Vehicle Signage: Is Wrapping Or Lettering Better For Your Promotional Vehicles?

Vehicle signage has been around for as long as there have been advertising vehicles, right back to the days of the horse and cart when a sign writer would paint on the name and location. It’s a method that has proved incredibly long-lasting: at least until the advent of vinyl.

Now it’s possible to add QR codes, website urls and social media information to basic contact details. You can outfit your fleet in a livery that matches your corporate colours without the need for a respray and can even minimise depreciation by using a protective vinyl car wrap. So, which is a better choice for your vehicles: lettering or a full or partial wrap?

What is vehicle lettering?

There are hundreds of different coloured vinyls, with a range of different finishes, including reflective and metallic, to create eye-catching effects. A good designer will create some fantastic designs using lettering and cut vinyl effects, meaning that they’re a good choice for a temporary marketing campaign, as they’re more affordable than a full or partial vinyl wrap.

What’s a car wrap?

By using large sheets of printed vinyl to wrap a vehicle you can radically alter its appearance. As well as providing contact information, you can create a real brand presence with an innovative design. Wraps can also create consistency across a fleet of vehicles of different shapes and sizes.

Wraps can incorporate graphics, images and much more to create a stunning first impression that makes your vehicles really stand out and that reinforces your brand identity.

Wraps versus lettering

There are benefits to both wrapping and lettering depending on your circumstances and the type of campaign that you want to run. Lettering can be particularly useful if you’re running a one-off campaign or if you wish to add seasonal decals. Lettering is also the more affordable choice, although it is not necessarily more cost effective: if you’re planning on keeping the same look and feel on vehicles across your fleet then wrapping may be the better option.

If you’re an established B2B company that has a pre-existing customer base, then you may only need to invest in lettering to provide a smart corporate appearance to your vehicles. However, because lettering doesn’t have the same level of impact as a full or partial wrap, your message may not appear as professional as that from a vinyl-wrapped fleet.

Although lettering and decals may be the perfect choice if you simply want to add your company name and contact details to the rear of your van, there’s no doubt that a well-wrapped car or van will create 360-degree visual views in a way that lettering alone can’t match. You may find that the impression created by professional graphics and a durable car wrap has the greatest return on your investment per impression of any of your marketing channels.

Another benefit of choosing a full vinyl wrap over a partial wrap or lettering and decals is that the vinyl will help to protect your vehicle, meaning a higher trade-in or resale value when you come to upgrade your fleet.

What information should I include?

Your choice of included information depends on whether you use lettering or wrapping. Vinyl lettering can be an affordable way to include your company name and contact details. However, wrapping gives you the freedom to add QR codes and more information. However, you should be careful not to make the design too cluttered or potentially confusing. Your design should include the most important information in a clear and concise way. Below we list the essential information to include in your design.

Your logo and company name: your brand is your biggest asset and as such should appear consistently across all your marketing materials from letterheads to car wrap. Your logo and company name need to be larger than any other information on your design, to drive brand identification.

Your phone number: if you have an office and a mobile number, list the one that will definitely be answered.

Your website: your url needs to be as memorable as possible to capture attention. Ensure that it is included in your wrap design.

Your services: choose a maximum of three services that your company provides that are the core of your business, and choose simple and effective wording to clearly get the point across.

Ask the professionals

It might seem obvious that a vinyl wrap is the way forward if you really want to harness the power of mobile advertising. That’s why, if you’re looking for vehicle sign writing in Arundel, it’s important that you choose a company that will advise you on the best choice for you and your business: if you’re a man with a van then cut vinyl lettering may be more than adequate to inform potential customers about what you do and to provide your contact information. If you’re a bigger business with more than one vehicle then vinyl wrapping may offer a wider and more flexible branding choice for your fleet.

At the Sussex Sign Company, we offer a fully integrated service that will take your ideas from conception to execution, thanks to one of the best vinyl wrap and lettering installation teams in the country. Whatever your needs in terms of vinyl lettering or wrapping, contact us today via phone or email and we’ll be happy to advise you on the best options for your business.

Frequently Asked Questions About Vehicle Wraps

One of the most frequently asked question about vehicle wraps is surely: “What kind of RoI can I expect from a wrap?” The answer is that it’s impossible to accurately measure the return, but just consider the statistics: vehicle graphics in a high-traffic area can be seen by 3000 people an hour, resulting in a boost in your name recognition of over 15 times that it would be without the wrap. Still not convinced that a vehicle wrap is a great idea for your business? Ninety-one percent of people notice vehicle graphics, and over 30 percent of them study that information closely. Factor in the fact that we’re spending 20 hours per week in our cars – that’s over a third more than 10 years ago – and you have a compelling argument for turning your company car or vehicle fleet into mobile billboards.

What is a vehicle wrap?

You may not know what a vehicle wrap is but the chances are you’ve seen one. If you’ve ever noticed a car with eye catching graphics advertising products or services, then you’ve seen a car with a vinyl wrap. A car or van wrap is basically one enormous vinyl sticker that is wrapped around the entire vehicle. Rather than confining your marketing message to the rear of your vehicle, a vinyl wrap let’s you make every inch of the body work into a mobile billboard.

What are the benefits of a vinyl wrap?

