# New Labels - what do you think?



## MeadowHillFarmCT (Aug 10, 2011)

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid= ... =1&theater


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## kharmon320 (Aug 10, 2011)

Okay... please take this as constructive criticism which is what I believe you're seeking.  I think you know from my email that I really like your soaps.  I would like the front of the label better if the black border wasn't there (my preference) or if the border seemed more even.  Does that make sense?  I really think you could do away with all borders on the front of the label and perhaps make the writing bolder.  Or, if there was one big box around all the writing on the front that would seem more like a label.

Love the picture of the goat!  Like the back.  If you're comfortable with your address being "out there" that's your call.  I realize it's a farm and you want to foster the image of the farm and the goats.  However, I think for the preview on the web, I would black out or "fuzzy" the address.


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## xyxoxy (Aug 10, 2011)

I know that different people feel differently about this but the first thing that jumped out at me was the "Saponified xxx oils". My feeling is that it's better to just include Sodium Hydroxide as an ingredient and be prepared to explain why that's ok if necessary... The other way just feels misleading. But it's a personal choice. I'm also not sure what exactly vegetable oil is.

I would also have to agree about omitting or obscuring the home address.


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## PrairieCraft (Aug 11, 2011)

I agree with both of the above posts.  Less lines in general,  the lines on the back make it seem cluttered with too much info.  More white space is better.  I would also prefer to see the ingredients listed as xyxoxy suggested and for the same reason.  It's a great start though and way better than my first sad attempts.  Cute goat pics sell!


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## Relle (Aug 11, 2011)

Love the goat pic Ruth,who's your model in the photo ?


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## busymakinsoap! (Aug 11, 2011)

The pic is cute!  

The back could be simplified by adding just your website.  Once people visit the site, you can have badges attached for facebook and etsy (?) and your blog, and you will also have your contact details on there too.
If you are selling from your site that would be the first place I would want my customers to visit.


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## MeadowHillFarmCT (Aug 11, 2011)

Thank you all for the critique.  Just what I wanted.  I will rework the lines...

My little girl Bella is the model- was our first goat (has since past) and she remains in our heart because she was so precious...


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## dOttY (Aug 11, 2011)

Love the pic, but don't really love the lines.... I think it makes the back look too complicated, and isn't kind on the eyes.   Just my opinion though


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## Elly (Aug 11, 2011)

Love the picture of Bella.  Your label looks good but less lines would improve it a bit IMO  :wink:


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## lsg (Aug 11, 2011)

Very nice.


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## frieda (Aug 11, 2011)

How great to think about Bella to put on your label. She must have been very special to you!
Apart from that, agree a bit with the other postings, keep on trying, the perfect label is on his way...


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## Guest (Aug 11, 2011)

Coming from a non-native english speaker, the wording is a bit off. It doesn't say saponified oils, but saponified vegetable 

Saying the soap contains sodium hydroxide would be a ... lye 

However, I have heard other soapers that feel it would be misleading not to include that. I am not sure if the average customer feels the same.

All things considered, maybe this would be a step forward:

Vegetable oils (Coconut and Rice Bran, saponified using Sodium Hydroxide)

or, since the word vegetable seems a bit redundant:

Coconut and Rice Bran oils (saponified using Sodium Hydroxide)



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I agree that the back side looks very cluttered. Maybe the website is enough, and you have there links to the blog and shop.

And the owner and address can be on the same line

The lines between the rows are also too heavy. Maybe a thin gray line (or another more lighter colour from your graphical composition).

--------------------------

The goat is sexy, but the printed picture looks poor quality. Also, frame is to thick.


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## yoenoess (Aug 11, 2011)

i think if you make your url shorter would be better

you can use 
http://bit.ly

its free


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## carebear (Aug 11, 2011)

cigar brands used to be the bane of my existence - you need to line them up exactly or they look sloppy.  IMO.

