As many of us already know, vehicle wrapping is a fun, expressive and creative business endeavor that is available to practically anyone. The potential to earn a great living from a relatively small investment, minimal (if any) print and design knowledge and an extra 1,000 square feet of spare floor space is all that is required to get a vehicle wrapping company off the ground.
There are however, many factors to take into account if you are considering adding wraps to your offerings. As with any business, if you want to succeed and do well, you should first ask yourself if you are genuinely interested and then be sure that you are willing and able to invest the time that is required to learn this exciting, complex and often daunting advertising medium.
There is a definite learning curve associated with wrapping cars and arming yourself with the right information may be even more important than owning the fastest printer with the latest technology. At this particular time in the evolution of outdoor advertising and printing, there are many different business models that make up the industry of “vehicle wrapping”.
Vehicle wraps have played a major role for advertising products, services, events and calls to action at the agency and promotional level since vinyl could hold ink. With a little determination and a sincere willingness to learn, you can get on the fast track in this amazing industry. Entrepreneurial opportunities with high earning potentials and small price tags are rare (at best), but car wrapping as a profession is a real thing and the success is being enjoyed by hundreds of self-starters every day across the country and in every demographic.
Quite possibly, you can use that graphic arts, Web design, printing or agency background to help you get up to speed with the large-format process. On the other hand, you may not have any design or print experience at all and just hearing the word RIP can send you running for the hills. As someone who routinely prints and installs these rolling billboards, I can say—with much certainty—that we have all been at the beginning of this rather complex journey in search of a starting point. I can also say with as much certainty that the door you need to pass through is a lot wider than you think.
But before you pick up that phone and call your local equipment leasing office, you should get familiar with some of the requirements that are involved in starting up, and running a successful vehicle wrapping company. There is a lot to be gained in becoming a producer of one of the world's hottest advertising mediums, but there are still some pitfalls concerning manufacturing and marketing this unique product, and the more you know, the better your chances are of surviving and thriving..
First, ask yourself what area of the wrap business you are interested in. It may be that you only want to print the graphics from client-supplied art files. Or maybe you're more interested in starting up an installation company. Maybe it’s both. In Europe, wrap duties are often broken down into specific roles and separate companies. Usually designers don’t print and printers don’t install, but they communicate very well with each other and work well this way. In North America, we tend to want to do it all. There is much more of a “get your feet wet” kind of attitude about how we work. If you do want to take on all of the roles, it is important to learn what you are going to do.
First, if you expect to run the show and not “sub out” your printing and installations, you will need to purchase the right equipment and training—and by “right” I mean exactly what you need, and none of what you don’t. Acquire the right space to house your new graphics business in and make sure your equipment is properly installed. The next step is to be shown the basic functions of your machines and have the design, RIP and print process thoroughly explained.
General training is usually easy to find, but it can be somewhat difficult to know exactly where to go for exactly what you need. Your dealer is usually the best place to start. At the time you purchase your equipment, ask him if they offer support and “actual” training. In most cases they will have some sort of training process. Training is something you will definitely need, and you should not consider this an up-sell designed just to take your time and money. You’ll also need to practice designing, printing and laminating—a lot. Having an enthusiastic approach is great, but know that before you can start raking in the big bucks, you will need to commit yourself and your time to your training.
Then there is the graphic installation process. Getting instruction and training for this highly specialized skill can be very difficult to find, so it’s important to locate a good training program. Sometimes this is offered at your dealership, sometimes by individual wrap companies. Learning to install graphics requires a good amount of direction. Try to learn from a “seasoned” professional installer with a proven track record who can share real-world advice.
Once the general direction is given, you should expect to practice on your own. Don’t attend just one training class or receive your information from just one video. The more you can pick up, the better off you’ll be. All graphic installers have slightly different methods and approaches. Try and absorb as much information as possible and dedicate yourself to learning about the vinyl and how it behaves on your own vehicles before you try it out on your customer's new Range Rover.
