Are Vehicle Wraps a Good Investment for Small Businesses?

Take a drive down a local highway and you will see how effective vehicle wraps can be for a business. They attract people’s attention and make an impression that stays with the driver and passengers as they drive by. The wraps are digitally printed and can be applied to any vehicle to create a mobile billboard. As a result, they cover a lot of ground and get plenty of exposure reaching your local, target market. Here we look at whether or not they are a smart investment for small businesses.

Long-Lasting Investment

Commercial vehicle wraps get tons of mileage wherever you go. Once installed, you never have to worry about paying for “impressions” like digital ads. Those impressions add up with no guarantee that the people will even act on what they see. If you want to consider cost from an impressions standpoint, it costs about $0.77 per thousand impressions for a vehicle wrap. However, you can reach a thousand people for as little as $0.04 per thousand depending on your business and location. You reach more people for a far lower cost than other forms of advertising. For example, billboard ads cost an average of $2.18, a magazine costs $9.35 and a television ad costs $17.78.

Know the Statistics

Facts are the best way to demonstrate the effectiveness of vehicle wraps. Important statistics include:

Wraps on local delivery vans get 16 million impressions each year
97% of survey respondents remember truck ads
96% found fleet graphics more impactful than billboards

These statistics show that vehicle wraps do make an impression.

Ideal for a Single Vehicle

You can get excellent results wrapping your single, personal vehicle. You really don’t need a fleet of cars, or a delivery van to make an impression. Everywhere you go brings more exposure to your company, sending a consistent message to your customers.

Introduce Your Brand

There really isn’t an easier way to introduce your town to your services. You help legitimize your business and become a recognizable name in the area where it means the most. A wrap on your truck or car also elevates your status, presenting you as a successful business.

An Affordable Option

Many small business owners worry that vehicle wraps are out of their price range. However, you can choose the design that suits your budget. Cover your entire vehicle windows and all, or go for something a little more subtle but just as impactful such as the hood, doors, and trunk. You might be surprised to learn the average cost to wrap a car is between $1,500 to $3,000. For that price, you get the wrap design, printing and installation so there are no hidden costs.

They are actually more affordable than a customized paint job despite being far more intricate in their design and application. Wraps can last from three to five years, providing a long-lasting marketing investment for your business. They even protect your vehicle’s paint so your car looks newer, longer.

Increase Reach

You can increase your reach with vinyl wraps, but you can’t fine-tune your target audience like you can with marketing options, such as online ads. However, you can reach a broad demographic with a focus on your community. Even though your audience isn’t as segmented as other mediums, your audience is broader and local. These are both very important factors when it comes to local small business marketing.

Measurable Results

With the proper approach to your vehicle wrap design, your marketing efforts are quite measurable. You can provide a special phone or text number as a contact on the wrap. This way any inquiries received from that point of contact can be counted towards your data. Other options include making a special offer or discount on the wrap and count the inquiries that come in. A short and sweet unique URL linking to a landing page also allows you to measure visits. If you are concerned about ROI, you can then measure sales generated by your wrap and compare that to the cost of the design and installation.

Create a Buzz on Social Media

Because of the size and visibility of your vehicle wrap you have the opportunity to advertise all of your social media channels. This allows you to connect with people in more meaningful ways. You can have people post comments like “Just saw your van on Main Street” using a specific hashtag to get a discount or special offer. This provides more legs for your marketing campaigns. You can then have a “Spot the Bob’s Laundry Services Van” contest where people look around town and say where they spotted your vehicle to be entered into a contest. Or have people snap a selfie with your vehicle in the background. All of these approaches encourage people to engage in your brand and start a buzz.

Make the Most of Your Design

Some tips to help make your car wrap more successful include:

Make sure the font is large and easy to read from a distance especially for messages and contact info
Keep the design simple yet meaningful to get your message across quickly
Use contrast so your wording stands out
Leverage the rear of your vehicle as this is prime space where people have more time to read your message
Always add a call to action in large letters with easy contact information such as get 10% off by texting this number, schedule an appointment by calling, or mention our van when you come in the shop for a 25% discount.

Don’t forget to highlight things like emergency or 24/7 service, free delivery, same-day service, locally produced, grown, baked, etc.

As you can see, vehicle wraps offer an affordable option that reaches thousands of people for a fraction of the cost of other advertising methods.