Author Archives: Andrej Zivor

Laminate Vs. Varnish 

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When you’re planning custom materials and labels, you may get asked if you want a varnish or laminated topcoat, and here, we’ll go over this.

What a Topcoat Does 

The product labels that you have come with a variety of label layers, and it’s something that you’ll want to keep in mind. Usually, your face stock, or the label image, is not the top layer.  This is because it’ll help with protecting the label, and also enhances this performance.

There is a layer that’s above this, and it does impact the lifespan and the look of the labels there. This top portion is called the topcoat, and it offers proper protection against both damage and scuffing. It does also impact the way that the label looks as well. 

The two most common are laminate and varnish. Now, do you need this? Well, it’s not mandatory, but there is a protection there. without your topcoat, the ink will rub off this, or it’ll get scratched on the face stock. It also won’t be protected from liquids, moisture, or even oils that might be there too.

Varnish topcoats 

This is a type of coating that’s on a silicone-based sort of liquid. It’s used for labels that are indoor usage, and they’re not super resistant to the presence of moisture, and it offers only minimal amounts of protection when you’re trying to protect this from scuffing, or even smudging too.

Varnish is usually used in a gloss, satin, or matte finish. There are some common usages for this. There is the flood coat that goes over the entire label. There is the spot varnish, which is used to offer specific contrast for these surfaces too. Then, there are dimensional varnish layers, offering that 3-D dimensional effect that comes with this.

What about Laminate 

This is a type of film that’s made with polyester that offers a barrier of plastic, which is one that’s used to protect everything. They offer more texture and sheen to your label. This offers a protection that’s robust when you’re protecting from scuffing, smudging, oil, moisture and the exposure of UV rays that are here too.

Many laminates are made for specific types of applications. They come in gloss and matte, and there is also the thermal transfer, along with secondary types of printing, which is known to be serialization.

Now, you do need to choose these in a couple of different ways, based on the needs that you have.

For starters, if you need something that’s going to be used in temperatures that are extreme, or in the outdoors, you’ll want to make sure that the topcoat is made with this. Typically, lamination is better for this.

But, if you’re going to be using this for ecommerce labels, you’re better off with just using a varnish sort of topcoat, as this can definitely be cheaper in the long haul.

Finally, you’ll want to also look at the lifespan of the label. How long do you need this to exist? For the labels that are applied to plastic and glass jars, or boxes that are corrugated, varnish is going to suffice.

If you need something that is used for longer kinds of packaging, or making it almost permanent, then lamination I’ll be the best way to help boost the appearance of this, and it usually lasts as long as the product. That means, industrial and automotive industries should just use lamination.

Both are good topcoats, but they do have different needs, and you should focus on the needs that you have, before choosing the correct product. 

All About Packaging Design 

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While we hear a lot about the products, we don’t hear a lot about packaging. One element of this that people don’t talk much about, is packaging design.  What is it exactly? Well, we see it in practically everything that we have. from boxes for foods we eat, for the phones we use, even for clothing, it all comes down to the design of the packaging.

This can also look either really good, or really bad, and whether you’re a pro designer, or someone who is new to this, you can change the way that the packaging looks, making this even better than before. 

Designing Packaging 

The designing of packaging for these products tends to be a bit more complex than just throwing stickers onto boxes made of cardboard. You need to first figure out the packaging medium to choose from. Do you want rigid boxes, or do you want cardboard boxes that are custom printed.

The medium is very overlooked, but once you’ve figured it out, you can also determine the other parts of this. These are the graphic design and the packaging, the physical packaging and the design of such, and finally, the design and marketing of the product that’s there. Remember, all of these get designed differently, so understanding these points is important. 

Graphic design 

This is basically the graphics and other information that attracts the attention of different customers, offering product information. The graphics of the packaging usually take the design of the brand, along with the motives, and then displays this directly onto the box. Getting a graphic designer that’s professional is a great way to ensure that the process is done correctly. 

The physical packaging 

This is something else that you must consider, especially when you’re designing for packaging.

You can have a big, elaborate box, but the thing is, it may not offer security to the product inside.

While you may want to make custom packaging that’s “out there” for people to like, it also needs some sort of purpose, and it needs to ensure that the security of the packaging is in place.

The limitations of the manufacturing also needs to be focused on too.

You need to also consider whether or not someone can even do this. you might have an amazing idea, and when you look at the designs that are offered, you should look for something that works, and outshines the competitors..

