The Tips!
Create a vehicle design with Custom Car Wraps. Use the simple four step process, download your logo(s), graphic ad content, text, etc. directly from your own computer and have a variety of local wrap shops bid on the printing and installing of the wrap.
Plan a commute that better targets your market. Advertising your free-trade coffee shop will probably be most effective during the early morning in white-collar parts of town. Your daycare? On the way to residential areas during the end-of-day commute so that it’s fresh in parents’ minds.
Find your target audience and plan to hit them hard. Are potential customers really going to see your car? It doesn’t help if you plan to wrap your car in bright, eye-popping graphics only to put the beast in the garage! Are you in a high-traffic area where your customers drive. Or, do you commute on the freeway? Are you parking the vehicle in a strategic spot where people stop and look around while at a stop light? Just remember, it’s like a mobile mini-billboard, and to maximize your exposure, you need to understand where potential customers are driving, walking, sitting, and looking.
Set aside a marketing budget. Maybe you spend $4,000 on having a custom full wrap installed for your vehicle and you throw another $1,500 into a scrolling LED billboard to catch the rest of your customers at dusk. Or, maybe you spend $1,500 on a partial wrap or vinyl lettering and $300 on glow-in-the-dark signs. You just might be able to reach the same amount of customers for less investment!
Set your car apart. The more your vehicle stands out, the better your chances of drawing attention to the business it’s advertising. Choose bright, eye-catching colors and designs. Tacky and even ugly can be good too, because as people notice how your vehicle is lacking any kind of aesthetics, they’ll probably read the writing on it.
Research printing and installations quotes for wrapping your car. Custom Car Wraps will give you a choice of local printers and wrap shops to send the design to. If you’re really on a budget, $500 will buy you a perforated real window sign. For some real impact, prepare to spend $3,500 or more when compared to cheaper vinyl-cut lettering or magnetic decals; if your commute has impact, it’ll be worth the investment because, let’s face it, it’s easier to overlook a magnetic decal. Anything that’s unique with a little appeal will do an effective job of marketing for you.
Command attention in the dark.Think of all the night life out there. Many people fail to realize they have another 12 hours they’re missing by not addressing the night time market. It’s a time when relaxed executives are more apt to make changes to their business lives, and you can squeeze into that prime time with your marketing! Ever seen the taxi cabs in New York with the fancy LCD panels mounted to them? Or how about the scrolling LED signs speeding down the length of a Greyhound bus? Both are effective forms of advertising in the dark because they attract your attention. If you can’t afford the technological route, look into buying custom glow-in-the-dark stickers, decals, and signs. It’s a much cheaper alternative to the LED scrolling signs or the LCD panels.
Give your audience a follow up plan! Yes, a complete vehicle wrap with custom graphics and scrolling LEDs will certainly attract attention, but what good is it if your viewer doesn’t know how to get your service or buy your product? Give out a website or phone number! Clip fliers or business cards to the doors so passers-by can bring some of the advertisement home with them! As long as the viewers know how to act on the advertisement you displayed to them, your marketing investment is effectively spent.
The level of investment tends to govern the quality of the job, but more importantly, the integrity of your image. A true vehicle wrap has tremendous appeal and makes you look more credible than a magnet would, but it comes at a higher price!
Check with local sign shops. Custom Car Wraps will provide you with a list of local wrap shops and a good one might be pricey, but remember what it will do for your business Try to use wrap shop that has their own solvent printer and experienced installers. Ask for a portfolio of work!
Some things to look out for
Check with local enforcement before pursuing illuminated messaging in the dark. Some states disallow blinking or animated lights. Others will only permit certain colors, like red, white, or amber, to be used inside of a moving vehicle and have codes against front-window visibility. Not all states are the same! You can always put illuminated signs in your car when parked or while at shows or expositions to grab attention. Be sure your sign shop or vehicle graphic installer only uses a solvent-based print with a good protective overlaminate, or the job will deteriorate earlier. Ask about guarantees for quality workmanship. Caradvertisements can attract potential thieves because of the higher probability that you have something of value in your car.
