Company decals on your vehicle… Not a bad marketing move. You drive that thing everywhere. But how’s your driving? The other day, I was in town running some errands and a not-s0-polite gentleman with company decals (who’s name I will not disclose) pulled out right in front of me. It was a bit icy and the roads weren’t great, so this was not only annoying, but a bit dangerous, too. I made sure to take a second look at his decal and made a mental note to never do business with that company.
This got me thinking… Is it really worth putting a company decal on your vehicle? It probably depends on the way you think about your driving. If you are a courteous driver and take extra care to follow traffic laws, you’re probably just fine. But if you find yourself thinking that everyone should cater to your speed, yield to you, or make sure you get where you’re going first and foremost, you may want to reconsider. Now, keep in mind everyone makes mistakes, but those should be few and far between, ensuring that you don’t tick too many people off with your company name plastered all over the side of your vehicle.
Later that same day on my way back to the office, I was following a Jimmy John’s Driver for a bit. I noticed that he was taking extra care to use proper signals and follow traffic laws that many people choose to ignore. I thought to myself, “Now, that’s something! You put your company logo on your vehicle but drive like a maniac and this kid, who has no ownership in the company, is being extra careful and courteous.” But it also got me thinking… What if the driver that cut me off earlier wasn’t the company owner… Putting a decal on a company vehicle, or having a company with delivery drivers could be even more nerve-wracking. Not only do you have to worry about your own driving, but the driving of your employees as well. If that were me, man I would really take great care to make sure how important it is to be a courteous driver in the company vehicle.
Now, I am by no means telling anyone out there NOT to get their company decal on their vehicle. I’m just pointing out what should be obvious. Once you put that bad boy on there, take extra care to treat every driver on the road exactly the way you would treat them if they were one of your customers. (And hopefully that’s with respect, and great service. If it’s not, you have a whole other set of issues that we’re not even going to touch on in this blog.) Just like any marketing move, you should think it over carefully, weight the pros and cons, and talk to your marketing company, which is hopefully Transformation Marketing. (And if it’s not. Call us. We’d love to explain why we’re a great choice!)