The best thing to do, is to use packaging that fits the foundation of the industry, but then further works to innovate.

Also, consider the following: 

  • The printing types 
  • The materials for the needs that you have
  • How heavy and durable the packaging is.
  • Hot stamping, embossing, UV finishes, and other add-ons that you can get. 

Design and marketing 

Finally, you need to make a box or packaging that is good for marketing reasons. Sometimes, people overlook this one, but you want something that’s good for form reasons, structural reasons, material design, even the imagery and colors that make it good to market on. 

This is good because it allows you to appeal to a buyer’s persona, promotes this, and finally, communicates the identity of the brand.

Designing a packaging that fits all of these criteria that works well for many people is great, because when you design it well, you’ll be able to not only improve the marketing, but also improve the means that people are able to create the proper connection with such and make it even better, and it’ll create the marketing that you want. 

Cool Ideas for Mailer Boxes

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Do you like to send out mailer boxes? They are a great way to get things to customers, but you might wonder whether or not there are different ways to customize these. The answer is yes, and here, we’ll go over the best ways to customize these mailer boxes so that they stand out.

Get Some Dividers

Dividers, or trays that are made of plastic are great for separating items. This is good for selling products that come in sets, or different types of similar products. Separating all of these is great because it creates a divine unboxing experience for those who want to use it, and it also shows that you care about the way that the items come to them, thereby boosting the public repute of the business. 

Get Some Artwork 

It doesn’t have to come in a boring white mailer box! Printed artwork on the box is a great way for it to look better. If you want, you can add logos and other designs using colors for the brand, making it look pleasing and pretty.

It also is great too if you encourage unboxing and videos, as they can show the package off, and they’ll feel excited for the inside contents that are in there.

Stickers 

Stickers that are printed are something that businesses love. They’re not just feasible financially, they’re great for improving the way that you close boxes.

You can get mailer boxes that are blank, and then add some custom stickers. It’s also cheaper than getting custom boxes for these products, and also, it’s a fraction of even just printing artwork on there.

It’s a good way for smaller businesses who don’t have the means to really get the expensive stuff to show off to customers and get them excited for what’s to come.

Print Inside

Another thing that you can do, is make the inside just as exciting as the outside of this. This is great for adding some kind of individuality to this, and you’ll be able to print the details of the contact, any other social media handles, and also some instructions that are on the inner part of the box lid, to make it look even better too.

Colored Boxes for Mailers 

If you’re looking to stand out, but don’t want to just use white mailer boxes, get them custom. You can choose one specific color, and you can then get them in brand colors to make them unique and attractive. 

For small businesses that are starting out, this is a great way to get the other customers that come to you excited as they are a great way to boost the business and sales that are there too.

It’s important that if you do get these, you also don’t get too crazy with this. That’s because they can be a great way for you to stand out, but remember, you don’t want to put the entire marketing budget into this. Get a little bit, and from there, boost the different factors that make them unique, and that as well can help you look even better.

When choosing the stand out, as a small business, you want to consider using these types of custom mailer boxes. They’re cheap, convenient, and they look good. But how do you make them look different?

These are but a few ideas, but if you start with them, you’ll be able to boost your presence, and really make it shine in the process too. Consider using one, or many of these different ways to standout, and you’ll be able to improve your ownability and wellness, and also get more people not only excited for what you have to offer, but also get them on board for a great unboxing experience that you can enjoy, and one that definitely delivers on all fronts, for your own personal needs as well. 

All about Shrink Film 

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If you’re someone who wants to make sure that the product goes from point A to point B in one piece, you’re not alone. You want to utilize shrink film whenever you can.  Heat is a part of this, and it can offer the proper tools to ensure that everything is proofed from the elements, tampering, and even water as well, adding more confidence in the product that consumers love, offering a protective film that keeps everything safe.

It’s durable, valuable, and useful for this, and a lot of companies are looking to use this more and more.  Here, you’ll get an overview on shrink film, and a little bit about what’ll happen when you use this type of product in your business, and the benefits of such as well. 

The science of Shrinking 

Shrink wrapping has its own material that’s a polymer and is utilized for packaging. The goal of it is to have heat that’s applied directly to where the film is, either through using a tunnel that puts out heat, or the heat gun, and then, it shrinks there, offering a durable, clear, and a good barrier that often protects the product.