Imagine a form of advertising that doesn’t bully or hector, that is always on 24 hours a day, and that has the lowest cost per impression of any marketing channel. That’s the power of vehicle wrapping. Whether on the road or in a car park, your wrapped vehicle is creating impressions in the gentlest and most passive way while boosting your brand awareness in a way that no other media can match. A full vinyl wrap has the added benefit of protecting your vehicle against everyday wear and tear and extreme weather, while the flexibility of wrapping means you can give your vehicles a custom colour and look at a fraction of the price of painting. And because you can scale a wrap design over every vehicle in a fleet, you’ll create a consistent and highly professional impression.

How is the cost of a wrap calculated?

The cost of a wrap depends on a range of factors including the size of the car and the complexity of the body work, the type of vinyl used and the length of time the wrap takes to install. Most good sign making companies will quote for common types of vehicle.

What material does a vinyl wrap use?

There are two distinct types of vinyl that are used to wrap vehicles: calendered vinyl and cast vinyl. Cast vinyl is the highest quality and the most durable product, particularly when protected by a cast vinyl laminate.

How does it work?

Imagine a huge sticker or very stretchy wrapping paper that can be pulled into shape and then heated for maximum adhesion. Installing a vinyl wrap professionally is really an art form, and an improperly installed wrap will quickly start to bubble and lift, ruining your investment. A professionally installed wrap will not have visible cut lines, wrinkles or creases but will cover the vehicle absolutely seamlessly for the best possible effect.

Design – DIY or go pro?

If you’re limiting your marketing efforts to cut vinyl lettering then you can do it yourself, but a full or partial wrap needs the skills of a talented designer working with the latest modelling technology to make the biggest impact. Only by accurately modelling in advance can you have a real sense of how your wrap will work, and be able to tweak any confused messaging or over-busy graphics. If you don’t go through this process, you’ll find you’ve wasted a lot of money on a vinyl wrap that looks unprofessional and cluttered – the opposite of the effect you’re aiming for.

How can I find the best installers?

The best installation teams are fully trained and accredited in installing vinyl wrap, so look for proof of their abilities and experience before you make any commitments. A good sign company will offer an integrated installation service and will be able to show you a portfolio of finished projects both for inspiration and for you to assess the quality of the work.

Can I remove a vinyl wrap?

Yes, you can. In fact vinyl wraps can be a highly cost-effective way to promote a temporary marketing campaign. Because your initial investment is so low compared with other more traditional advertising channels, vinyl wrap and cut vinyl lettering are ideal for your short-term marketing strategy. Make sure you have the wrap removed by your installers as they’ll use the right products and techniques so that the wrap is removed without over-enthusiastic scraping or glue residues.

How do I choose the right company?

When you’re investing in vehicle wraps in Littlehampton, it makes sense to ensure that your sign company can offer integrated services that mean your wrap will be designed, produced and installed to the highest standards using the best-quality materials. Ask to see a portfolio and have a design consultancy before you make any firm commitments. At the Sussex Sign Company we’re committed to ensuring that you get the best possible return on your investment, which is why we offer the complete range of services with one of the best vinyl wrap installation teams out there. If you want to harness the power of mobile advertising with a stunning vehicle wrap, contact us today via phone or email for more details.

Why Car Wrap Advertising Is Your Secret Weapon

We’ve all seen them – vehicles wrapped in eye-catching graphics, with a great slogan. Maybe they’ve been in front of you in a traffic jam, or parked outside the supermarket. Perhaps you’ve seen one as you drop the kids off at school, or maybe there’s one parked in your road.

Car wrap advertising is on the rise, and no wonder. With costs per impression as low as 30p per thousand impressions, it’s a cost-effective form of advertising with enormous reach – far more than a static billboard. Yet vinyl wrapped vehicles are still regarded as an unusual form of advertising – and that makes them your secret weapon.

Eye-catching and attention-grabbing

In a stream of vehicles, you can’t help noticing the one with the car wrap – and that’s the point. Car graphics, when executed well, make your car stand out from all the other traffic on the road, and your brand becomes associated with that cool and creative vehicle. Who doesn’t want their brand to be associated with a form of advertising perceived as creative and innovative?

Better yet, wherever your vehicles are, they’re creating impressions without you having to do anything at all. That kind of passive advertising works because you’re not pushing your message at the audience, but allowing them to discover it for themselves. Your potential customers may not pay attention to your standard vehicle, but wrap it in a well designed car wrap graphic and their eyes will naturally gravitate towards it. By being in your face without being ‘in your face’, you won’t breed any negativity towards your brand.

Advertising by stealth

It’s this stealth advertising that makes car vinyl wrapping such a cost effective and adaptable way to get your message out there. According to the Outdoor Advertising Association of America (OAAA), a vinyl wrapped car can generate between 30,000 and 70,000 impressions daily on the US roads, and in the UK, a vinyl wrap on a long-haul vehicle can generate 10 million impressions a year. It’s that impressive reach that makes vinyl wrap advertising so cost-effective.

Wrapping your vehicle in a well-designed vinyl wrap will help it stand out from the general visual noise, to create a real impact without you having to do hours of painstaking market research. This is a form of advertising that attracts interest across the demographic spectrum, penetrating markets from millennials to baby boomers. Advertising research has shown that that level of penetration is directly linked to an uptick in sales.

