Great Vehicle Wrap Designs Should Create Positive and Memorable Experiences

Vehicle wrap design is a science, an emotional science, just like all other forms of marketing.  If done correctly, and connected with the overall branding plan, vehicle wraps can be tremendously helpful in building an emotionally powerful brand.

Let’s take a step back from vehicle wraps and graphics for a second.  Companies must have a marketing and branding toolbox.  In the tool box there needs to be more than just one tool, there needs to be an overall and holistic and cohesive approach.  Vehicle wraps can be a part of this approach.  For larger companies TV, radio ads and billboards in conjunction with vehicle wraps can be highly effective.  For smaller companies who cannot afford TV or radio advertising other forms of advertising such as  street marketing, door hangers, direct mail and social media can be extremely effective in addition to vehicle wraps.

Using this approach and focusing on story telling for your brand, let’s say you sell widgets.  This is how the holistic approach would look.  On the radio spot you tell how your grand father started the business, your dad then worked for your grandfather making widgets, and you made your first widget when you were 5 years old.  “It’s a family tradition”  is your tagline.   At the same time that these radio ads are released, you’ve already been working (hopefully with SmartWrap) on your vehicle wrap design and the design is complete and ready to go.  This is important.  You don’t want to lose momentum by only starting to think about how the different parts of the campaign will look as you’re about to release them.  There needs to be a master plan, with all parts being developed simultaneously, and then have them released as and when needed.

People like to judge, organize compartmentalize things.  Every day we’re doing it with the brands, the people, the objects we come across.  Most of it is done so fast we don’t even really know we’re doing it.  We’re assessing things, trying to figure out where they go, what they are, what they mean, in relation to what we already know. Building the narrative of what you want people to feel when they hear your name, see your name, is most important part of the whole process.  Without a positive and memorable narrative there is no context in which to place a consumer’s impression of a brand.

With that in mind here’s how you build a positive and memorable brand experience:

Focus on your logo first.  Make sure that your logo is professional looking.  As the business owner, this can be a really difficult assessment.  It takes guts to admit that the logo you’ve been using for 20 years is not as professional as it can and should be.  Take a look at some of the biggest, most loved, respected and valuable brands and compare your logo against theirs.

Let’s assume your logo is great.  The next step is to begin to attach the narrative you want to create, to the logo.  For example, McDonald’s wanted to increase sales, so they decided to market to families.  Families spend more money per order than single people.  So the narrative is that McDonald’s is a great place for families.  They created a number of kid friendly characters, they really did a number things to promote the family narrative.  You don’t have to start creating goofy looking characters to create your own narrative.  You could be in the home security business for example, and have your business name, ABC security.  But there needs to be the emotional context and narrative in which to remember and feel good about your brand.  How about a bulldog.  Not a photograph, a more conceptual less detailed piece of art that sums up the serious, tough and loyal nature of your business.

As a side note, if you are in the air conditioning business, pictures of air conditioners do very little to create this narrative.  If all you want people to think about is air conditioners when they think of your A/C business you’re missing out on a HUGE opportunity.  The consumer needs to trust and like you in order to do business with you.  A grey square box with a fan on the front is not emotionally compelling, there’s no story.  There is simply no where to file this in a person’s psyche other than under “miscellaneous”  Not where you want to be right?

Key Points:

To create a great wrap design you need to :

 Create a great logo

 Build a narrative with an emotional connection

 Avoid adding unnecessary photographs