The way that this works is basically on a molecular level, they are then entwined with the packaging that’s there, creating an alignment within the packaging. When heat gets applied to this, those weird intertwining’s change, and from there get straightened together into the correct direction, where they end up creating a better orientation, which is different from the mold that they’re in, or the random types of patterns that are there.

When this cools, the different traits of this get set, so that it stays stretched until the energy gets applied, shrinking back to the form originally. 

This allows it to stretch until it’s put in the correct form.

The Versatility 

This is available within different kinds of types, including different thickness, different charities, different kinds of shrink ratios, and the strengths, which are done alone, or together with another piece, in order to create the ideal product protection. They’re usually much broader, in order to offer the specifics for the sealing, the optics, the slip, the toughness, the force, temperature, and finally, the memory of this as well. 

There are different types of measurements that come with this too.

The first, is the shrink energy, which is measured in the PSI units, and it’s the force that’s used to offer a film that’s exerted over the types of products that are there.

For those people who do the multipacks that must be contaminated, without creating damage to this, you need to understand the right shrink force helps you, especially for adjustments of this. if this is higher, and you’re packaging something that’s heavy, but doesn’t need much force applied to this, then it won’t be a problem.

If you’re putting smaller items together such as paper and the like, this is something that does matter. The polyvinyl chloride or PVC films usually have lower shrink force. New versions offer more reduced numbers of this too, especially when the shrink force is applied to this as well. 

The shrink orientation is another part of this, because they’re either bi-axially, or oriented preferentially. Usually, bi-axially ones shrink in both of these directions. This can offer different benefits, including, utilizing far less film, preventing the distortion of products, and so much more.

There is a lot to know about shrink film, but the fact that you can use this for anything and it works makes it a fun product to help anyone and offers a unique product experience. 

How to Optimize the Smart Packaging That you have 

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If you’re someone who does use packaging a lot, you might not have the right strategies in place. Smart packaging is something that’s great for shifting the focus of your packaging to goods that are inbound. As more and more packaging becomes smart, you want to be able to tell stories that customers want to see when they get the package.

Smart packaging is something that provides more and more opportunities for product protection, and also is great for supply chain concerns too. What are some of the best ways to optimize this though? Read on to find out! 

What is It? 

Smart packaging is basically containers and the packaging SKUs that partner up with 3PL fulfillment options. They basically handle the packaging, the containers, and other technologies.

This usually is “smart” due to the tracking that’s there. The goods that are monitored will record the temperature and other readings throughout the moves, and then, they get uploaded, and you can ensure that everything’s at the ideal temperature, so that they don’t’ spoil.

A lot of modern packaging uses this, interacting with this to get the information together, synching this in order to view your alerts for different options, in the event that something goes awry.  The temperatures and other sensors oftentimes create warnings for those, especially if in the event the van is hot, humid, or even too cold, allowing you to protect the items being shipped, and avoiding the shrinkage during transit as well. 

Begin with the current packaging 

The best smart packaging strategy for you to use is to work with the current packaging and look at the costs and the needs of what you have for orders that are outbound. 

Every single package addition does increase the size and the weight. The smaller the items that you ship, the more likely you’ll want a sensor, a tag, or something that will help to ensure the proper speeds and costs.

Smart packaging offers a chance for the goods to arrive from point A to Point B in a safe manner, and you’ll be able to properly incorporate all of these and reduce the amount of filler and the like to use, in order to offer the best delivery.

There are usually not a ton of changes, and a lot of times, the containers that hold a ton of products and units can usually switch out these small and cheaper items in order to put the sensor in there. larger products are a bigger issue, and this can add a lot more to various orders. 

Sometimes, this makes this oversized, but it’s not a big deal. You just have to work with different and current strategies and try to make it optimized for the carriers to handle more weight.

Refresh This 

You should definitely try to refresh the packaging. Using sensors and other technology means that there will be better tools for this. You can look at what the different companies need in order to get the data, and how to get this out there. 

You might want to implement better Wi-Fi or add the RFID gate to where the loading dock is, in order to ensure the details are in place, and you can alert for signs.

You shouldn’t just have checklists and various data, you should also work on risk assessments, and then clear the paths, offering better support for resolving different issues, pulling out products, and maintaining the reputation that’s there. build a plan to implement these things and change your management strategy so that this is followed. For those sending out the smart packaging to their customers, make this super clear, and you can also build the ideal system.