Variable data labels are necessary to identify, track and authenticate products along the entire supply chain. They also help manufacturers optimize their operating costs and market their brand. They have amazing capabilities to boost your business!

Variable data printing (VDP) and variable image printing (VIP) have been around for years, since the dawn of digital label printing. And yet many brand owners are still unaware of the tremendous benefits it offers. Far from its technical sounding title, variable printing offers clear and obvious benefits for brands– cost savings, package personalization, and design flexibility.

Cost Savings with Variable Label Printing

Here are the basics: with variable label printing, different images, graphics, and text can be printed within any label order where the labels are all the same size. That’s it. Since the per label cost of any order drops dramatically with increased quantities, by grouping several same-size labels into a single run keeps costs down. And keep in mind, the labels in these variable runs can look considerably different, or feature a simple product revision such as a varietal name for wine labels, consecutive numbering, or barcode serialization.

Variable data printing for labels: Cut costs, sell more and protect your brand

How Variable Data Printing Works

Personalization is a powerful tool for promoting products. Whether you want to create a label for a specific individual or add some variety to your products like a new flavor, scent, or color, variable data technology allows you to customize aspects of your label in a way that changes how your users interact with your products.

Variable printing is powered by data. This data is in a spreadsheet or some other file format and can include a wealth of elements, such as text, colors, graphics, or other features. From there, you can institute a set of rules that determine when and how an element is modified.

These are some examples of variable data on labels:

• Consecutive numbers
• Global Trade Item Number (GTIN)
• Individual order and production data
• Serial number
• Lot and batch number
• Promotion and winning codes
• Electronic Product Code (EPC)
• Serial Shipping Container Code (SSCC)
• Address data on dispatch labels