If this isn't the kind of feedback you are looking for then please forgive me.  I'm trying to be constructive, not critical.

legally, at least in NJ, your physical address MUST be on a soap label.  not to say everyone does this - but it is what you should do.  i'd NOT put YOUR name on the label though, unless you are doing something like Lush does (handmade by Ruth O, tho that makes you sound like an employee as opposed to the one and only)

i don't know if you just are showing me what is PRINTED or if we are critiquing the whole shebang, but it looks like the edges are not evenly cut.  use a paper cutter if you are using this sort of label.

and the name MeadowHillsFarmCT - I like it for a forum name, but it's difficult to read if you are just browsing products.  Adding a space between the words would probably work better...

regarding the ingredient list.  I know people have their own standards and all, but "saponified oils" is not accurate.  NOT all the oils have been saponified (lye discount) and there are other components that is the result of saponification (think glycerin).  More accurate, and correct, to list your ingredients - you know, what you put in!  but again, not to say everyone does this - but...  (what the average customer would think isn't relevant - it is what is the best practice and the law)

Love the little goat pic.  BUT, with the lavender in the background (which does look lovely) you may be communicating "lavender".  Lavender visual + tropical name is a bit of a disconnect.

If you can get to the blog, etsy, and your email through the web site, perhaps you want to list only that (or only list etsy & blog?).  It seems too many choices to me.


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## MeadowHillFarmCT (Aug 11, 2011)

Thank you all 

I am not offended in any way by the criticism..

I am going to rework them this weekend and take all the feedback into account.

Bella was my little girl - would sit on my lap whenever I was out in the yard and let her out to roam with me while gardening.  She had the sweetest little 'blahh' and you would hear it over all the loud mouths out there.  We were very sad when we lost her (she was only 1 yr old).  It was upsetting and tragic...  I will always keep her in my heart.


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## saltydog (Aug 11, 2011)

MeadowHillFarmCT said:
			
		

> Thank you all
> 
> I am not offended in any way by the criticism..
> 
> ...



Congrats on taking the next step, MeadowHillFarm!
Just wanted to say sorry to hear about losing your little goat girl, she sounds adorable. I lost my mini poodle suddenly in June, it's very hard- they are such a big part of the family.


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## carebear (Aug 12, 2011)

Starum said:
			
		

> Coming from a non-native english speaker, the wording is a bit off. It doesn't say saponified oils, but saponified vegetable


actually it does say saponified oils - she listed each one.  vegetable oil has a meaning here in the US.

if one were to list oils that way (I don't think it should be done) one wouldn't say saponified vegetable oil, saponified coconut oil, and saponified rice bran oil, but rather exactly how it is - "saponified vegetable, coconut, and rice bran oils"  (the use of the last comma is optional)


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## MeadowHillFarmCT (Aug 17, 2011)

I've been working on the image...  I plan on doing them as front label with a back label with ingredients.


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## frieda (Aug 17, 2011)

I like the first picture. It looks colourfull and modern.
(I can not see the 3th picture for some reason)...


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## Kenaslan (Aug 17, 2011)

I agree with what has been said here.  

Get rid of the lines, no need to use HTTP:// or www. for the web address. 
I would also remove your blog, have a link on your website to the blog, remove your email, esty, and owner name.  Instead use that space to say something about the soap, why people should buy it.

Also you are required to put the weight on the bottom 1/3, I think, of the PDP (Primary Display Panel) ie. the front. 

I believe that is Comic Sans font you are using.  That font was hot in the 80's but is dated now.

Don't forget to use TM


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## MeadowHillFarmCT (Aug 17, 2011)

Kenaslan - Thank you - the later pictures are the New ones I did up.   What is TM?

I am pretty sure CT makes you put name and address on Label but I will know after I send them my labels for approval..

Looking for feedback on the new options.


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## Kenaslan (Aug 17, 2011)

TM = trademark

who needs to approve your labels? Are you in the USA


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## Kenaslan (Aug 18, 2011)

I would go with the third or fourth pic. The third I think is the best. The first looks like it is from the 60's or early 70's.  If you are here in the US I highly recommend you get the Soap & Cosmetic Labeling Book http://www.mariegale.com/purchase-soap- ... ling-book/
Labeling is the most important aspect of selling.  You only have 3 seconds to get someones attention.


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## Iris Reola (Aug 18, 2011)

As far as labeling true soap goes, you can either list the ingredients as they were put in the pot (the oils, the lye, the water, etc.), or you can list the ingredients in the completed soap (sodium cocoate, sodium olivate, sodium castorate, etc.).


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## carebear (Aug 21, 2011)

Iris Reola said:
			
		

> As far as labeling true soap goes, you can either list the ingredients as they were put in the pot (the oils, the lye, the water, etc.), or you can list the ingredients in the completed soap (sodium cocoate, sodium olivate, sodium castorate, etc.).