Agile marketing

Agile has been a buzzword for a while now, and agile marketing is designed to be nimble and responsive to market conditions and customer feedback. Agile marketing is experimental and it’s about knowing how to fail smart – and that’s where vinyl wrap is your friend.

An agile marketing plan is about running a series of low cost campaigns and seeing what works, and using the small scale failures as a unique learning opportunity. The great thing about car wrap advertising is that your campaigns can be totally flexible – start with the standard CTA then customise the message and the graphics to suit different campaigns. If you fail, it’s easy to craft another message, and if you want to be responsive to seasonal events you can add snowflakes or a jack o’ lantern.

Because vinyl wraps can be full or partial, and combined with cut letters and vinyl graphics they give you unparalleled freedom to try different combinations and see what works best for you. It’s the ultimate low cost way to experiment and fail smart, or to create a campaign that can be taken from temporary to permanent without a huge extra outlay. However you choose to organise your vehicle wrapping, it’s there until you decide to remove it.

Unexpected bonus

Using car graphics in Bognor Regis, or across the south coast, may be a brilliant way to get your message across, but it’s also an excellent way to protect your investment in company vehicles. Whether you have one company car or a fleet of vans, by wrapping them in vinyl that is car wash resistant and UV repellent, you’ll be protecting the original bodywork from deterioration caused by sunlight and wear and tear.

Vinyl wrap was first used in Germany in the 1990s, when it was used to convert domestic cars into standard beige taxis. After-service vehicles were usually sold at a heavily discounted price or had to be completely resprayed to make them marketable, but the Germans soon discovered that the vinyl wrap protected the bodywork, making reconversion both straightforward and profitable. The beauty of vinyl wrap is that, alongside all its other advertising benefits, it will protect your car bodywork for the amount of time it remains in place. That can make a difference when you come to sell on or upgrade your fleet.

Ask the experts

If you’re interested in boosting your advertising with the power and stealth of car vinyl wrapping, then you need a company that can take your ideas from conception through to design and installation. Only a company with the expertise to offer truly integrated services will fully unlock the potential of car wrap graphics for your vehicles. At the Sussex Sign Company, we have the expertise and the skill to turn your vehicles into mobile billboards that create hundreds of thousands of impressions, without you having to lift a finger. Contact us today via phone or email and our design, manufacture and installation teams will be happy to help you exploit the power of vinyl wrap for your next campaign.

The Seven Steps to a Perfect Car Wrap

Wrapping your car in vinyl may have started as a quick way to transform domestic vehicles into government taxis in Germany, but it’s now worth its weight in gold as a low-cost, high-impact way to advertise your goods and services. Mobile advertising creates more impressions than any other form of advertising, and it creates a great impression with your potential customers, who perceive your business as create and innovative.

So there are plenty of great reasons to choose vehicle wrapping in Hailsham and across the South East, but how do you go about getting the perfect car wrap for your vehicles?

Choose Your Company with Care

There are sign companies and there are are car wrapping companies, both of which can do half the job you need. Of course, if you have a talented design team, then you could go ahead and get your vinyl printed and then installed by a wrapping place. But for a precision job like vinyl car wrapping, you need a sign-making company that can take your ideas from conception right through to installation. You’ll have input at every stage of the process, and your sign-making company will have the expertise to create and install the wrap you want, modelling potential outcomes for you so you can get the best possible RoI on your new car wrap.

Get the Design Right

Putting your logo on your business card is straightforward. After all, it’s a simple 2D rectangle. But a car or a van is a 3D surface with curves and different planes that need to be taken into account when designing your car wrap. An experienced designer will have access to a wide variety of vehicle templates, so they can model your design for the best possible effect. You don’t want to find that your image looks distorted or your message doesn’t fit, do you?

A great designer will take every inch of the vehicle into account and will have previous experience in designing wraps for your type of vehicle. They’ll be able to make suggestions about what works best so that your vinyl wrap is both easy to understand and easy on the eye. A car wrap failure is the easiest way to switch off potential customers.

You Get What You Pay For

Choose a low-grade vinyl and you might save a few pounds but you’ll pay the hidden costs of taking a hit to your reputation when your vinyl wrapping quickly starts to look tattered and tired. You’ll also have to take into account the costs of having your vehicle rewrapped. If you make the same mistake across your entire fleet, it can really hit you in the pocket.

Having said that, simply choosing a brand name rather than a vinyl which is the most compatible for the job you want doing can have its own problems. Again, an experienced sign-making company will be able to advise you on the best materials for the job. You don’t want to ruin your car wrap graphics because you used the wrong materials.

Print and Prep

Once you have your killer design and choice of materials in place, it’s time for your sign company to print your images on to vinyl using a wide-format printer. A good company will respect the print profile of the vinyl you’re using, which instructs the printer about exactly how much ink to use, resulting in a vibrant and eye-catching image. Ignore the profile and you can end up with a flat, muddy image or one that’s over-saturated. Neither will give you the effect you’re looking for.

