All about LabelVision

LabelVision is the alcohol industry’s first research and watch service, based on the TTB's entire database of approved labels.

How LabelVision works

When you search a name or word in LabelVision, it searches through images of TTB-approved product labels using Optical Character Recognition (OCR) technology. OCR makes the text in images machine-readable so that it can be searched for in the database.

With LabelVision you can:

• Assess the competition’s upcoming labels, prior to going to market.
• Research similar labels when creating a new brand or product.
• Monitor newly created labels.

The source of the search database is the TTB's Public COLA Registry. The TTB receives over 190,000 label applications per year according to the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau Annual Report Fiscal year 2020. This includes well over 2 million COLAs that the TTB has approved since 1995, and can include labels approved as early as 1984.

Labels that don’t require a Certificate of Label Approval (COLA) aren't included in this search. For example, beer that isn't distributed out-of-state and low ABV products such as pre-made margarita mixes don't require label approvals.

Searching for labels in LabelVision

1. In ShipCompliant, go to the Analytics tab, then click LabelVision Search.
   
   
   
   
2. Type the keywords or labels you're looking for in the search bar.
   
   
3. You can filter your results.
   • Click next to the filter option you’d like to use, or choose a date range.
     
     
4. Search results are returned based on relevance.
   • For example, if you search for the word Napa it returns exact matches at the top of the results, and then labels that include the word Napa further into the results.
5. Click Download at the top of the screen to see the first 20,000 results of your search in an .xls format. Read more about saved searches in the following section.
   • If your search contains more than 20,000 results, try filtering your results by date, so that you can download more than the max 20,000.

The full LabelVision subscription includes unlimited date range searches (including the last 30 days), search result downloads, saved search results and automatic email notifications. These features are included in all Market Ready subscriptions, or as a standalone feature subscription. Contact your account manager to get access. 

Searching efficiently in LabelVision

If you're having trouble finding a specific label, you can adjust the search terms.

Exclude words from a search

• Add a dash (-) before a word to exclude all results with that exact word. To exclude all variations of the word you can search -word*
  • Example: -fox excludes results with the word “fox”, but “foxy” is included.
• If you search -fox* results with fox, foxy, foxalicious, and any variations of fox won’t show up.

Search for an exact phrase

• Insert quotes around a phrase, or a period between words to return results containing that exact phrase.
• Example: Search Napa Valley or Napa.Valley to see labels containing that exact phrase.

Use wildcard operators (*) in search

• Wildcards can be used by putting an asterisk (*) at the end of a word. When used at the end of a word, the asterisk matches all suffixes.
• Example: performing a search for Temp* returns results containing Temp, Temptation, Temple, and Temporary.

Search the full text of a label

• Searches with no additional operators include labels that match all terms searched.
• Example: A search for quick red fox returns labels that include the word quick, the word red and the word fox.

Take advantage of (OCR)

• Optical Character Recognition (OCR) is used to scan label images for printed text that isn’t included as part of the COLA, such as ingredients or flavor descriptions. The image text is converted into digital text.
• The formatting and font on some labels can affect the way the OCR recognizes characters, and the OCR may not recognize certain letters or words.

Saving searches and receiving email notifications

1. Perform a search using the search bar and filters as described in the prior section.
2. Click Search.
3. Click Save in the top right corner of the screen.
   
   
   
   
4. Name your search.
5. Add an email address to send search results to (optional).
   • You'll receive weekly emails including any new labels within the search results.
     
     
     
     
   • To send notifications to multiple email addresses:
     • Issue:
       • You can only enter 1 email address per search.
       • If you save a search with the same conditions as another saved search, the newly saved search overwrites the old search.
     • Solution:
       • Modify your search results to make them slightly different. For example, include a date range and adjust the date slightly.

Managing your saved LabelVision searches

1. In ShipCompliant, go Analytics, then click LabelVision Monitoring.
   
   
   
   
2. View a list of your saved searches, including label count, and notification recipients.
3. From here you can Search Now or Delete.
   
   
4. To edit the search, click Search Now and re-save with your changes.

Using My Labels

• Send a quick email to ShipCompliant Support to have them add Federal Basic Permits that you specify to this section. Tell them which FBPNs you’d like to track, and they’ll add them for you in their admin.
• Once your labels have been linked, you can search, save, and download the labels just like you can in the LabelVision Search.
  
  
  
  

Updating a label

From the time the COLA was originally approved and uploaded into LabelVision to the time you're viewing the COLA, there may have been an update. You can request the latest COLA data.

1. Click on a label to view the details.
   
   
   
   
2. Click Request update to sync the latest data, including images, text and COLA details.
   
   
   
   

Sharing a label with others

1. Click on a label to view details.
   
   
   
   
2. Copy the Share link.
   
   
   
   
3. When someone clicks on the link, they'll be taken to a landing page where they can view the label details (they won’t need a ShipCompliant login).
4. Anyone can click on the TTB COLA to view more info on the label.
5. They'll also have access to a LabelVision public page, where they can continue to refine their search.

FAQ and troubleshooting

Why isn't the Recently Approved tool loading?

• The Recently Approved tool is powered by Microsoft Silverlight, a free plugin which enables visual sorting of thousands of labels. If you see an error message, update or install a newer version of Silverlight.

Can I add additional Federal Basic Permit numbers to My Labels?

• Yes. You can have multiple Federal Basic Permits linked to My Labels. Contact support to add your FBPN’s.

Can someone who isn't an alcohol producers or importers use LabelVision?

• Yes. LabelVision Research Edition was designed especially for non-ShipCompliant clients and is available to attorneys, market researchers, analysts, and others.