PR & MARKETING
Company cars – driving the message home. Danielle Simpson goes for a spin in a branded company car.
B
randed cars are a double edged sword in terms of brand advertising. Get it right and you take a positive message to
thousands of local customers but get it wrong and you risk tarnishing your brand and upsetting your target market. When you brand a car, you place your
reputation directly in the hands of the driver. So before your mobile billboard leaves the office it’s vital that staff understand the impact their actions can have on the brand and the business. It’s in their interests not to speed or obstruct driveways, collate parking tickets or ignore pedestrians and other road users. The local market won’t take kindly to being cut up – or knocked down – and are unlikely to give their business to an agency whose staff are renowned for careless driving. Also, staff who are involved in traffic accidents or drink-driving incidents can damage a brand’s reputation irreparably.
A Shining ExAmplE It’s vital for company policy to dictate that branded cars are regularly washed, free of smoke fumes and food smells, internally clean and free of dents and damage. When I was an agent in London a tenant refused to enter a colleague’s car because the tyre treads were illegally worn – and rightly so. Whether maintenance checks are the responsibility of your staff or a fleet manager, they must be carried out regularly. Safety is paramount and repairs must be dealt with quickly. It’s surprising how many agents are happy to overlook a dented bumper but wouldn’t dream of ignoring a damaged office fascia. Further still, if staff are negligent and cause accidents they create highly damaging PR both at the collision site and via any news stories created as a result.
26 SEPTEMBER 2010 PROPERTYdrum
The Foxtons Mini has become legendary in terms of design and commitment to branding, with a new design every year. The 2010 version was designed by Nick Veasey, a photographer. Foxtons say that at their most basic, these vehicles offer a stress-free chauffeur service for potential buyers and tenants, “Acting as eye-catching billboards while they zip through the streets, they have become integral both to the brand’s identity and today’s cityscape. Reaffirming Foxtons’ local knowledge, these quirky characters also communicate a different, dynamic and forward-thinking approach, while raising a few smiles along the way.”
If you have an office forecourt or private
parking, make sure that staff leave prime spaces for clients, putting customers first not only makes them feel valued; creating ease of access will increase the likelihood they will come in and do business. Chauffeured viewings in branded cars
are a great idea too, as long as staff know the area well. There is no point investing thousands in marketing that showcases your ‘expert local knowledge’ if staff drive past the ‘good school’, fail to find the property and make clients irate.
monEy mAttErS When car branding enters the marketing mix, think about the style of campaign, size of any graphics, colour of your logos and shelf life of your design(s). The colour and model of your cars must communicate the right message in terms of the brand values (think flashy vs. functional) as well as being able to showcase your logo and key marketing messages. Black cars may be slick but if your logo is largely black are you willing to change it’s graphic representation and colour to ‘fit’ the vehicle?
Good designers will incorporate window spaces and wheel arches into the design of branded vehicles and windows are a blank canvas for your web address or key messages that can be changed more easily than those on the bodywork. Market leaders factor car redesign into the annual marketing budget as any branded car campaign will need refreshing just as print advertising initiatives do. The size and geographical location of your business will determine the size of your investment here. Once you have a fleet of shiny branded
cars, maximise their exposure by taking the vehicles to recruitment days, charity events and school fêtes whenever possible – ‘guess how many balloons are inside the car to win’. The positive PR spin is valuable and charity news is welcomed by local and property publications and the trade press, as well as the local market.
Contact Danielle Simpson, Creative Director, at
thebrandeffect.co.uk
Any marketing tips to share? Add them at:
www.propertydrum.com/articles/prcars
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