But let’s assume you’ve found a great company to design and produce your vehicle wrapping in Hailsham and it just needs to be applied to your car. Not so fast, because what follows is possibly the most painstaking part of the entire business. In order to get the very best results for your vinyl wrap, you’ll need to have your car prepared for wrapping. And that means removing every speck of grease, grime and oil that could stop the vinyl from sticking properly.

Your installers will also fill in any dings in the paintwork and deal with any rust so that the installation is as flawless as possible. Even a squashed bug can make your vinyl wrap bulge and ruin the seamless effect you’re looking for.

Why is this so important? Because great preparation is the only way to make the most of your beautifully printed and brilliantly designed car wrap graphic. Any bulging, lifting or adhesion problems will lead to a poor end result. Unfortunately, it’s a long and tedious job, and one where a poor-quality installer may be tempted to cut corners.

Install and Go

Every other step of the process now hinges on getting the installation right. That’s why it’s so important that your print company can offer high-quality installation. It takes hours to get this step of the process right and requires experience, patience and a steady hand. A good installer will not overstretch the vinyl or skimp on the all-important post-installation step of heating the vinyl to kill its ‘memory’ so it doesn’t ping back into its old shape. All these steps are time-consuming and can be boring, so unscrupulous wrapping companies can be tempted to skimp on them. You’ll be the first to notice if they do.

Ask the Professionals

If you want to get the best of car wrapping in Hailsham or anywhere else in Sussex, then you need to contact the Sussex Sign Company. We offer the integrated services you need to design, produce and install superb vinyl car wraps that will create thousands of impressions. Get in touch with us via phone or email today for more details.

The Art of the Vinyl Car Wrap

Eye-catching vinyl-wrapped vehicles are becoming more and more common on our streets. And no wonder – these mobile billboards make millions of impressions a year and can be used for long-term or short-term promotions with the addition of a decal. Flexible and cost-effective, vinyl wrap advertising is catching on fast.

If you’re looking for a company capable of creating vehicle signs in Lewes, you’ll need to check out whether they have a dedicated vehicle wrapping team. Why? Because wrapping a vehicle so that there are no lines, bulges and wrinkles to spoil the integrity of the design is an art.

Why You Should Vinyl-Wrap Your Vehicles

Think of a vinyl wrap as like lightweight armour for your car. Properly laminated, it can last ten years, during which time your vehicle is protected from wear and tear and damage from the elements. Highly mouldable and stretchable, vinyl can make your car look immaculate and give a professional shine to your advertising campaigns. And when you want to change your branding or make your campaigns more responsive, you can either opt for a partial wrap and decals or start all over again with a full body wrap.

Measure for Size

Before you even think about ordering your vinyl wrap, you’ll need to measure up your vehicle or vehicles so you have a good estimate of how much vinyl you’ll need. Don’t skip this step – a vehicle left half finished because you didn’t order enough vinyl will create a really poor first impression.

The easiest calculation is to measure the length of your car, multiply by three and add an extra five metres. The best way to plan for how much vinyl you’ll need for a professional car wrap is to ask the professionals and work with them on creating a design that will take advantage of the particular bodywork of your company car or van fleet.

Clean It Up

Next you’ll need to clean like you’ve never cleaned before. Waxes and oils affect the adhesion of the vinyl, so it’s critical that these are stripped from the car body before wrapping can start. Get right into the wheel wells and under the hood, as these are areas that you don’t often see yet can compromise the effect of your body wrap if you don’t pay attention to them.

Then you’ll need to give the bodywork a thorough going-over with paint cleaner and alcohol to get rid of any traces of grease. Also pay attention to any rust or paint chips. Because vinyl stretches over your vehicle like a second skin, any obvious blemishes will stick out, so fill any chips and deal with those rust spots. The rule of thumb is if you can feel it, it will show up on the outside – and that includes dead bugs!

Plan It Out

Before a wrap is applied, an installer will size up the vehicle and make a start with the most awkward pieces like the bumpers or the bonnet. It can often be easier to detach mirrors and trim rather than spending a long time trying to work round them. It might take five minutes to remove them and make your life easier.

Never Over-Stretch

Each piece of the wrap is applied separately by removing the backing paper and then smoothing into place with a squeegee. Sounds simple? Far from it. Experienced wrappers will know just how far a wrap can be heated, stretched and repositioned, but over-stretching the vinyl is one of the easiest mistakes to make. Do that and you’ll thin out the glue, resulting in imperfect adhesion of the vinyl. You’ll also distort the pattern and affect the finish, whether it’s matte or glossy.

Cut It Out

A really good installer can trim away the excess while the vinyl is in position on your car. The easiest way to achieve a good result without the risk of cutting into the paintwork is to peel away the edges, trim the vinyl to fit, and reapply.

Where you’re dealing with creating accurate seams, a product like knifeless tape will allow you to overlap two pieces of vinyl over the tape and then pull away the Kevlar thread, which neatly and accurately slices away any unwanted vinyl for a seamless finish.

Don’t Forget the Post-Heat

If you’ve applied a partial wrap to flat areas like car doors and bonnets, where no stretching of the vinyl is required, you can skip this step. But if you’ve applied a full car vinyl wrap, including mirrors and bumpers, then it’s imperative that you apply a heat gun to those areas so your stretched vinyl doesn’t shrink back to its original state.

Why Do I Need Vehicle Signs?

