Post Labels
About Post Labels
Shipping labels are an inevitable part of e-commerce. The essential piece of information on every shipping box goes on a shipping label that is on the box. If the details on the post label are not proper or if the label is damaged beyond legible, your packa ge is doomed to end up in some other place that it is not meant to be.
When you ship a package, it doesn’t go directly from you to the receiver. Rather it will change a lot of hands and travel hundreds and thousands of miles before reaching its destination. Most of the people who are handling the package at different stages will not know much about the destination of the package. That is why the post label should be proper without any ambiguity. In order for it to be easily understandable by everyone, labels follow a similar structure and pattern as well. Read this article before you start shopping for them. Having a better understanding of labels will help you choose the right type when you buy them.
Everything you need to know about shipping labels
A shipping label is basically just a printed document that contains the details that are necessary to process a shipment. It always contains the name & address of the sender, destination address and the details of the customer. Apart from that information about the contents of the shipment, including price, size and weight of the package, and a few other details. Without a proper labelling standard, these details will be arranged in a different way for each package, and it will be much harder to process them. Shipping labels do the job of uniformising the post labels and making the whole process of shipping a lot easier.
Shipping label materials
It is a misconception that all shipping labels are made from just regular paper. These labels must be more resilient than ordinary paper because a package will be exposed to so many outside elements like moisture, sunlight and humidity. The normal paper will not survive these things, and a label made from such paper won’t hold up for very long. That being said, there are paper-based shipping labels. There will be a protective layer over it to keep it safe from weather and moisture. The second type of post label is plastic film-based. These labels do not require a protective coating over them.
Common label sizes
Shipping labels follow in a few standard sizes. The most common size for regular-sized packages measures 8.5 inches wide and 11 inches long. These post labels will work in most home printers. Then there are the legal-size label sheets that are of the same width but are longer by just three inches. For shipping internationally, you will have to use the A4 size labels that are 11.7 inches tall and 8.3 inches wide. This size is almost similar to letter size labels except for being narrower by 0.2 inches and taller by 0.7 inches.
Ways to print on labels
Getting the label sheets is only half the job. After that, you have to print the details on them. The most affordable way to print labels is to use inkjet printers. Because inkjet printer inks are much cheaper, some people prefer this for short distant shipping. For shipping longer distances, it is better to use laser printers as the ink does not get smudged easily even if there is a little bit of moisture. The third option is to use thermal printers. However, this type of printer only works with special film-based labels. These post labels also have peel and stick features that make them easy to work with.
Reasons to use shipping labels
The first and most important reason to use shipping labels is that, in most cases, it is necessary to use them, especially in the world of e-commerce. Post labels with all the vital details make it easier to handle and sort packages. Having the details of the price of the shipment makes the process of customs clearance faster in the case of international shipments. It is also easier to print barcodes and QR codes on shipping labels. Having these codes makes the task of generating reports and inventory tracking a lot easier for sellers as well.
Tips on how to buy Shipping Labels
Choosing the right shipping label might be harder than you might think. This is because standards and conventions change between states and shipping companies. For that reason, it requires some thorough research to find out which shipping label to buy online. Before that, it is important to know what factors you should consider while shopping for shipping labels. Here are some tips that you can follow that will help you choose the right shipping labels.
- Material of the labels – Choose the material of the labels wisely. Paper-based labels are cheaper and are available in a few different textures that feel like linen and cotton. However, the downside of paper-based labels is that they can tear pretty easily. If you are ready to pay a little more than that, thermal films are the best materials for labels. You will need special thermal printers to print on them, though.
- Size of the label – In most cases, you will need more than one size of the label. This is because different postal services have their own policies regarding the size of the label. Furthermore, the size of the label you need will also depend on the size of the box that you are shipping and where you are shipping it to. All international shipments follow A4 size labels as their standard.
- Adhesives – Think about how you want to place the label on the box. Self-adhesive shipping labels typically cost more than regular paper-based labels. But for those who have to label a lot of boxes on a regular basis, being able to stick the labels without spending extra time to apply adhesive on its back is a great feature to have.
- Check with your shipping partners – It is common for large shipping companies to have their own unique standards when it comes to labelling. Therefore, make sure that you follow their guidelines before purchasing labels and printing them. If you know the exact specification of the labels, you will be able to optimise the usage of them and reduce the wastage of labels.
There is no getting around the fact that correct labelling is imperative for shipping packages. That being said, it requires so much more than just labels. Apart from that you also need good storage options, measuring instruments, and mail items to keep everything moving in the right place. The good news is that you can find all of them here using our shopping search engine . Also, don’t forget to check out other amazing mail items from the office supplies category. Some of the leading brands you can consider include Avery, Milcoast, FIS, and many more.
Question & Answer
Are shipping labels waterproof?
Not all shipping labels are waterproof. Although most shipping labels have some level of resistance against moisture and splashes, they are far from being waterproof. This is because most of these labels are paper-based. However, there do exist labels that are completely waterproof as well. These are plastic film based thermal labels. These types of labels do not contain any components that can absorb water. That being said, you cannot accept such labels to stay stuck on a surface if it gets too wet for an extended period of time. The adhesive will slowly dissolve away in the water, and the label will come off.
Can shipping labels be printed on regular paper?
There will run into so many issues if you try to replace proper shipping labels with regular paper. Firstly, regular papers will tear easily, and the ink will smudge if exposed to moisture. So, on top of the paper, you will need to add a layer of tape to protect it. But because the sizes of shipping labels are larger than the size of normal tapes, you will need more than one piece of them on a label. It will take you a long time to cut it to the exact size. Moreover, if you try to do it quickly, things will not align properly and will end up looking very unprofessional.
Where to place the shipping label on the box?
You can place the shipping label on any flat surface of the box. Make sure that it is not on the bottom side of the box. And if the box has a bar code or a QR code on it that requires scanning, the label should not cover any part of it. However, if there is any old barcode on the box that is not related to the product inside the box, you can either cover it with the label or strike them off with a permanent marker. One thing to remember while placing a label on a shipping box is to follow the rules of your postal service. It is common for them to have special rules regarding where to place the label.