How Safety Labels and Decals Enhance Company Branding

Safety labels and decals are, of course, associated with their proven ability to increase hazard awareness of workers and customers. 

Beyond their proven ability to keep people safe, however, is their overlooked ability to increase the perceived presence and authority of a brand in the minds of customers.

But how can a simple label or decal do all that, right?

The answer lies in understanding how we perceive safety information, how our brains associate branding alongside that info, and how we translate it all into a subtle — yet powerful — emotional connection.

Let’s take a look at how our brains process the information from a safety label or decal, how specific branding elements affect customers, and how your brand is ultimately amplified through your custom decals and labels.

How Do Customers Process Branding on Safety Labels and Decals?

Our brains have an unmatched ability to quickly ingest information and branding, form an opinion about its usefulness or meaning to us, and act.

But understanding which parts of the brain activated when digesting branding alongside other information —  and how that activation ultimately influenced action — was largely a mystery until 2012.

In a joint study between neuroscientists and branding experts, researchers worked together to analyze real-time MRI scans of consumers as they were exposed to branded information.

Their results were illuminating and helped pave the way for improved informational label designs that incorporate branding in a way that bolsters the reputation of the brand while still communicating information the customer needs to know.

How People Process Branding on Safety Labels & Decals from Unfamiliar Brands

By understanding how people unfamiliar with a brand process branding and informational content on labels and decals, we can improve how we deliver that information through design and layout.

Distrust is inherently higher with unfamiliar brands.

Humans typically distrust what they’re unfamiliar with, and with safety labels and decals, it’s no different.

When encountering an unfamiliar brand, the brain processes the data a bit more carefully — and immediately begins forming either positive or negative emotional associations with that brand and its information.

If there’s unclear wording, confusing placement of branding elements between key pieces of information, or if the label itself appears low quality, a hard-to-break negative association is stamped on that brand in the mind of the consumer.

This is why an eye-catching and easy-to-digest visual layout is so important when designing new safety labels and decals.

They use past experiences and emotions to inform their first impression.

Without question, emotion is one of the biggest influences on human action.

And when customers encounter a new brand alongside a safety label or decal, they rely on past emotion to inform their opinion — and their immediate level of trust in a product and the company behind it.

This is why investing in high-quality safety labels that compliment your branding and abide by national and industry regulations, including The American National Standards Institute’s Z535.4 guidelines, is vital for creating the best first impression with your customers.

How People Process Branding on Safety Decals and Labels from Trusted Brands

As brands begin building a trustworthy reputation for product safety and invest in clear and easy-to-understand safety labeling, the benefits have a powerful effect on word-of-mouth advertising and strengthen their relationship with current customers.

More positive emotions are associated with known brands.

When customers encounter your custom branded safety labels, they immediately draw on the positive emotions that they have experienced when using your products in the past.

Moreover, these positive emotions lead to a greater frequency of word-of-mouth referrals by customers who have come to trust your quality and commitment to safety.

Information retrieval was more automatic.

Repetition is a vital part of any training program, especially safety training.

The more we hear and see safety information — be it through training, labeling, or safety signage — the more ingrained those precautionary actions become. In turn, accident frequency is reduced.

It’s here where your custom branded safety labels have their greatest effect: as a constant reminder as to how your customers can keep themselves safe.

As your customers see your custom branded safety labels more and more, not only is your brand receiving more exposure, but your brand is a constant agent of reinforcement that enables them to automatically enact best safety practices when handling your products.

How Your Company’s Brand is Amplified Through Custom Safety Labels and Decals

By investing in custom safety labels and decals, not only do you help keep your customers safe, but your other marketing efforts and overall industry reputation are further strengthened.

You amplify your brand’s messaging and reinforce its consistency.

Whether your safety decals are used to highlight the proper use of a product or safe practices in a given space, your brand has built its name, in part, thanks to your dedication to safety.

This continual messaging focus on safety is all the more reinforced when your name, logo, and other branding elements are present alongside the vital safety information that ensures the well-being of your customers.

This allows every aspect of your marketing — from your social media presence down to the very labels you put on your products — to communicate the same message: This is our brand and we care about the well-being of our customers.

You create a way for customers to form positive emotional bonds with your brand.

As customers repeatedly encounter your products, have great experiences, and stay safe, your branded safety labels make it easy for them to tie that positive emotional experience right back to your brand.

Over time, this acts as a powerful emotional confirmation to your customers that your brand doesn’t just claim it’s watching out for them — your brand lives by that promise.

Your brand is more naturally preferred over your competitors’ brands.

With the competitive landscape as brutal as it is, gaining any kind of emotional foothold where positive customer experiences can compound over time is pivotal for successful branding and growth.

And as we’ve seen, the positive emotional experience you build with your customers through your branded safety labels lays the groundwork for a deepening emotional bond and brand trust that grows stronger over time.

This strong bond with your customers — made possible, in part, through your safety labels — creates an inroad to capture a greater presence of mind amongst your audiences while also creating a higher barrier to entry for future competitors.

Partnering with Lektron for Custom Branded Safety Labels that Enhance Your Branding

No matter the industry, your customers want to know that the brand they trust for their products is genuinely looking out for their safety and well-being.

By simply reading this article, it’s obvious that you’re dedicated to providing your customers that peace of mind while bolstering the image and reputation of your brand.

Just like you, we only want the best for our customers. Together, let’s get to work to bring your vision for your safety labels and decals to life and help keep your customers safe.