In a busy city like Los Angeles, a car with a full vinyl vehicle wrap can generate a staggering 30,000 to 70,000 impressions a day. Even in the UK, a long-haul truck with a vinyl wrap will generate ten million impressions during the course of a year.

But unless your vehicle wrap is done to the most professional standards, you’ll only create a poor first impression which turns potential customers off. At the Sussex Sign Company our technicians are highly experienced, and they’ll ensure that you get the maximum return on your investment from this powerful form of mobile advertising.

If you’re interested in getting your vehicle wrapping done by the professionals, contact us via phone or email today and we can discuss implementing your car wrap design ideas with our fully integrated design, manufacture, installation and maintenance services.

The advantages of car vinyl wrapping

Your signs and getting them right.

When designing your new vehicle vinyl or shop front signs, it is important that you convey all the relevant information you can as clearly and succinctly as possible. We have all seen signs that are a jumbled and confused mess of logos, contact details, social media pages and jarring colour schemes, so how do you avoid these pitfalls and create the most visually striking signage?

Working with a professional signwriting company will minimise the risk of getting unattractive, difficult to follow or meaningless signs that do not accurately convey your brand identity. Sign design is an art form and expert designers are experienced and highly trained in crafting signage that brings together multiple important elements to create the cleanest, most visually appealing and informative signs.

Vehicle signage options: what content should you include?

You should think about the side of your commercial vehicle as the perfect mobile display board for your business; once you have your branding on there, you could reach thousands of people an hour with your vehicle signage. Car wrapping and applying vehicle vinyl to vans has never been an easier or more cost-effective way of getting your message across, so investing in high-quality vehicle signwriting is a wise business move.

Car wrapping allows you to fully customise however many vehicles you have within your fleet, whether you are a one-man-band with a single white van or a taxi company owner with multiple vehicles in need of a unified single vehicle livery. As vehicle vinyl can be recreated as many times as you need, you can achieve a coherent and easily-recognisable look across the board.

As hardly anyone leaves their home without their smartphone these days, it is important your vehicle signs include your contact details, website address, and any social media pages you manage. Thanks to the small screens in their pockets, more and more people are likely to immediately visit your online profiles when they see your vehicle drive past. They have little time to forget your name and logo, and may even be tempted to put in a spur-of-the-moment order.

Vinyl graphics: getting the right look

In addition to your contact details, you need to consider the visual impact of your vehicle vinyl. It is hard for people to miss a branded vehicle, whether they are a pedestrian you pass on the road or a fellow motorist following you up the motorway as you whizz between jobs and meetings. Ensuring that your car or van sticks in their mind is crucial if you want to make a lasting impression and capture a slice of this passing trade.

You need to make sure that your message is clear. Your company name and logo need to be sharp, attractively arranged and easily identifiable so that they lodge in people’s minds and these potential customers will recognise them again the next time you pass by. People switch off when the image they are looking at is unattractive or incoherent; however, a well-designed sign that is bold, bright, beautiful and clear will certainly turn a few heads.

You really can have too much of a good thing, however! Try to pack too much information onto the side of your vehicle or go for a crazy colour scheme or overly-complicated logo and people will be turned off. You want your vehicle to stand out, but for all the right reasons – make it too busy or too much of an eyeful and people will switch off.

Design layouts: how to get the best from your vehicle vinyl

The best vehicle vinyl can convey all the important content you need to get across and give people a good idea of what your company stands for. The best signs – be they car wrapping, shop front signs or signs for schools – can tell a story about an establishment. Your potential customers and clients need to be able to work out at a glance what you do, what goods or services you provide, and what you could do for them.

Your logo and company name need to be displayed in such a way that they imprint themselves on the memories of passers-by. Clearly defined, they can tell people everything they need to know in an instant, from who you are and what you do to how to get in touch and even how trustworthy your company is likely to be.

People can tell a lot from your signs. Well-designed and well-maintained signs demonstrate that you take your work seriously and take pride in what you do. Caring about appearances is not shallow but a good way of showing you care about other aspects of your work. Putting a positive face on your vehicle and premises with beautiful signage is encouraging to potential customers, who are more likely to connect with your brand and approach you if they think you care about how you come across.

Work with the best for the best results

If you want the highest-quality signage, it pays to work with the most professional signwriting companies. The Sussex Sign Company has been working in the signage industry for well over two decades and our highly-skilled designers are amongst the best sign writers in the country. With their expert knowledge and years of experience, they can work with you to craft incredible car wrapping and shop front signs that perfectly convey the content and message you need to put across to your customers.

For more information on the services The Sussex Sign Company can provide, please do not hesitate to get in touch with us today on 01273 424900

Car signage for businesses

Car Signage

Whatever goods or services your company sells, the chances are you are constantly on the lookout for new ways to promote and advertise your business. Taking out local radio advert slots or placing an ad in the local newspaper are both valuable exercises, as are leafleting campaigns and getting involved in community fundraising events. Few marketing ploys, however, have the reach and impact that installing vehicle vinyl can have, so in this post, we’ll be exploring just a few of the advantages car signage can bring to your business.

Get your name out there

Not only can a vehicle wrap lead to increased brand recognition in the long-run, but you’re more likely to make an immediate impact on people and make a direct, instant connection. Most people these days leave the house equipped with a smartphone or tablet, and most will admit to making impulse buys whilst out and about, thanks to the convenience of the small screen.

