Businesses everywhere are starting to recognize the value of the humble barcode. While consumers may not think much about the simple lines-and-spaces pattern affixed to their grocery purchases, those involved in moving inventory and assets understand why companies should invest in custom barcode labels of their own.
Why custom barcode labels, instead of using stock barcode labels? Well, there’s nothing wrong with the latter: They’ve helped companies like Amazon and Wal-Mart create a new standard of efficiency in retail.
When you use custom labels, you’ll find that they can do more than just tell you how much an item costs or where it’s currently located on the supply chain. You can order custom labels in any size (to fit any situation), using preprinted information, to withstand a variety of extreme conditions.
Everyone from e-commerce giants to homemade craftspeople can print out and use custom labels for their business. Here are some of the benefits:
They’re Built For Any Situation
Not every label is created the same way. Some are better suited for freezing cold environments, others for hot environments.
And some are just good for being attached to a box, or a small object, or to a product with an unusual shape (such as jewelry) and shipped to a customer.
Some of this depends on the print technology used to create the labels. Direct thermal labels are best for when you want a barcode for short-term use, such as shipping labels or concert tickets. Thermal transfer labels help to create barcodes that are strong, durable, and resistant to chemicals and solvents.
Other considerations
are the materials and adhesives used. Barcodes can be printed on paper (primarily for direct thermal), or synthetics, with different label laminates including matte, high-gloss, and coated or uncoated. Adhesives to adhere labels to inventory or assets include acrylic, rubber, all temperature, removable, and even ultra-removable, among others.
Essentially, custom barcode labels can be formulated specifically to meet your needs.
They’re Versatile
Your needs as a business will dictate how you use barcodes, and thus what kind of printing technology, material, and adhesives you’ll use.
Do you want a more transparent supply chain, one that informs both you and your customer of where exactly their shipment is in transit? Do you want to use that information to increase efficiency by identifying issues in the supply chain? Maybe you want to make life easier for those involved in shipping your product by giving them something to scan with a handheld barcode scanner, rather than ask them to track your inventory manually? A basic, 1D or 2D barcode, printed on paper, should do the trick.
Maybe you want to track your assets around the office, such as laptop computers, printers, or heavy machinery. This is useful both for knowing when communally used items like laptops are checked out and unavailable, or for when a fixed asset is due for routine maintenance or even disposal. Barcodes on items that are expected to last a long time—even years—should be designed and printed with that in mind.
Or maybe your assets in the warehouse or manufacturing plant need barcodes, also for maintenance or accounting purposes such as disposal. You can also use them on the shelves, floors, and racks and bins of warehouses (which is what
Amazon does to help power their “chaotic storage” system). They might be operating in extreme conditions such as high heat or cold—and you’ll want labels that can stand the test of those extremes.
Any way you want it, custom labels can be up to the task.
They’re Relatively Cheap
One thing everyone probably knows about barcodes is that they’re relatively cheap. I mean, hey, they’re barcodes. They don’t require hours of installation, or software upgrades, or new batteries. They are just printed, and then they exist until you don’t need them anymore.
While other technologies have emerged that can be used to track inventory and assets—most notable RFID—nothing comes close to touching the bang for buck that barcodes provide.
But when it comes to custom-made labels, some businesses may shy away, preferring not to make an investment. As with many things, sometimes you can get away going with the basic stock option. But if your needs call for something specialized—something large and durable, or oddly shaped and chemical-resistant, or in a certain color or style (more on that later)—then you’ll want to buy custom barcode labels that truly suit you.
Imagine buying clothes that didn’t actually fit, just because they were a better deal? This is a similar situation. Create, print, and use the barcode labels that serve you best.
They Can Help Build Your Brand
We don’t think of barcode labels as part of a company brand, but increasingly, businesses are using labels in unique ways that are as much about marketing, online presence, and brand recognition as they are for tracking products and assets.
In the past, barcodes were practically always the same: The same white-and-black, stripe-and-space pattern. That made them predictable and well-known, sure, but they didn’t provide any help when it came to differentiating products.
With custom-barcode labels, you can create labels
that look hundreds of different ways. Your labels can have your company logo embedded with them; contain the colors of your brand; catch the eye of consumers with jokes, famous references, or paintings. They can come in different shapes, sizes, formations, rotations, and alignments. Basically, they can be as playful, serious, engaging, subtle, and unique as the business itself. It’s up to you.
We’re seeing companies as major-league as
Facebook, Spotify, and Snapchat utilize some form of barcode to help users navigate their apps. We see businesses embed information about the provenance of their materials in their barcodes. There are so many uses and styles for barcodes nowadays, the combinations of possibilities are practically endless.
This is one of the major benefits of using custom barcode labels. They can truly be whatever you want, or need, them to be, to push both your business and your brand forward.
So if you’re interested in injecting a little personalization into your inventory and asset tracking,
look into custom barcode labels. You can get a quote easily.
We don’t think of barcodes as part of a company brand, but increasingly, businesses are using barcodes in unique ways that are as much about marketing, online presence, and brand recognition as they are for tracking products and assets.
In the past, barcodes were practically always the same: The same white-and-black, stripe-and-space pattern. That made them predictable and well-known, sure, but they didn’t provide any help when it came to differentiating products.
With custom-barcode labels, you can create barcodes that look hundreds of different ways. Your barcodes can have your company logo embedded with them; contain the colors of your brand; catch the eye of consumers with jokes, famous references, or paintings. They can come in different shapes, sizes, formations, rotations, and alignments. Basically, they can be as playful, serious, engaging, subtle, and unique as the business itself. It’s up to you.
We’re seeing companies as major-league as Facebook, Spotify, and Snapchat utilize some form of barcode to help users navigate their apps. We see businesses embed information about the provenance of their materials in their barcodes. There are so many uses and styles for barcodes nowadays, the combinations of possibilities are practically endless.
This is one of the major benefits of using custom barcode labels. They can truly be whatever you want, or need, them to be, to push both your business and your brand forward.
So if you’re interested in injecting a little personalization into your inventory and asset tracking, look into custom barcode labels. Their utility and personality, for such a timeless and ubiquitous technology, might surprise you.
Businesses everywhere are starting to recognize the value of the humble barcode. While consumers may not think much about the simple lines-and-spaces pattern affixed to their grocery purchases, those involved in moving inventory and assets understand why companies should invest in custom barcode labels of their own.
Maybe you want to track your assets around the office, such as laptop computers, printers, or heavy machinery. This is useful both for knowing when communally used items like laptops are checked out and unavailable, or for when a fixed asset is due for routine maintenance or even disposal. Barcodes on items that are expected to last a long time—even years—should be designed and printed with that in mind.
Or maybe your assets in the warehouse or manufacturing plant need barcodes, also for maintenance or accounting purposes such as disposal. You can also use them on the shelves, floors, and racks and bins of warehouses (which is what 