Whether you’re trying to generate foot traffic, web traffic or plenty of both, the fact remains that on today’s hyper-competitive business landscape getting — and staying — on your prospective customers’ radar screens is not just necessary for your success: your survival depends on it. Indeed, each year hundreds of thousands of startups and small businesses with excellent products, competitive prices and strong value propositions nevertheless shut down, because they couldn’t escape being the best kept secret in their marketplace.
Of course, that’s not to say you should (or could) run a Super Bowl ad, or spend 5-figures a month on PPC, print ads, and other types of advertising and marketing. Maybe that will be viable on day down the road when you’re at the helm of a multinational enterprise, but for now “low-cost, high impact” is the only investment formula that makes sense. And that brings us to car wraps.
For a fraction of the cost of single billboard, radio or TV ad — all of which many frustrated business owners have soundly concluded fail to deliver worthwhile ROI — car wraps help you make a lasting impression on your target market, and stand out for all of the right reasons. Here are the three key reasons why:
- Mobility
Whereas conventional “interrupt” advertising depends on having an ad show up at the right time in front of the right people – which is often the exception rather than the norm – car wraps are inherently mobile, which means you can literally position your ad in front of your target market. Where they go, you go.
- Reach
According to research by the Outdoor Advertising Association of America (OAAA), mobile advertising reaches more prospective customers at a lower cost per thousand impressions (CPM) than any other kind of outdoor advertising. What’s more, over 95% of people are reached by media that targets drivers and passengers, and a single car wrap can generate between 30,000 and 70,000 impressions per day.
- Impact
While the above is impressive, the big, booming question is: do car wraps work? The answer is a definitive yes. Prospective customers are highly influenced by advertising that they see; especially when it’s non-invasive and they aren’t resisting (i.e. they aren’t saying to themselves as their favorite TV show fades into a commercial “ugh, someone’s going to try and sell me something for the next two minutes, I’m tuning out until the show starts up again”). The OAAA also found that 30% prospects said they make buying decisions based on ads they see while driving or as a passenger, and fleet vehicle advertising boosts brand recognition 1500% more than any other form of advertising.
A Word of Caution
While car wraps are proving to be a smart business investment – which is why they’re skyrocketing in popularity, especially among small businesses and startups – it’s vital not to take the DIY route, or cut corners on quality. Whether you decide to wrap a single car or a fleet, ensure that you have the wrap professionally designed and installed. Otherwise instead of working for your business, a faded, peeling and poor-designed car wrap will work against it.