If they see your contact details on the side of your vehicle, potential customers are far more likely to visit your website or social media pages, or put in a phone call there and then. Sitting behind your contact details and instantly accessing your site as they’re stuck in traffic means they have no chance to forget you before they get home.

Research suggests a branded vehicle is typically seen between 2,000 and 9,000 times an hour – that’s a lot of eyes on your car or van, so making use of the side of your vehicle as an advertising signboard makes good business sense. Once you’ve paid the initial cost of having vehicle vinyl installed, your commercial vehicle is effectively acting as a mobile billboard. Since you’d already be using your van or car to get between jobs or clients, you might as well make the most of it!

Get the look you want

The technology behind car vinyl wrapping has come on so quickly in recent years that you can now have virtually anything you want printed and attached to your vehicle. Working with a top signage company and professional car wrapping signwriters means you can achieve everything from basic logo, contact details and colour schemes through to incredibly complex and detailed designs.

Being able to fully customise your business car or van gives you great scope for creativity and will help you convey business message information and brand identity. What’s more, if you have more than one vehicle or even an entire fleet to worry about, identical vehicle vinyl can be quickly and easily produced to see your branding carried across all your transportation.

This means that however many cars or vans you have on the road, that branded livery will make them instantly recognisable to potential customers and create a unified fleet of vehicles. Because vinyl is also so easy to replace, should your business want to rebrand at a later date or simply update your contact details, it’s a straightforward task to kit your cars and vans out with new vehicle signage.

Gain more trust

Vehicle vinyl is not only beautiful, but it actually increases trust in your brand. People like the strong, professional look which a high-quality car wrap can bring to a vehicle, and they’re far more likely to look further into your company if your fleet is well-presented. Shabby or faded paintwork doesn’t bode well in the eyes of prospective clients and customers, so making sure your vehicles look in top condition will lead to increased authority and trust in your business, which in turn means higher sales.

Investing in high-quality, long-lasting vehicle wrapping is a cost-effective way of seeing your business van or car is well-protected and will remain looking good for anywhere up to a decade. Not only is vinyl quick, clean and easy to remove or replace, but it actually shields the paintwork underneath from any scratches or nicks you might pick up in the course of your work. That means the wholesale price of your vehicle won’t be damaged by a car wrap and your vehicle will be better protected.

Working with the best

There’s no denying that vehicle vinyl makes a powerful visual impact on those who see it. It’s incredibly difficult for both pedestrians and other motorists not to register and engage with a beautiful, bold, bespoke vehicle wrap, and people are naturally more drawn to the aesthetically pleasing branded vehicle than the plain or poorly maintained one. Ensuring your business car or van has top of the range car signage is, therefore, a wise investment and makes sound business sense.

With vehicle vinyl, your commercial vehicle is working for you round the clock and 365 days of the year. Whether you’ve left it on the street outside your house overnight or have simply popped to the supermarket in it, your branded car or van is promoting your goods and services to a massive audience of potential clients and customers – don’t miss out by leaving the side of your vehicle blank!

In order to make the greatest impact, though, you need to be confident in the design and quality of the vehicle wrapping you’re investing in. At The Sussex Sign Company, we’ve spent many years keeping up to date with all the latest advances in vehicle signage and can craft the highest-quality bespoke car wraps, which are perfectly tailored to your business and the brand image you want to convey.

With an expert team of designers and fitters, we can help you get the look you want – whether you have a little runaround or an entire fleet of vehicles. For more information on how we can help, simply get in touch with our professional signwriters today.

Paint vs. vinyl wrap

If your company car or van looks like it’s in need of a little TLC, then you might be wondering how best to polish it up. Many people would instantly think that a lick of paint wPaint vs. vinyl wrapould be the quickest fix, but car vinyl wraps are now so much easier and quicker to design and install that they’ve already become a popular alternative.

Paint and vinyl both have their advantages and disadvantages, so to help you decide how best to enhance and customise your vehicle, we have put together a breakdown of the pros and cons.

Paint: the plus side

Paint is a very reliable way of sprucing up your commercial vehicle easily, and skilled painters and signwriters can achieve very neat, long-lasting results. If you want that ‘straight off the factory floor’ look, then having the entire vehicle resprayed can get you the result you’re after.

Similarly, if you’ve changed the colour scheme your company uses, then getting your vehicles painted in the new shades you have picked is straightforward, and allows you to recreate the same scheme across an entire fleet of vehicles, if needs be. One final advantage is that painting is a simple job and so there are plenty of companies which can provide their services to you, whereas vinyl wrapping is a more specialist route to go down if you want top-quality results.
Paint: the downsides

One of the major disadvantages of painting your vehicle is that you have to get all the bodywork done, so it can become expensive. Variations in shade and finish mean you can’t simply touch the paintwork up here and there, but will need to have the whole vehicle entirely resprayed to ensure an even coverage – otherwise it could end up looking like a very silly patchwork!

Paint also has a tendency to fade, flake and rust over time, so while it might seem like a long-term solution, you could find it starts to look shabby within a relatively short space of time, depending on the quality of the job and the conditions your vehicle is exposed to. There’s nothing worse than spending all that money only to see your company name and logo are becoming so bleached by sunlight that passersby can no longer see them properly.

