are usually problematic. Sometimes it may only be a small art element like a Facebook logo. People take graphics from the web to use for artwork and they are usually only 72 dpi – low resolution. These images will reproduce as fuzzy and illegible; they are almost always unusable for label designs and printing.

Fonts can also be challenging. Nobody can carry every font. Some designs have special creative fonts. The customer needs to convert them to paths or include the fonts when sending the art file.

Drop shadows do not always reproduce as well as our customers think they will. When they use creative effects like drop shadows, these effects don’t always print the same way as they appear on the monitor. Drop shadows are very rarely just black, forcing us to run jobs with them as four-color processes.

The next problem with effects is that they do not scale proportionate to the object. When customers have a logo that contains elements like shadow effects, and they have a logo that is ½” x ½” in size, the drop shadow may be equal to 25 percent of the size of the logo. Increase that logo to 2” x 2” and that drop shadow effect may only be 6 percent of the logo. In other words, the drop shadows become inconsistent at different image sizes. This is not always noticeable on the monitor, but it’s definitely obvious when printed.

Photos are great but they should not have extreme highlights or burn outs. Those spots in a photo that bleach to white will never look good printed flexo or any printing process. For best results, avoid images with lots of bright areas and lots of dark shadows.

Now that you have a better understanding of label application issues, why not download our new guide, How to Create the Perfect Label: The 5 Most Important Questions to Ask.

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