A Fine Mix

Form/label combinations offer unique design challenges and high sales margins

By Eric Fiedler

Form/label combinations are a favorite product for distributors to sell—because they really don't have to do much selling.

"It's one of those products that sort of sells itself because when a customer contacts us through the Internet, they are already trying to solve a specific problem, and they've already figured out it's a form/label combination that they need," said Ron Woodrell, president of Cal-West Business Forms, a Fair Oaks, Calif.-based distributorship.

"With this product you go back to what you're supposed to be doing with every order, which is solving a problem and genuinely helping a customer save time and money," said Frank Geisler, CFC, President of Proforma Printnet, Marina, Calif.

As easy as they may be to sell, however, most form/label jobs are highly customized, and require that the designer take a number of variables into consideration.

"In the old days, we were limited because we would come up with a creative solution, but weren't able to find a manufacturer who could handle it," said Patrick Bossio, CFC, branch manager of RBF, Livonia, Mich. Bossio said that advancements in manufacturing processes, such as blown-on labels, have allowed him to design with only the customer solution in mind. "The possibilities with this product are almost endless," he said.

When designing form/label combinations, Bossio said RBF uses a team approach to channel all the possibilities into the most effective design. "The designers add all the bells and whistles, then we try to come up with a solution from a customer's perspective, merge the two and come up with a hybrid," he said.

Bossio said the first thing to consider when designing a form/label product is the application. "You may have a slick looking form/label that saves the client a little money, but if the application takes twice as long to utilize, then it doesn't make sense," he said.