Using Vehicles for Marketing Campaigns | Comprehensive Guide

Four-wheeled vehicles have transformed our lives. They have revolutionized transportation with the introduction of buses and cars, and they also provide accommodation and housing in the form of RVs and trailers. For many car enthusiasts, vehicles are an indispensable part of their personality and hobby. Recently, vehicles have found a new use that has been gaining steam as a marketing tool.

In today’s cut-throat business environment, you must increase your venture’s brand recognition in the audience and differentiate yourself from competitors. You can do so by marketing yourself creatively and effectively to stand out. Every day, marketing professionals look for creative ways of marketing a brand that captures their audience’s attention. Vehicle-based marketing techniques have emerged to be an innovative way of marketing. Let’s explore this creative strategy further.

Types of Vehicle-based Marketing

Here are some standard vehicle-based marketing techniques:

1. Wraps and Decals

You can cover your car’s surface with a custom-designed vinyl wrap for effective business promotion. Additionally, you can put vinyl stickers to promote a brand on specific areas of your car instead of using a complete surface wrap. These stickers are called decals. You can place decals on windows, doors, or bumpers and utilize your car space efficiently.

Both car wraps and decals are cost-effective ways of increasing your brand’s visibility, but you use them for different purposes. Car wraps fill your car surface space, making them ideal for campaigns that require a greater degree of visibility. You also use car wraps when you require greater creativity, as they allow for more eye-catching designs. They last for a long time compared to decals and protect your original paint from damage. However, they can be more expensive than decals.

Decals are cheaper and temporary, so use them for short-term marketing campaigns, such as promoting a candidate during an election. You can get your car wraps and decals designed from mcnamarasigns.com.

2. Branded and Customized Cars

You can also brand or customize a fleet of company cars with the business’s logo. For example, you can get your delivery truck branded, increasing your company’s visibility and providing marketing as a by-product while delivering goods. Typically, companies apply a customized coat of paint to their fleet to get them branded.

Despite their numerous advantages, branded cars have some downsides too. Branding your entire fleet is expensive, and smaller businesses may not have the budget. If your market is very niche, branding your fleet would serve little purpose.

Instead, focus on targeted marketing efforts that cater to your niche audience. You should also only brand your business fleet, as branding your personal-use cars is unnecessary and even considered unprofessional. Customized cars are not just for big brands: you can customize your car to promote an important message and make a personal statement.

3. Mobile Billboards

Mobile billboards use a vehicle to display a giant advertisement, just like a traditional billboard. Also called mobile advertising trucks, they are LED trucks that you can use in marketing campaigns. However, you can use buses and even bicycles to make mobile billboards and drive them around in busy areas of town to maximize your visibility.

You use mobile billboards in areas where traditional billboards aren’t available. They also don’t get cluttered by other advertisements and can have a more lasting impact. However, you may need to check the legality of mobile billboard advertising. For example, you cannot take your mobile billboard to a school zone, government buildings, or airports.

Benefits of Vehicle-Based Marketing

Vehicle-based marketing offers a set of advantages.

1. Brand Recognition

Vehicle-based marketing allows for better brand recognition than other marketing strategies. Eye-catching graphics on large vehicles create a lasting impression on the audience and improve your brand visibility.

Vehicle-based marketing is less common than other types of marketing, such as billboards on highways. This novelty factor makes such marketing campaigns memorable. Someone who saw your mobile billboard is less likely to ignore it than a highway billboard and more likely to remember it months later. The repetitive exposure to the vehicle also reinforces people’s memory of the brand. The memorability of vehicle-based marketing increases brand recognition through word-of-mouth marketing as well.

2. Cost-Effectiveness

Vehicle-based marketing is cost-effective. While the initial cost of getting your fleet branded or making a mobile billboard is significant, it is a one-time investment that will keep marketing your business for years. Once you get your company cars or trucks branded, the paint can last for decades and provides you with free marketing every time your vehicle is on the roads.

Mobile billboards are also more cost-effective than traditional billboards. A traditional billboard only displays your advertisement to those passing by in the area. At times other than the peak hours, your billboard does not market to many people. However, you can simply take mobile billboards to other places wherever you expect to find more audience, decreasing your cost per person. Vehicle-based marketing also impacts the audience more due to the eye-catching design. The audience is more compelled to take the desired action, making this advertising type a better investment.

3. Flexibility

Vehicle-based advertisements are highly flexible, offering you the mobility to use them for targeted campaigns and reach a wider audience. You can drive around your vehicle to busy areas and park strategically to maximize exposure. You can take it to places where you expect to find many people, such as at food fests, carnivals, concerts, and other events, allowing you to reach your target audience. For example, if your target audience consists of foodies, you can take your vehicle to a food festival or a food street to market specifically to your target audience.

4. Passive Advertisement

Customers prefer vehicle-based marketing, as it is a non-intrusive passive advertisement that does not hamper their experience. Traditional marketing methods, like TV commercials, social media ads, or telemarketing calls, intrude on the consumer’s ability to choose how they spend their leisure time, leaving them annoyed and frustrated. Consequently, they associate the brand with a negative experience and are less likely to interact with it, even if they sell a good product. However, mobile billboards do not actively disrupt the user’s experience and are less likely to annoy your target audience.

Last Words

Vehicle-based marketing techniques improve brand recognition, are cost-effective, allow for targeted advertisements, and are highly mobile and flexible. Consider exploring vehicle-based marketing techniques for your next campaign.