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Tips for Designing Your Custom Printed Tape

Tips for Designing Your Custom Printed Tape

Tape Jungle offers over 300 products, including tape, tape accessories, and tape dispensers. One of the most popular tapes is tape you can customize with text, images, logos, and other graphics.

What Is Custom Printed Tape?

Custom printed tape can make your packaging stand out. It can also be a relatively inexpensive way to communicate with customers when they open their packages. You choose what to print on your tape: your logo, company name, message, image, or tamper-evident text.

Instead of printing your messaging and images on your boxes, which can be expensive, or repeatedly stamping them with custom stamps and ink, the custom printed tape can display your logo and make your brand more noticeable.

Tips for Designing Your Custom Printed Tape

Whether you are making the designs yourself or employing a professional graphic designer, you can follow a few basic principles to optimize your tape designs. Use the following tips for designing your own custom printed tape.

Use Canva and Other Programs

Figure out what you want on your tape and how you want it to look. Hiring a graphic designer is one way to get your logos and other imagery created. Otherwise, you can design your logo or other graphics yourself with the help of free software such as Canva, an online image editing program that works right in your browser.

Here are several templates to get you started:

Put Your Brand on Your Packaging

Branded tape lets you put your company's branding and messaging directly on the tape you use for your packaging. This is a relatively inexpensive path to custom packaging compared to printing your branding and logo on boxes.

When online shoppers purchase your product, the packaging is their first physical interaction with your brand. This first impression is an essential part of their purchasing experience. Take this opportunity to convince the customer they made the right choice by purchasing your product.

Deter Theft With Tamper Tape

Tamper tape has a printed message that identifies an opened package. For example, the text on the tape may read:

"STOP. If seal is broken or the package is damaged, check the contents before signing the receipt."

This is one way to deter package pilfering. It is immediately apparent if the package has been opened. This kind of tape can be especially important when delivering groceries or medicine to ensure the contents aren't tampered with. Customers who purchase food or medicine online need assurance that their food or medicine is safe and that all contents are accounted for.

Tape Jungle offers regular tamper tape in red, blue, or red and white with English or Spanish text. Spanish text will read:

“ALTO. Si el sello esta roto o el paquete danado o abierto revise el contenido antes de firmar el recibo.”

How To Design Your Custom Printed Tape at Tape Jungle

To design your tape, take the following steps:

  1. Determine what you want to put on your tape. Is it a logo or other image? Do you want text only, with your company's name, your motto, an advertising tagline, or other text? Will there be a tamper-evident message on the tape?
  2. Once you know what you want to put on your tape, head to the custom printed tape page on Tape Jungle.
  3. Select the tape from standard, premium, paper, and full color.
  4. After selecting the tape, you'll choose the tape grade: general-purpose, heavy-duty, or industrial, with various thicknesses, transparency, finish, and size availability.
  5. Choose the tape size, between 2 and 3 in wide, and the tape length.
  6. From there, you'll go to the design and choose the tape color and background, if any. Tape can have one, two, or three colors.
  7. Upload your design or work with a template if you're working with images.
  8. Choose your quantity, review the virtual proof, and place the order.
  9. You'll be sent a physical proof to approve. If you're satisfied, you can approve it. The order is refundable until the proof is approved. After proof approval, your order will be placed, and you'll receive your tape in the mail with free shipping.

There is a chat box on the page if you have any questions about the design, ordering process, technical issues on the website, or any other questions. If you need more help designing your printed tape, let us know, and we can help you decide which tape and text are best for your needs.

Tape Jungle has tips and tricks as well as templates for your custom printed tape designs.

Types of Printed Tape Available

Tape Jungle offers several options for the backing material of printed tape, including standard tape, premium PVC tape, water-activated paper tape, and water-activated full-color tape.

Standard Tape

Standard tape is made of polypropylene, also known as PolyPro. It is one of the most popular tapes due to its crisp print resolution, low cost, and ease of use. The tape is plastic-based with a glossy finish.

The tape comes in widths of 2 and 3 in. Lengths are 55, 110, or 1,000 yds (machine only).

Grade available are:

  • General purpose (1.9 mil): Package weight can be up to 30 lbs. The transparency is 15%. General-purpose tape is ideal for most applications and is the most popular option.
  • Heavy duty (2.5 mils): At 2.5 mils, the heavy-duty tape is thicker than general-purpose tape. The suggested package weight is 30 to 50 lbs. Transparency is approximately 10%.
  • Industrial (3 mil): This is the thickest option of standard tape with the maximum tensile strength. You can use this for most industrial applications. Transparency is approximately 10%.
  • Hi-Tak Cold Temp: This tape is designed for automatic carton sealing with medium to heavy adhesion in low temperatures. It adheres instantly to corrugated cardboard, film, paper, and other surfaces. It has a high tack with excellent holding strength.

Premium Tape

Premium tape is made of polyvinyl chloride (PVC). This tape can adhere to irregular surfaces in low temperatures. The texture is more opaque and softer than standard tape and has a quiet release (ideal if your shipping department is near the sales floor or customers). The finish is flat.

It comes in widths of 2 or 3 in and lengths of 55 or 110 yds.

Grade available are:

  • General purpose (2.2 mils): General purpose tape is the most popular option and will be ideal for most situations. The recommended package weight is up to 50 lbs. The transparency is approximately 5%.
  • Industrial (3.2 mils): At 3.2 mils, industrial tape is thicker and stronger than general-purpose tape. It also has a more aggressive adhesive to hold heavier items. The transparency is approximately 3%.

Paper Tape

Paper tape is reinforced water-activated gummed tape that requires a dispenser. The tape will bond to nearly any cardboard surface once the water has activated the tape, creating a tamper-evident, professional seal. The finish is a matte finish. The transparency is 0%, meaning the tape is fully opaque.

The tape is 3 in wide, and the roll is 375 ft long.

Paper tape is a great choice if you're committed to preserving the environment. It's the only sustainable, recyclable, and eco-friendly tape that is fully biodegradable. Other kinds of tape do not decompose or break down.

Grade available are:

  • General purpose 240: General purpose is the most popular option and will be acceptable for most applications. The recommended package weight is up to 30 lbs.
  • Heavy-duty 260: The heavy-duty tape is a thicker tape with fiberglass reinforcement, making it stronger for heavier items and more heavy-duty applications. The recommended weight is 30 to 60 lbs.
  • Industrial 280: Industrial tape has the densest strands in the reinforcement for the heaviest cargo. The recommended weight of packages is between 50 to 90 lbs.

Full-Color Tape

Full-color tape is a gummed reinforced water-activated tape that requires a tape dispenser. Like regular paper tape, the full-color tape will bond to nearly all cardboard surfaces when the water activates the tape. It is also recyclable and sustainable, making full-color tape an eco-friendly option.

The tape is 3 in wide, and the roll is 375 ft long.

Additional Resources and References

Get Your Message Out With Tape Jungle

Use custom printed tape to display your branding and other messages and make your packaging stand out. You can get your custom-designed tape at Tape Jungle with a quick turnaround and impeccable customer support. If you don't know what design or messaging is best for you, we'll help you figure it out.

You can also get hundreds of other types of tape in numerous sizes, colors, and thicknesses at Tape Jungle, including:

  • Branded tape
  • PVC tape
  • Tamper tape
  • Eco-friendly paper tape

Choose Tape Jungle for quick delivery, safe online shopping, no-hassle returns, and our customer service. Contact us today, and our staff member will help you find the tape you're looking for.