One thing all businesses can relate to this year is the continual rise in costs of pretty much everything. So that means little money-saving strategies are more important now than ever. Here’s the thing: in the long run, small changes can lead to decent-sized savings. Remember that saying, ‘Look after the pennies and the pounds will look after themselves’? It’s true! Save money on your labels and you can use it elsewhere in your business.
As an extra bonus, while taking a look at how to save money on your custom labels, you may also discover you can improve performance and actually end up with better labelling on your products.
Let’s jump to it!
Buy Cheap, Buy Twice
Ah yes, another little saying! But it’s totally relevant to buying custom labels. It may be tempting to scrimp on the quality of labels and go for a cheaper material. But will it stand up to the job? By that, we mean, is it the best material to match the environmental factors, usage and exposure that your product may need to endure?
Will the material cope in the confines of a deep freezer, or is it going to peel off, meaning the product has to be thrown away simply because of the label material or lack of?
For shipment labels, does it have enough stick? Or are you going to find a percentage of your posted products get lost in the post because the label wasn’t good enough for the job?
These are just two examples of how the cost of either replacing or throwing away your products because of the wrong labels will cost your business far more than the extra pennies you may need to invest in the right kind of label.
Have a think about what job your label needs to do and conduct your research. It’ll save you more money over time. If you are at a loss over which label type would be best, we can help you. Just contact our team here.
Does your printer stand up to the job?
Much like the money-saving tip above, by making sure you have the right tools for the job, you’ll be saving costs. And this time, we’re talking printers.
Some printers do not suit the material they are expected to print on. The ink might smear, the material might be more liable to jam in the printer and so on. Problems, problems! And this creates more waste, which equals more cost.
If you’ve already decided on the best label material for your product, you are part of the way there. Next up, you need to figure out if you need an inkjet printer or if you need to go with thermal printing. You might want to consider the settings your printer offers so you can maximise the space on your labels. Printers with a back-feeding function make maximum use of the printing area with efficient lead-edge printing. Using this function will reduce label gaps to a minimum, and it’s worth remembering that ‘the smaller the gap, the cheaper the roll!’
Last of all, are your printer settings and print drivers properly set up for your label size, style, and materials? That’s the last element you need to reduce waste and increase efficiency. It’s worth taking the time to figure it out; why not grab a cuppa while you do? Or, at the chance of sounding like a broken record, call our team and we can help guide you through it!
Let’s Roll Down Your Costs
Custom labels on rolls are almost always cheaper than single-cut labels. Fact! And this is down to one main reason. It only requires one tool to cut labels into rolls. If you want single labels, it needs two. Thinking about how your labels sit on the rolls can save you even more money.
What is the size of the label? Can it be reduced? Is there a lot of wasted space that could be reduced? Even the label shape and how it is orientated on the roll can help. If you can get more labels on each roll, you are saving money on the material by being more efficient, and you are wasting less, which is only ever a good thing.
We are aware some labels aren’t suitable to be printed on rolls but you can still make changes to your custom labels if they are printed on sheets. And, of course, there are sometimes legal requirements on label sizing and text size that can’t be changed. Still, it’s worth a conversation, so feel free to drop us a line and we can talk you through all the options.
Simplify Your Designs
We’ve all seen those labels using every colour in the rainbow. Sure, they are eye-catching, but, woah, they can be very costly to print. Intricate designs on custom labels can work well but they are just part of what entices a consumer to choose that particular product, so is it really worth the extra cost of the printing? Sometimes, a slightly simpler design with on-brand colours (but not all the colours) works just as well and it will save you money on your printing costs.
A good graphic designer will be able to help you simplify your label design and reduce the colours needed for printing whilst still giving the product the same level of customer appeal. This is another area we have covered here at Xora Print. Our design team are on hand if you want to get in touch and discuss how to make your label designs more cost-efficient to print.
The More the Merrier for Your Bank Account
As with many other types of purchasing, the more you buy, the more cost-effective it becomes. If you know you have labels for products that very rarely change or for items you sell by the shed load, bulk buying custom labels is going to be cheaper for you.
Hold up! It may be cheaper to buy them, but what if you have to factor in storage space? The last thing you want is to have to purchase extra storage just for your labels. This is all worth considering.
Some label companies do provide warehouse storage at a decent price, so you can buy in bulk and just get a small amount sent to you when you need them.
Alternatively, consider blanket ordering. This way you can negotiate a set price for your labels on a recurring basis over a specific time period. It’s pretty much a price lock which can work really well for both the custom label supplier and you as a customer. We do both warehouse storage and blanket ordering by the way, in case either would suit you!
Let’s wrap things up (and stick a label on)!
So, that concludes our five top tips for saving money on your custom labels today. It may take you a bit of time to do some research and re-design but if you can save some money, it’ll be worth it, right?
If this idea of finding the time in your busy schedule to look at your labels fills you with dread and you just know it’s going to sit on that to-do list for an eternity, don’t panic. The easiest option is to make one phone call to us (or email us!) and our expert team will advise you on the money-saving options for your business.
We have you covered!