Pros and cons to signwriting

Tight budgets can often leave business owners wondering how to appropriately market their business, whist gaining maximum exposure and targeting a wide audience. If your business requires using a van for work, you may benefit immensely from signwriting.

A well-designed van can create customer confidence and trust in the brand as well as reaching hundreds or even thousands of members of the public and other businesses, every day.

Signwriting can be an effective, low cost way to market your business. If for example signwriting cost £300 for your vehicle and you had the same vehicle for 3 years, that is approximately £8.33 per month for marketing/advertising fees.

Although it seems a no-brainer to having signwriting on your vehicle, there are plenty of other things to take into consideration before taking the plunge.

Below we highlight some of the advantages and disadvantages to help you decide whether it is worth investing.

Pros:

• A sign-written vehicle is effectively a driving business card. Information and contact details are readily available at no extra expense. Not only can you brand your vehicle with your company name but using the vehicle to advertise your contact details and social platforms can truly maximise your reach.
• To the customer, your business appears professional which in turn builds confidence. A well branded business looks legitimate and professional, boosting people’s initial perception in comparison to a run-down vehicle turning up to complete the works.
• Well thought out vehicle advertising can capture the public’s attention. For some businesses such as plumbers, they don’t always have an office for customers to see, and the van can be the customers first touch point.
• Signwriting can be more than just the company name. Take this time to share the things you are proud of, such as accreditations and achievements.
• If vehicle wraps are being taken into consideration, they can become some extra level of protection. Not drastically but it will protect the paint and protect against a degree of chips and scrapes.

Cons:

• You never know who is watching your employees driving behaviour. If an employee is driving erratically, members of the public may not hesitate to call and inform you. Whilst this may be negative as it could give your business a bad name, it could also help to eliminate any drivers with poor behaviour from your fleet.
• Clearly stating your business can become a target for thieves. Equipment is expensive and although employees declare to take their tools in home after their days work, you can’t be sure this is always the case and can not only incur costs on damage to the vehicle, but a cost of replacing tools.
• Upkeep of livery can become another responsibility on top of managing vehicle defects. It is important to keep the livery looking smart.

Things to consider:

• For some businesses on a tight budget, getting the signwriting correct first time is important. To avoid extra expense, shop around and read reviews and feel confident on your chosen supplier.
• Unclear branding will not be as effective in the long run. Ensure that the signage is grammatically correct and easy for potential customers to know exactly what you do and get in touch to make an enquiry.
• Ensure the livery is placed carefully on the vehicle to avoid accidental inappropriate words or phrases, especially if the van has a sliding door as the company name can become abbreviated.

How can we help?

To look at it simply, investing in signwriting makes your vehicles a driven advert generating business profits all year round.

At Reflex Vehicle Hire, all vehicles are plain white and should you wish to advertise, we have our in-house sign writer readily available.

To find out more, head over to our contact page to discuss further with a member of the team.

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