By Tom Wittenberg
I did a piece on the vehicle graphics market a while back as this was an up-and-coming opportunity for expansion during the pandemic. This was driven by the fact that with people working more from their homes and spending less on dinners and other fun, there was more money to fix up homes and businesses.
This continues today, and as I look around at the various vehicles that contractors, companies, and individuals are driving, there just seems to be more that are wrapped with advertising to get their names out. But beyond just getting a name out, there are a lot of other factors that drive this application. So, let’s look at the data. In general:
- “Mobile advertising is the most effective and efficient form of outdoor advertising, reaching more consumers at a lower Cost Per Thousand Impressions (CPM) than any other form of available outdoor advertising.
- 98 percent of Americans indicated they notice media targeting vehicle drivers and passengers.
- 29 percent said outdoor advertising caused them to visit a retail store within a week of seeing the advertisement.
- The average American has traveled 302 miles in the past seven days.
- 96 percent of Americans traveled in a vehicle as either a driver or passenger in the past week.
- The average vehicle driven 15,000 miles per year will pass in front of nine million other vehicles.
- 30 percent of mobile outdoor viewers base their buying decisions on advertisements they see.
- One vehicle wrap can generate between 30,000 to 80,000 impressions daily.
- Fleet vehicle advertising boosts name recognition 15 times greater than other advertising media.
- Mobile advertising reaches consumers not exposed to newspaper, radio, and television.
- A Federal Highway Administration study forecasts a sharp increase in the amount of time spent in personal vehicles and the number of trips per household.”1
“One great thing vehicle wraps have going for them is their sheer, in-your-face staying power. You can’t change the channel and stop seeing the car wrap advertisement in the lane next to you as you drive down the road or sit in the traffic jam; you have to make a concerted effort NOT to look to avoid seeing the advertisement. This commercial is on the air 24/7. Even if it’s not moving down the road, a car wrap is still doing its job when the vehicle is parked.”2
“This means they are a great way for the little guy to affordably compete with vendors ten times the size of a small, mom and pop operation. Car wraps essentially level the advertising playing field for the small business owner.”3
For those of you interested in expanding and growing with vehicle graphics or just getting started, HP has solutions that can help. The HP Latex 700/800 Printers are a breakthrough in the overall lower volume market and are geared, not only for the vehicle wrap market, but for all signage, décor, and sticker applications as well and set themselves apart in the market with:
- One- and three-liter ink containers for longer production runs.
- Front loading for ease of use and ease of access.
- A redesign of HP Latex Inks with a 30 percent lower curing temperature to prevent media deformation, containing more pigment/drop for richer color with less ink, and providing an overcoat option for short-term protection.
- A redesign of the printheads with 3,000 nozzles and a new ten picoliter drop size.
- A redesign of the curing zone to give greater color consistency.
- Parts made of recycled ocean plastics to enhance your sustainability message.
When in comes to vehicle wraps, in particular, the HP Latex 700/800 Printer series has not only the 3M MCS and Avery ICS durability warranties, but the ORALIFE Component System (OCS) Warranty from ORAFOL, for up to six years, for marking and de-marking. In addition, there are a number of ways that the HP Latex Inks and technology set these printers apart:
- HP printers are designed for HP Latex Inks to come out dry without the post-printing release of any volatile organic compounds or solvents—no need to worry about off-gassing after printing, which is needed using solvent or eco-solvent technologies. This is an advantage allowing you to laminate immediately and reduce overall processing and turnaround time. Did anyone say increased productivity, too, which will lower your costs? Remember, productivity is more than how fast the prints come off the printer, it’s about how much goes out the door as revenue per employee. Any delays in processing automatically pull your productivity down.
- Given that latex is a co-polymer that can stretch, much like latex gloves, it is perfectly suited for vehicle wraps for heating and stretching around compound curves and corners. Even with heat, the inks will not lose density from stretching.
- Unattended printing is an added benefit. Want to increase your productivity? This is a great option. HP Printers are designed to run unattended. This allows your operators to man multiple printers at the same time to increase your output and lower your costs.
- PrintOS is a great piece of software that comes with each HP wide or narrow format printer. Not only does PrintOS include the Online Media Locator but Applications Center where there are a number of templates to improve your response time. Even better is the HP PrintOS Mobile App that can enhance your unattended printing by providing regular updates on the printers when someone is remote, and beyond these three applications, there are a number of modules to help you manage your production to understand your costs for improved profitability.
So, whether you are looking to vehicle wraps as your focus of growth or have decided to focus on any of the other traditional applications, the HP Latex 700/800 Printer series is the right product to get you started.
For more information on HP products, speak with one of our sales representatives or HP-authorized resellers. Visit us at largeformat.hp.com where you can get general information on the HP Latex 700/800 Series and/or join us at an HP Latex 700/800 Virtual Academy. It’s a great 60-minute investment of your time
About Tom Wittenberg
Tom Wittenberg is the HP large format industry relations and events manager for North America. He has been in the printing industry for nearly 36 years. As a turnaround professional, he led successful sales, operational, and financial overhauls of three global printing companies and an independent database management and development company prior to joining the HP marketing team. Contact Wittenberg at tom.wittenberg@hp.com.
Sep2021, Digital Output
1, 2, & 3 (Car Wraps Denver Blog, “Car Advertising Statistics – What to Know.” Big Picture Graphics, bigpicturegraphics.com/car-advertising-statistics)
