Consumerist’s Chris Morran has written an article examining the different products of the NyQuil family. Most people are probably familiar with this drug and its companion, DayQuil, marketed as cold remedies for different times.
The names of the medicines, along with their colorful labels, reinforce their time-based uses: dark blue for NyQuil, sunny bright orange for DayQuil. It’s an example of the way a color label printer helps to hammer home the purpose of a product.
However, Vicks, the company behind these medications, has made things a little more complicated by introducing syrups and pills with names that don’t lend themselves to imagery as vivid. These include NyQuil Severe, ClearQuil, and the awkwardly named ZzzQuil.
Not only do these products lack the easy-to-understand purposes of the originals, Morran writes that they obscure the active ingredients. It’s important to distinguish these, because while antihistamines and decongestants tackle similar health problems, they aren’t the same and confusing them poses a health risk.
“One potential problem with having all these varieties is that some, but not all, contain acetaminophen, and none of them go out of their way to way to highlight the fact that acetaminophen is included,” he writes. He says that “consumers don’t always know what they’re getting when they grab a bottle” or the gradual risk that comes from turning to more than one medication for help.
Some medications lend themselves more easily to simple color branding than others. Companies should take product label printing seriously by investing in the right systems for the job. By understanding what to emphasize from the beginning, designers and printers will have an easier time creating labels that educate customers and increase sales.
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