The latter is inaccurate as not all the oils are saponified. Commercial soaps can do this because their soaps are made by blending the purified individual salts of fatty acids but ours are not made that way. 

Srsly, stop trying to hide the lye.  It's tantamount to telling a lie.


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## dOttY (Aug 21, 2011)

I like the 3rd picture the best!  I think it's the most appealing, especially with the environment as background.


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## IrishLass (Aug 21, 2011)

I like both the first and the third label fronts, but the third is my most favorite. They are a big improvement on the original layout.

I really liked the pic of Bella against the backdrop of lavender in the original, which would of course be absolutely perfect for a lavender scented soap, but as Carebear pointed out, it would be too confusing to use as a standard for _all_ your soaps (unless all your soaps were lavender scented). 

If you had the time and inclination, it would be way cool to find a scent-specific background that matched each of your individual scents and then superimpose Bella's pic into/onto the scenery. 


IrishLass


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## sandman_max (Nov 4, 2011)

Ruth, personally, I like the pictures on your blog better than the label.  I went looking for your Etsy page because the pictures were so delicious.  The label... not so exciting...


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## nurse_75 (Nov 5, 2011)

I really like the third pic, but not the fake lips on the goat... takes it all the way down to cheesy and IMHO isnt cute or funny. The colours and background in that pic are gorgeous, as is your beautiful goat 

I also think the back of your label is too confusing. I would just list ingredients and the website and people can be directed from there to find the other information they need. 

It must be so exciting to be doing this and selling a product you are proud of.

Good luck.

Sharna


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## tlm884 (Nov 5, 2011)

Saponified Vegetable Oil? That is pretty ambigious... That could be corn, canola, olive, etc.


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## Soapy Gurl (Nov 5, 2011)

I like the 4th pic!


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## Bubbles Galore (Nov 5, 2011)

dOttY said:
			
		

> I like the 3rd picture the best!  I think it's the most appealing, especially with the environment as background.



I like that one too, but without the lips.  :wink:


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## Cuckoo Bananas (Nov 5, 2011)

I can't see the 5th pic but I really like the 3rd one and think that has alot of potential to be worked more. 

One thing to consider though is colour ink if your going to be making all your labels with little pictures it might add up fast with the ink and a simpler label may be more cost effective in the long run. 

I'm not familar with all the laws and labeling regulations of your area but I personally find this whole -your lying about lye argument a tad overkill. I can so mentally picture it as two soapers arguing at the soap stand about it but a customer thinking huh you guys are a bit crazy. 

I was a cp soap shopper long before I was a maker and I even remember feeling a bit embarrased at handmade soap labelled with a big sign as CP Soap and asking what that was and they spin a whole thing that I don't understand about how it made and the process and I actually didn't buy any from them because I felt like I should have 'known' that so I toddled down to the other stand where I could just buy some soap in an ordinary sale and not have too much to think about other than which one I liked. 

Of course there are many other shoppers out there with different perspectives but listing lye on it just looks scary and confusing to someone who doesn't understand the process (imho), and who wants to hear a long waffle of the intricate details of making it. Soapy talk is fun for soapy people and everyone else I'm sure just wants to buy some soap and great if the ingredients look like stuff they can understand. 

Saponified oils of ..... is something I think most people can understand. And I don't at all feel like people are being dubious or sinister 'trying' to cover up lye like it is something sneaky. 

Back to the labels, I think your making some good progress and keep working until you have something your really happy with. 

And your lil goat just sounds like such a sweet heart, I think it's really sweet that she lives on in your soapy pictures and I smiled reading about her special little  blaaaaah


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## Maythorn (Nov 6, 2011)

This reminds me that I need to get ambitious about some labels.  

The goat is adorable and you do lovely work with labels and your products both.  Whatever you decide about labeling in regard to what you like and pertinent laws in place, I agree that the layperson who doesn't soap looks at things very differently than we do. But it's important to list what the vegetable oils are for people who have allergies and to brag on what ones are in there too. 

"Saponified," may or may not suffice, I've never known for sure on that but have actually seen soaplabels without that or listing the lye either.  And never gave it a second thought til I CPd and wanted to tell the world, Look, real soap!


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