Comprehending all of the aspects of vehicle wrapping is key to a successful business. Taking into account the entire process has always been very helpful to me, and I don’t believe I could effectively sell vehicle wraps without fully understanding the scope and potential (both positive and negative) of every job. In other words, I see each project as having a “life” of its own with its own specific set of needs. I don’t look at it as simply another 278 square feet of vinyl that I need to push. I want to always try and sell the customer on the benefits, while trying to the project at a reasonable size and scope—in terms of complexity. Keeping “manageability” in mind can help eliminate errors such as underbidding on jobs, the need to reprint graphics or color issues, and it can also reduce the potential of an unsatisfied customer.
During my initial conversations with a customer, I will listen carefully and consider all possibilities–good and bad. I never think, “I’ll just get the deposit and worry about the details later”. I make it my business to know what is beneficial and sensible for their needs and budget, without getting too attached to my own artistic ideas. I also try and direct my customer using outdoor marketing concepts and realistic ideas rather than try to recreate what they see in their “mind’s eye”. Managing expectations is probably the most important thing you can master in this industry. A customer who thinks that computers are magic and anything can be created out of thin air should have things clarified before you take their money. Unless, of course, price is no object.
Remember, we are working with cars. Cars are painted in spray booths, assembled on assembly lines and made of very rigid materials. They come out perfect. Cars also have a very emotional effect on people and their perfection is part of that feeling. Wraps, on the other hand, are a manufactured product subject to all of the inconsistencies of printing. Not only that, but they are “hand applied” by humans. We are combining two very different products for one unique purpose, and it may be important to make this clear to your customer sooner rather than later.
There is nothing worse than when you deliver a great looking wrap job and the customer's face sinks because they didn’t really know what a wrap was. They thought it was going to look like you painted an ad on their car.
I typically engage the customer in discussing wraps as a highly effective promotional product. I also tell them that should the integrity of the wrap fail, in any way, to contact us directly. This gets me out of a product warranty conversation, which really has nothing to do with them at all.
Standing by your work should always come up in a conversation with a new client. Most problems can be addressed and corrected in the time it would take to argue with a disgruntled customer. It is your job to know what you are doing, and no amount of “industry standard” excuses can make up for a poorly planned design or botched installation.
Maintaining a simple approach while having a keen understanding of the complexities and expectations to what placing graphics on cars involves, requires quick thinking and ingenuity. Seeing the production of a vehicle wrap as having a very certain beginning, middle and an end can be enormously advantageous during your initial contact with your customer.
You will want to use your time wisely, and you’ll need to factor time into your costs. There is nothing worse than just looking at numbers of raw materials and minimizing the time things take to accomplish. Minimizing labor costs, or cutting corners may be okay for other types of printing, but vehicle wraps are not menus, banners or even vinyl signs.
Though vehicle wraps are indeed a fun and frivolous product, understand that outdoor advertising is a serious business and the more you understand it, the better you can sell. It also means it’s more likely that your company will be considered for the big money jobs.
There are several sources for obtaining information about the outdoor advertising industry and most of this information is available online. I urge you to investigate some of the research available regarding outdoor advertising. CPMs, DECs, Reach and Frequency and Impression Analysis are all terms that relate to our particular product and nothing gets someone more in the mood to buy a wrap than someone who can explain to them how many eyeballs are going to see it each day.
Customers trust and are willing to pay for someone who is knowledgeable. You’ll want to be able to say more than “My printer has really high resolution”. Get armed with some data so the next time you have a potential customers attention, you can talk more about the enormous benefit they’ll receive for their one time investment. This will set you apart from all of the other wrappers in your area and will help shape your reputation.
Happy Wrapping!
Todd LaBrie is president and founder of Los Angeles-based Carwraps Incorporated. He is also president of the Realwraps educational DVD series and co-author of Vehicle Graphics 101.