Barcodes are a crucial part of making sure your items are ready for retail, enabling hassle-free transactions and effective inventory management. Follow this guide to smoothly acquire and implement EAN-13 barcodes for your products across Australia. 

Getting barcodes for your items is key to optimising operations, enhancing inventory management, and making sure your products are retail-ready. In Australia, EAN-13 barcodes are the go-to option, accepted by retailers locally and globally. The EAN-13 barcode is a unique 13-digit identifier essential for product tracking, sales, and distribution. This guide will walk you through how to obtain EAN-13 barcodes for your products, ensuring you comply with industry norms.

Step 1: Obtain Your Barcodes

The first step is figuring out how many EAN-13 barcodes you'll need. Each different product and product variation—like colours and sizes—requires its own unique barcode number. Once you determine the quantity, you can order them online from reputable sources such as Barcodes Australia. You'll receive an email with your unique 13-digit Global Trade Item Numbers (GTINs) and corresponding EAN-13 barcode images.

Step 2: Assign Barcodes to Your Products

Once you've received your barcodes, assign them to your products. Each GTIN should correspond to a specific product variant, whether it's size or colour. Maintaining an accurate record of which GTIN matches each product is crucial as it will directly affect identification and tracking within the supply chain.

Step 3: Print Your Barcodes on Your Packaging

After assigning barcodes, the next important step is printing them on your product packaging. This can be done in-house or via professional printing services. It's vital that barcodes are printed clearly and correctly sized to ensure easy scanning at points of sale. The minimum recommended size for an EAN-13 barcode is roughly 30mm wide by 20mm high. Ensure there’s a 3mm blank space to the left and right of the barcode bars, and place the barcode on a flat, clearly visible area of the packaging.

Step 4: Provide Your Products to Retailers

Finally, distribute your barcoded products to retailers. They will enter the barcode number and product details into their system. This step is crucial to ensure that when the barcode is next scanned, the correct product information appears on the retailer’s screen, facilitating efficient product management and seamless checkout experiences.

Following these steps will ensure your products are ready for the retail market and integrated smoothly into your retailers' systems. With barcodes in place, you’ll be set for success in the competitive Australian market. To order barcodes or learn more, please visit Barcodes Australia.