I Need Labels… Now What?

By Jessica Buchanan

CLOV Customer Service

Here at CLOV, we have the distinct pleasure of working with a published author. Our MRP Manager, Lee LaChance, published a book titled “I Need Labels…Now What?” in 2007. It is chock full of information for a first time label consumer – and lots of information that veteran label consumers could use as well. This book is so informational that I feel summing it up in one blog post does Lee’s work a great disservice, but I’m going to try. However, I highly recommend you pick up Lee’s book to learn even more.

When you decide that it’s time to buy labels, your first step would be to give us a call. Our Customer Service Representatives (CSR) will be happy to walk you through the process. With that first phone call it’s important to answer some questions to better assess what label will best fit your needs. Doing some research ahead of time and being able to communicate effectively with the CSR offers the best opportunity for you to get exactly what you’re looking for.

One of the first questions a CSR will ask you is why you need labels and what those labels will be applied to. A bumper sticker applied to a car is a far different type of label than one that has the logo of your bakery and is placed on cellophane bags or cardboard bakery boxes. They need this information to ascertain not only size and shape of the label but what kind of adhesive will be necessary. They will also ask if the labels will be hand applied vs machine applied and under what conditions said label will be applied (ie maple syrup is hot filled while beer is filled at a temperature close to freezing) as both of those questions will help determine what kind of protective coating, if any, will be necessary. Along with that information, the environment that your labeled product will be stored in is an important factor as that can also help determine the type of label requirements you have. The CSR also will ask what, if any, colors you would like in your label. Obviously a simple black label will be more inexpensive than one with multiple colors but it’s important that you clarify exactly what you’re looking for.

Once those questions have been answered, the next step is the CSR requesting a quote on your behalf. The MRP Manager will take into consideration materials needed, number of colors and quantities ordered to determine pricing. That quote will then be forwarded to you. It is important to examine quotes closely as with your first order of labels there will be more fees to consider than just what the labels themselves cost. You’ll be informed of our prepress rate (the time it takes to convert your art to our system and create a proof), plate creation fees and other fees associated with plate changes, color changes, setup et cetera.

Once you see a quote and decide to move forward, we will request you send us the artwork you would like on your label.  That information is forwarded to our prepress department who will create a proof. The CSR will then send the completed proof to you for approval. It is imperative that you examine all aspects of the proof for accuracy. You the customer are the only one who can verify that the label is exactly as you’d wished. If it’s not, now is the time to speak up. In this business we would much rather take our time with the proofing process and make it perfect than have to reprint your order (which could cost you extra money if the error was through no fault of the printer). Once you approve the proof, it’s off to the press!

We have several different types of presses here at CLOV on which to print your labels. Once they have completed the print process they will be sent to our rewind department to assure your labels have the correct copy position and on rolls that are appropriately sized for the type of application you will be using (hand applied labels come on rolls that are easily manageable while machine applied labels may come on much larger rolls depending on the machine’s capacity). From there they move to the shipping department where they are inspected thoroughly and compared to the job specifications you set to guarantee that we have met them all before we finally put them on a truck to you. Upon receiving your order we suggest you give them one more look over to ensure we did indeed meet your expectations (or hopefully created something better than you imagined!).

So there is the basic process for ordering labels! This summary is very condensed and could include so much more but for the sake of a first time label buyer, we hope this gives you a good idea of what to expect. We are always happy to answer any questions you may have and encourage you to ask them. We believe there is no such thing as a dumb question and we love communicating with our customers. We look forward to working with you and providing what you need!

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Thermal Printers: To own or not to own that is the question?

By Lee LaChance

MPR Manager