Why Is Product Labeling So Important?

Prime labels and secondary labels are key when it comes to product marketing and packaging.

Prime labels are the first thing customers see. These labels often have high quality pictures and colors to enhance their appeal and grab customers' attention. Secondary labels are supplemental. They are usually on the back of the product and contain important product information.

Whether you're designing a primary or secondary label, the information they contain is crucial. This article takes a look at a few of the reasons why the labeling on a product is important and what a product's label should entail.

1. Ingredients: The label on a product allows the customer to know what is in the food they're eating or the product they're using. This allows the consumer to know how healthy, or unhealthy, the product is. It's also important to display the ingredients for those who may be allergic to certain ingredients. Especially on food and beverage labels, it's easy to see the "may contain so-and-so ingredient" so those allergic to that ingredient know to avoid it.
    
2. Health Risks: Again, labels contain information that's important for people with allergies. But in addition to allergic reaction risks, there are other health risks that should be on labels. For instance, cigarettes, chewing tobacco, and alcoholic beverage labels must contain health warnings. Additionally, warnings of poison or hazardous products must also be clearly displayed.
    
3. Instructions: Particularly with cleaning products, cosmetics, and medicines, the prime or secondary label should include directions for using the product. Using too much of a product or incorrectly using it can have serious consequences, so it's important for the consumer to know the proper way to use the product. Using booklet labels will allow you to go in-depth for step-by-step instructions.
    
4. Promotion and Marketing: A product's label can market the product all on its own.  Consumers may be attracted to a brightly colored label and end up purchasing that product. If your product has a unique label, it can be key to helping a consumer pick out your product amongst the others on the shelf.  And with today's technology and advancements in label manufacturing, labels are now used for cross-brand marketing, recipe information, couponing, sweepstakes and gaming.  With that in mind, it's important to remember that labeling your products can be a useful sales tool.
    

Labeling products not only provides crucial information and instructions to consumers but can also help your product stand out. In fact, 85% of shoppers say that their decision to buy a product is informed by reading a product's packaging while they're shopping. When considering your label design, it's important to decide what information to put on prime labels versus secondary labels to ensure the consumer reads the more important information first.