We just added a Vanity barcode that was “sticking” in our creative minds. The thought went something like this: “What would a barcode look like if we pretended it was gum stuck to the heel of a shoe?” And so, Gum Shoe was born.
We were featured in the March 2010 issue of Brand Packaging Magazine! Vanity Barcodes was mentioned in their Next+Now section (page 6).
“The lowly UPC symbol is getting a makeover. A new service called Vanitybarcodes.com offers a library of stock, decorative barcodes that are fitted with unique product numbers and tested for scan compliance. The idea is to add a bit of personality to an otherwise overlooked packaging element. The service also offers custom designs, like the one created for Elyon Marshmallow packaging, which incorporates the brand’s “mallow” mascots into the barcode and is said to have captured the attention of national chain store buyers who are now carrying the product. Why brands should care: Are you overlooking any elements of your packaging?”
Bear Naked Granola packaging features a neat, vanity-like barcode. It seems like the barcode is sprouting wheat. It’s a very nice little touch that adds to their friendly and engaging brand style.
This product has been on shelves for at least a year and seems to be performing well. (Disclosure: we didn’t design this barcode, but wanted to share it with our readers!)
Note the width of the bars and how they tie into the shaft and leaf. I wonder if they have to reposition the location of the wheat design for different UPC numbers on their various flavors.
We designed a poster to promote Share Some Candy to college campuses. Of course, we couldn’t resist including a QR code (which we added some decorative touches to.)
‘Vanity’ QR codes follow a whole different set of rules than Vanity barcodes. We originally designed the above QR code with more colors (i.e. broke more rules), but we were dissatisfied with its scanning. By reducing the colors and staying mostly black, it seemed to scan a lot more quickly.
Here’s the full poster:
I spotted this barcode that appears on the Amazon Kindle packaging. It’s great to see vanity-like barcodes popping up in unexpected places. This is a really nice example.