Depending on the complexity of the paintwork and the text or images you want painted on to the side of your car or van, your vehicle could be out of action for a number of days while the work is carried out. You might have an alternative runaround to see you through this period, but bear it in mind when deciding.

Vinyl: the plus side

One of the main advantages of car vinyl is that it acts as a second skin for your vehicle, meaning all those annoying little scratches, scrapes and nicks which are part and parcel of everyday driving don’t affect the paintwork underneath. Because it can be so easily peeled away, you can also be confident that vinyl won’t damage the bodywork and your vehicle’s resale value won’t be affected, should you decide to sell it on.

Also, thanks to that easy peel aspect, if a section of your vinyl wrap is damaged then it’s incredibly easy just to replace a small part of the vehicle wrapping – with a paint job, you’d be looking at the expensive route of having the entire vehicle resprayed. It also means you can quickly and easily change your vehicle wrap at any time, whether it’s simply to update your contact details or as part of a major rebranding exercise.

If you own a fleet of cars and want brand unity across all your vehicles, this is far easier to achieve with vinyl. Custom-made designs can easily be replicated across any number of cars and vans, and there are multiple types of vinyl car wrap to help you achieve the exact look you want for your fleet.

Vinyl: the downsides

There are very few negatives, but one of the disadvantages of car vinyl is that it can take a couple of days to install, so you will need to factor in some down time for your vehicle. That said, paint can take anywhere between a week and ten days to be fully applied and allowed to dry, so vinyl can be the quicker fix.

In some cases, vinyl might be more expensive than paint, but that is entirely dependent on what you request from your vehicle vinyl wrapping company. If you have a large sided vehicle, then more material will need to be used, and going for an incredibly detailed and complex design will also push the costs up. In general, however, the technological advances behind vinyl have made it much more cost-effective in recent years.

Ultimately, the choice you make will depend on the vision you have for your car, van or fleet of vehicles. Both paint and vinyl wraps have their pros and cons, so it’s important to weigh up the advantages and disadvantages of both before you make your final decision.

If you do decide that vehicle wrapping is for you, then you need to ensure you work with a company who can deliver the highest quality car wraps to guarantee they will be well-designed, well-fitted and made to last. The Sussex Sign Company has been providing local companies across the south-east with the best bespoke vehicle wraps for a number of years, and our experienced team of designers and fitters can see you get the very best vinyl for your vehicles.

To find out more about the types of vinyl car wrap available to you and the services we provide, simply get in touch with our expert team today.

Would vehicle vinyl suit your van or car?

Vinyl signwriting on your car?

The technology behind vehicle vinyl has advanced so much in recent years that it has never been such a cost-effective and attractive option, for car and van drivers everywhere. Vehicle wraps can be used for all sorts of reasons, and the possibilities for creating beautiful, bespoke designs for your vehicle are endless.

If you own your own business and use a company vehicle on a regular basis, it’s worth remembering that the side of your car or van is prime advertising space. Whether you’re a builder or plumber with a high-sided van, an estate agent with a nippy little runaround to get you between viewings, or a taxi company with a whole fleet of cars, vinyl can be a great way of getting your brand identity and personality stamped onto your vehicle.

What are the perks of vehicle vinyl?

When it comes to your marketing strategy, vehicle wraps are the gift that keeps on giving. Compared to other forms of advertising, car or van vinyl can reach a much wider audience, with very little effort on your part. While you could pay to run up and distribute brochures around the local area or take out an advertising slot on the radio or in the local paper, the number of potential customers you might reach is very limited, and the effect fleeting. If you’re already out and about in your car or van, then it makes sense to utilise the free advertising space you already have.

Research has shown that a commercial vehicle with its own branded vinyl will be seen anywhere between 2,000 and 9,000 times an hour – that’s a lot of eyes on your company name and contact details. What’s more, once you’ve paid the initial cost of having your vehicle wraps installed, they can last for many years and they’re working for you 24 hours a day and 365 days a year. Whether you’re popping into the local convenience store, sitting in a traffic jam on the ring road or parked up in front of your house overnight, your vehicle signage is still clearly displayed for all passersby to see.

A further advantage of vehicle vinyl is that it protects your van or car against all those annoying little scratches, knocks and scrapes which are part of everyday life when you use a vehicle for work. Vehicle wraps can be quickly and easily installed and cause no damage to the body and paintwork of your car or van, which means its resale price won’t be affected should you wish to have the wrap removed in order to sell your vehicle. In the meantime, your wrap acts as a second skin to protect your vehicle as you’re driving around between jobs, meetings or to and from the office.

Would your vehicle suit a vinyl wrap?

The easy answer is that vinyl suits every vehicle. Whatever the size or make of your van or car, bespoke vehicle wraps can be created to fit every shape and model imaginable, helping you get the best use out of the space you have available on the side of your vehicle. When it comes to getting creative about customising your car or van, there is little, if anything, which is off limits. That means you really can let your imagination run wild in terms of the colours and imagery you use and how you want to lay out important information in text.

