Identifying the Best Design Approach for Your Seltzer Labels
There are many routes you can take when it comes to seltzer labels. Each labeling approach has its benefits, so it’s important to identify what method makes sense for your product labels.
What Do Your Seltzer Labels Need to Do?
Before you can identify the right approach to your seltzer label designs, it’s important to take a step back and consider what you’re trying to accomplish with your labels. There are some objectives that are largely the same for every company – tell people who made your seltzer and include any information required by the TTB or FDA – but there are some other important goals you should consider as well.
A good product label is more than a place to provide basic information. A good label can help you establish a specific brand voice and make your product more than just another can or bottle of seltzer. Your design choices also make a huge different in increasing your visibility on shelves, advertising, and anywhere else consumers will see your goods. With those goals in mind, it’s time for you and your team to figure out the best way to make your brand known.
Different Approaches Toward Creating a Standout Seltzer Label
There is no perfect answer for every brand, but there are are different approaches that may makes sense for your brand. Here are a variety of approaches you can take to make sure your seltzer labels do their job.
Create an instantly recognizable identity through a templated design
Do you have several different flavors and want to create a series of labels that differentiate all your SKUs without creating too much additional design work? A templated approach can help you create a system that allows you to adapt specific details while maintaining a very specific look for your brand.
Take the the Iowa Legendary Rye labels pictured above for example. The design uses consistent shapes and hot foil stamped borders to create a specific look for their overall brand while changing colors, product names, and descriptions to differentiate individual products. This approach allows them to dominate their specific spot on a store shelf with a cohesive identity that people can remember the next time they look for the Iowa Legendary brand. This approach also means you can utilize variable data printing to use a single design version to print labels for multiple SKUs in a single run.
Promote personality for each product
Depending on your business and customers, you may want to avoid a neat templated style in favor of being big, bold, and different. Each label is a canvas and there are no rules saying you can’t create distinct designs for each product. Whether you want to play up different personalities for each flavor or utilize different imagery for your various SKUs, you can make each one of your products grab attention by being a bit different.
18th Street Brewery embraced this approach for their labels. Each can has its own special design that’s completely original and visually irresistible. They can’t help but grab people’s attention. Not only can this approach give each product it’s own personality, it can lead your consumers to look out for new products to see what else your labels have in store for them.
Focus on an angle
Sometimes you need to focus on what makes your products special. In a growing seltzer market, what makes your seltzers worth trying? This approach can take many forms, whether you’re trying to appeal to someone’s health, wallet, or adventurous flavor palate. Once you identify that angle, you can use your labels to promote your seltzer to everyone within eyesight and help people understand the why behind your brand.
For example, Me Care used its product labels to highlight its own specific angle: Quality body products that create an authentic Kentucky bourbon experience. Not too many people would think to connect products like handcrafted body scrubs and moisturizers with booze. That specific angle gives Me Care’s labels an edge to help to sell its products to an intrigued audience while still telling a story about their brand.
Choose an Approach That Suits Your Seltzer Labels
There are a variety of approaches you can take in terms of label design, but the right answer depends on you and your product. A templatized approach may make sense for a company with a simple and stated brand of seltzers. Others may prefer turning each product’s label into its own piece of art for a more unique aesthetic. In fact, you can always combine a few approaches to find a blend that suits your product’s style. Who says you can’t have a custom illustration for each seltzer flavor on a partially templated label?
No matter which route you go, it’s important to make sure that you work with a label printing company that can do your designs justice. At Blue Label, we can work with you to balance both your label’s performance and design needs. Need the right material and adhesive for coolers? We got you. Want to add some extra flair to your design. We have the label printing capabilities to help you turn heads.
We’re here to help you get the most out of your seltzer labels. Contact us today about your next labeling project.
