At first sight, choosing a label material or substrate might seem quite straight forward. Your choice is between a paper or a synthetic/plastic material, right? That’s certainly true, though within these two categories the options can be bewildering.
In this short guide we will explain some of the label material options. Furthermore, we’ll focus on how to pick the right material to produce the perfect label for your brand.
Here are a few of the questions to ask yourself:
How is Your Product Packaged?
If you are using a glass jar or plastic bottle for example, your label will need to stick to its smooth surface. That might sound obvious, but it’s an important point when it comes to choosing a labelling material. Moreover, your label will need to be flexible enough to work with the curve of your bottle or jar. Imagine trying to get a thick paper label to stick to small curvy jar; it wouldn’t be easy!
Therefore, a synthetic flexible label material like Polypropylene or PP will work well on a bottle or jar. It’s great for a smooth, curvy surface. PP materials come in white, clear and silver as standard and are a great choice to show off your label design.
Alternatively, if your product is packaged in a cardboard box for example, a paper label may be the one to choose. Plus, to encourage your customers to recycle your packaging, a paper label is the obvious choice.
How Strong Does Your Label Need to be?
Do your labels need to withstand water, oil, grease or chemicals? Maybe it’s a wine label that will be chilled and popped in an ice bucket? Or a face cream jar label that is likely to be picked up by sticky fingers. If so, a synthetic substrate will be up to the job.
In addition, PP materials are often used for sauce jar labels and bottle labels with oily contents, as well as chemical cleaners and candles. In this case your label won’t be damaged by any oil, grease or chemicals contained in your product.
Perhaps your product is stored outdoors or in a factory environment, in which case a tough rigid Vinyl label material may be needed.
Alternately, your label may only need to have a short life, perhaps a perishable food, in which case a paper label may be right for you.
What is Your Brand Story or Product Provenance?
Whilst it’s important to get the technical specification of your label right, you will no doubt want to consider how your packaging choice fits with your brand story.
Eco-friendly paper labels are a popular choice for health & beauty and food products where your carbon footprint is important to your brand values. Uncoated paper materials give a natural look and feel that could be what you are looking for. Alternatively, coated papers give a sleek, high-quality look suitable for luxury brands.
If you are looking to create an exclusive look, speciality label materials would be a good choice. Think metallic materials, holographic films and specialist wine materials. Wine material, as the name suggests, is often a great choice for wine and beer labelling. Its tactile surface and superior performance in cool, damp conditions make it ideal for spirit bottle labelling too.
We hope this short guide has given you a taste of which label material might be best for your label. There really are lots of choices. Whether you are looking for a synthetic wine material or an uncoated recycled paper please call our expert team for advice. If you are just starting out or want to re-think an existing label that perhaps isn’t working too well, we are happy to help.
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