As a business, you probably already have a brand identity which includes your company’s name, logo, colour scheme and motto or tag-line, and you probably use these on all your marketing materials, from your shop signage and branded promotional giveaways right down to business cards and letterheads. It’s important that your brand is carried across all platforms in order to create a coherent identity which customers can instantly recognise and identify with, and that should include your vehicle.

The smartphones in people’s pockets have opened up a wealth of possibilities for the savvy business owner. Since the majority of us are addicted to our phones and will admit to impulse buying through our mobiles while out and about, making sure your website address or social media pages reach as many people as possible could see a massive boost to your online sales figures. No matter what goods or services you sell, if people see the contact details on the side of your vehicle and can instantly get online to check your company out, then they’re more likely to make a purchase then and there, before they have a chance to forget your name.

Vehicle vinyl can, therefore, be a fantastic opportunity to reach a whole new audience and connect them to your brand. Costs for vinyl have fallen significantly in recent years, so it’s well worth investing in high quality vehicle signage.

Here at The Sussex Sign Company, we have a highly skilled team who are able to design and fit the most cutting-edge vehicle wraps. Making use of the most advanced vehicle wrapping technology, we are able to create beautiful, bespoke vehicle wraps which make a real visual impact and help you reach the people who matter to your business. Whatever industry you’re in and whatever vehicle you own, let us help you create a vehicle wrap which perfectly captures your company and brand identity.

For more information on the services we provide, simply get in touch with our expert team today on 01273 424900.

Five reasons to update your vehicle livery

Whether you own a runaround vehicle or a whole fleet of cars or vans, updating the livery of your company vehicles will give your business a whole new lease of life. A brand new livery means so much more than simply making your vehicles look pretty. It can have a positive knock-on effect on other aspects of your enterprise, helping boost brand awareness, generate interest among potential customers and giving you the edge over the competition.

Your vehicle livery is your way of getting your name and brand seen, letting the public know about the goods or services you supply and how they can get in touch with you. Here are just five of the top reasons for updating your livery today.

It’s free advertising space

If you already own the car or van, then the side of your vehicle is prime, free advertising space just waiting to be exploited. If you’re not already making use of it, then you’re missing a very important opportunity to promote your business and get your contact details seen. If you do already have vehicle signage, it might be time for an upgrade, to keep it up to date and looking attractive.

What’s more, your car or van provides you with round-the-clock publicity. Whether you’ve just stopped off for a few minutes at the petrol station or have left your vehicle parked up on the street overnight, your vehicle signage is always there and always visible.

You will reach more people

Studies have found that a vehicle with company branding could be seen by between 2,000 and 9,000 people per hour, both other road users and pedestrians passing by. With that much exposure, you can’t afford not to have an attractive livery. People are instantly attracted to bold, well-designed car graphics, so updating yours to ensure it’s looking its best is a wise move.

While you could fork out for a slot on the local radio or an advert in the local paper, the audience for such publicity tends to be very limited and the effect short-lived. With your livery acting as free advertising, you could reach more people without having to lift a finger, just in the course of going about your daily working life.

You can create a unified brand

Most companies will have a specific logo, colour scheme and font which they use across all their corporate branding, on everything from their shop front sign to their letterheads, their business cards and their websites. Including your vehicle in that overall, unified brand identity is important, because your business vehicles often play a key role in your day-to-day work.

A unified brand means customers are better able to instantly recognise your company, seeing a familiar logo and colour scheme across a range of materials and platforms. With your fleet of vehicles proudly displaying your new livery, you’re ensuring that unified brand is gaining as much visibility as possible, so potential customers will know it again when they pass by your shop front’s illuminated signs, or see that familiar font at the head of your restaurant menu or price list.

It helps you stay current and on-trend

Many companies are reluctant to embrace change, but change is sometimes exactly what’s needed to inject new energy into a business. If your company has been around for a while, it could be that your logo and branding are looking a little outdated and could benefit from a bit of an update, to ensure they’re on trend. Perhaps you’re regretting that particularly vivid shade of green you picked all those years ago, or you think your logo now looks a little bit unfashionable. Whatever the reasons, if your branding is looking a little tired, then it might be high time for a makeover.

It’s also a good opportunity to update your contact details. Many more companies are embracing social media and making use of their Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages, so if you want to direct more traffic to your website and social media platforms, then you need to make sure people know how to find you. Adding this information to your vehicle livery is a great idea, because people who are out and about with their smartphones to hand can instantly search for you before they have a chance to forget.

It shows you mean business

There’s no doubt that we’re in for yet another tough year, and keeping ahead of your rivals is crucial. Whatever field you work in, from shops and estate agents to restaurants, bars, cafes, gyms, cleaners and building firms, you know just how fierce competition is at the moment. Companies which invest in themselves and in their own self-promotion show they mean business and are here to stay.

By updating the livery of your car, van or fleet, you’re showing the world that you take pride in what you do, and if you show an interest in your business, then potential customers will be more inclined to show an interest too.

Here at The Sussex Sign Company, we’ve perfected our vehicle wrapping techniques over the course of many years, and are able to offer our clients the highest quality and most long-lasting vehicle signage. Our expert team of designers can work with you to craft bespoke and beautiful vehicle wraps which truly reflect you and your business. If you’re feeling inspired to update your vehicle livery, simply get in touch with us today.