One of the newer trends in marketing is custom car signs. There are a number of advantages to these signs, and if used correctly, they can be highly effective. In fact, due to their low cost, businesses often see a great return on their investment. The term “car sign” is sometimes a little vague—there are several things that could be considered car signs, and you can make use of all of them to market your products, services, or brand.
Which type of car sign is right for you, and how can you use them to improve your revenue? Let’s take a look at your options and how they work so you can decide which option is right for you. Once you’ve decided what type of custom car sign you need, you can reach out to TNT Signs to have them printed.
Types of Custom Car Signs
Anything you put on your car could be considered a type of custom car sign. This includes everything from bumper stickers to a full custom car wrap. Let’s look at each option and how it can help you boost your revenue.
Bumper Stickers
The classic bumper sticker was the first type of custom car sign. Even though it’s a fairly old form of marketing, that doesn’t mean it’s not still effective. If you asked people what bumper stickers are used for, many would answer political campaigns. Many campaigns do make use of bumper stickers, but that’s not the only use for them. You can use them to market just about anything, even services. Rental cars may have bumper stickers advertising the rental agency, for example.
Because of their size, you do have to keep your bumper sticker designs fairly simple. Many are just a few words with a basic logo or graphic. Remember that most people will see bumper stickers while they’re in the car. They may pay the most attention to them when waiting at a stoplight or stop sign. If they can’t read the sticker from a car length or so away, then it’s not effective.
Window Stickers
Window stickers are similar to bumper stickers except, obviously, they’re placed in the rear or side windows instead. Some of the most common types of window stickers or signs include “baby on board” and stickers indicating the number of people in the family. Many of these stickers are jokes or allow the driver to add something fun to their car. You’ll find a lot of window stickers that reference popular television shows, movies, and other pop culture phenomena.
Window stickers are often easier to see than bumper stickers simply because they’re placed closer to eye level. While most people will notice them in traffic, they’re also more visible when the vehicle is parked in a parking lot or driveway. Another reason these stickers are more visible is that they don’t get covered with dirt as easily. Bumper stickers can easily become covered with mud or other gunk, especially during bad weather.
Advertising with window stickers offers a little more freedom because you’re not limited to the size and shape of a bumper. With bumper stickers, your only real option is to create rectangular stickers. Window stickers can be just about any shape or size. While most are kept small to allow for visibility, you can be creative with placement. Some of these decals are designed to be placed on the lower corner of the window, but you can design long, thin stickers that go along the bottom or top. You can be very creative here.
While most of these stickers are designed to go on the rear window, you can create stickers for side windows, too. Typically these are not placed on the driver’s or passenger’s windows due to visibility issues—in fact, there are some laws regarding sticker placement. For example, no stickers can be placed on the windshield with, in some cases, exceptions for small decals on the lower corner. Typically, these decals are parking permits or similar security-related identifiers. Be sure you understand the laws in your area before designing stickers. You don’t want to be fined.
Side Stickers and Magnetic Signs
While putting stickers on the bumper or rear window can certainly help promote your brand and bring in revenue, they also require people to be behind your car. They work great in traffic, but unless they’re stopped at a light, people can’t exactly take the time to write down your company name or visit your website. If your vehicle is parked in a business’s parking lot, people may be so focused on what they’re doing that they aren’t looking at other cars. Since many people do have funny stickers on the backs of their vehicles, it can also be hard to make your ad stand out. People may have become used to ignoring all of these stickers.
Using side stickers or magnetic signs can help you stand out. People don’t expect to see branding on the side of a car or on the hood, but there’s no reason you can’t put stickers in these locations. In fact, this is where people often expect to see brands and other business information. Many commercial vehicles have the name of the company on the side doors or on the hood.
With stickers and magnetic signs, it’s incredibly easy to add your company’s branding and other marketing information to your vehicles. Magnetic signs can be moved from car to car, while stickers can be added and removed easily. You can create stickers to market special deals or new products, swapping them out whenever you want.
Custom Car Wraps
While they’re not necessarily a type of car sign, a custom car wrap is a way of marketing your business on a vehicle. Car signs are usually more affordable because they’re much less material or work to install, which is why many small or new businesses start with them. However, you may find that a full car wrap is the better option. It all depends on your marketing campaign and your design.
How to Get the Most out of a Custom Car Sign
How can you get the biggest return on investment with your custom car sign? You’ll want to carefully think about the design. While it’s easy to think of a car sign as a mobile billboard, you do have to keep in mind that you’re working with a much smaller space and that people are likely only going to have a few seconds to get your message. Simple is better when it comes to car signs.
However, that doesn’t mean you can’t be creative. You can use unique shapes for window stickers, use bright colors on bumper stickers, and add photos or graphics on your car signs. The more creative you get, the more likely it is that your signs will be noticed.
One of the best ways of harnessing your car signs is to put them on all of your vehicles. This way, no matter where you’re parked, you’re advertising. Having your business name on your commercial vehicles makes sense. This allows your customers to identify your crew in addition to marketing to others. However, there’s no reason you can’t market with your personal vehicle. You could add a simple sticker to the bumper or back window if you don’t want to do too much. Of course, you can always add a magnetic sign or large decal if you don’t mind marketing with your personal vehicle.
It can be difficult to track exactly what type of return you’re getting on custom car signs. You can always ask new customers how they heard about you, which can be helpful even if you aren’t using car signs to market your brand. You can also advertise a special with your signs. This type of marketing usually works best with larger car signs, not bumper stickers or window stickers, simply because you need more space. Include something like “Mention this sign and get 10%” can help you get an idea of how many people have spotted your vehicle. Small discounts can also help attract new customers.
Which Car Sign is Right for You?
Do you need bumper stickers, window decals, or larger custom car signs? It all depends on what you’re marketing and what your brand is. For something fairly simple, the smaller stickers can be perfect, and they typically cost less. However, some brands, products, and services require more information. Car signs work much better in this case because you can include that additional information as well as your business’s location, phone number, or website.
No matter which type of car sign or sticker you want, you need to have them printed on high-quality materials. TNT Signs can assist you with all of these marketing projects and more. When we’re finished, you’ll have the custom car signs you need and can rest easy knowing that they will last for quite some time. We can also help you with custom signs, banners, trade show setups, and much more. Contact TNT Signs today to learn more.