There’s a lot to be said for digital marketing and advertising. At the same time, there’s also a lot to be said for “old-school” marketing and advertising, especially for smaller businesses. If you have any sort of vehicle then you can put graphics on it. This can be a great way to improve brand awareness.

To explain further, Malcolm Judson, Managing Director at Judsons Signs, provides his expertise on how businesses can utilise vehicle graphics for brand awareness.

The basics of vehicle graphics

Vehicle graphics come in three main types. These are wraps, decals and magnets. Wraps tend to be made of vinyl. Decals and magnets generally combine vinyl with other materials. Wraps, as their name suggests, wrap around vehicles and are intended for long-term use.

Decals and magnets tend to be for temporary graphics. With that said, magnets can actually be very durable. You could, therefore, use them to run through a series of repeating messages. This would balance consistency with freshness. It could be very useful if your vehicles regularly passed through the same areas.

Vehicle graphics are protective

If you’re concerned that vehicle graphics might damage your important vehicles then you can rest assured that they can be removed without a trace. In fact, wraps will even protect your vehicle.

Essentially, wraps provide a protective covering for your vehicle. This protects your actual paintwork from scratches and debris. In the real world, these tend to be much more of an issue than major damage. This is because professional drivers typically have very high standards of skill and care.

Vehicle graphics may also provide a deterrent to thieves. They are easy to remove but only if you follow the right procedure. Taking off a vehicle graphic in a public place like a car park would be logistically challenging and would probably attract attention.

Vehicle graphics are long-lasting

Out of all the marketing and advertising options currently available, vehicle graphics probably deliver the best overall value for money. You only have to pay for their original creation. Then you can use them over and over again for literally years without any extra cost.

There is really no other marketing or advertising channel which matches this. Digital adverts (and local media adverts) are generally charged on a pay-per-view basis. Billboards are rented for a specific period of time. Paper marketing assets can still have a lot of value but have never really been meant for long-term use.

Eye-catching but not irritating

It’s pretty much impossible to avoid seeing vehicle graphics but they aren’t remotely irritating. This is exactly what brands want and it’s becoming increasingly difficult to achieve by other means.

Both the digital world and the real world are utterly saturated with marketing and advertising materials. This has resulted in some brands using increasingly invasive tactics to get their messages seen. While this is understandable, it’s also a very risky move.

Essentially, you’re relying on catching a customer at exactly the right point in time. This is not necessarily when they’re ready to buy but when they’re receptive to hearing about your brand. If, however, you get them at the wrong time, there’s a strong chance that you’re going to irritate them. That irritation may have future repercussions for your brand.

Mobile displays

Marketing and advertising typically depend on a combination of relevance and repetition. If an image is highly relevant, a customer may remember it after just one viewing. If it’s totally irrelevant, a customer may never remember it at all.

In general, therefore, you should aim to repeat your message (or variations of it) regularly. Vehicle graphics are ideal for this. The fact that they’re mobile means that they have a strong chance of getting in front of a lot of people fairly often.