Printing Custom Labels Using Variable Data

 

Variable Data printing allows for the printing of bottle numbers in a run.

Another unique advantage that digital printing brings to the table is the ease with which content can vary between product labels – even to the degree that each individual label can be different from its neighbors. This is achieved by a phenomenon known as Variable Data in the label printing industry. Essentially, it’s possible to “merge” different elements from a database (or spreadsheet) into the product labels as they’re being printed – the press’s software takes care of it all and all you need to do it provide us with the raw data to be used.

There are many potential applications for the use of variable data. Perhaps a simple example might be adding serial numbering to your custom labels – each label could be uniquely identified by the insertion of a different number, which could be used for tracking purposes or simply to indicate a level of exclusivity (e.g., No. 485 of 500). Variable data is not limited to such simple applications however – it’s even possible to have different text or images inserted, it just requires some up-front manipulation of the artwork and you’d need to provide the actual components to be inserted during the printing process.

Using Variable Data for printing custom labels is different than Multi-Version printing (which we discussed in our previous blog post here). Both features have their distinct uses, and we can help you decide the best approach to suit label printing needs.

In short, using variable data labels opens up an enormous amount of power and flexibility to give your products an “edge” in the marketplace.