Getting the word out about your business is a great way to attract new customers and retain old ones.  If your shop is located on a busy thoroughfare, a vehicle emblazoned with your message and bold graphics can serve as an effective mobile [or stationary] billboard. Drive it around town when you pick up supplies or deliver your products ... or park it curbside in view of passersby and you could attract the attention of countless drivers and passengers in your own neighborhood.
However, just like any form of advertising, a poorly executed attempt can be equally effective at driving customers away.  Take the example pictured below.  It is prominently placed at the edge of a parking lot on a well-traveled road just a couple of hundred feet away from the business it promotes.  The message is clear and includes the location, phone number and services offered.  Sounds like a great effort, right?

Think again!  Look closely at the van and the graphics.  The vehicle is filthy, the vinyl lettering peeling away, one tire is flat and the front fender [passenger side] is crumbled.  The tag is 5 years out of date, suggesting the vehicle might be abandoned.  I certainly wouldn't want this vehicle promoting my business.  Especially if I owned a laundromat.  If the van looks like this I can only imagine what I'd find inside their 'lounge'.  
Once upon a time this was undoubtedly a great representation of the business.  And it could be again.  A small investment in minor body work, a car wash and new graphics could make this an excellent marketing tool again.  Keep in mind that you want your marketing tools to show the positive aspects of your business.  
Keep It Clean ... Dirty Doesn't Sell!


Please feel free to peruse the many posts on this website or contact me directly at wowART@yahoo.com with questions or comments.
 
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