A New Fleet Paint Job Could Improve Your Brand and Make Your Company More Profitable

The old adage says that you can’t make money without spending money, but figuring out which investments will actually produce a timely return is extremely difficult. Even seemingly vital repairs, for instance, can seem like a waste a few weeks later if your company decides to scrap an older vehicle for a late-model upgrade. That’s why fleet managers take such care in finding and choosing investments that are likely to boost revenues.

One potential investment for fleet managers that might fly under the radar is new paint jobs for fleet vehicles. While this innocuous bit of maintenance may seem nearly irrelevant to your company’s core business, the power of an appealing logo should not be overlooked. Fleet managers can learn a lot about the importance of branding, and other revenue-boosting strategies, by reviewing these fleet paint job tips.

A clean look can impress new customers and strengthen client relationships
Carol Birkland, Editor-in-Chief of Fleet Equipment, is clear about the benefits of a new paint job in a recent editorial. She noted that while attractive, newly-minted vehicles say all the right things about a business, dilapidated and damaged exteriors can turn your fleet into a mobile source of bad publicity. Because exterior upgrades are most valuable when they still look pristine, fleet managers should prioritize paint products that boast high durability and resistance to UV rays and toxic substances. There’s no telling what liquids and solids will come into contact with a fleet vehicle on the road. Doing the research and paying a bit extra for a more durable brand of paint beats out the cost of repainting an entire vehicle by a large margin.

Fleets trend toward paint jobs that are eye-catching and readable
If you’re having trouble deciding which paint hues offer the best return on your investment, consider data from DuPont’s annual automobile color survey. The company reported that white, black and silver ranked as the most popular car colors in America, said Automotive Fleet. Consumers prefer cars in these colors because they typically retain their value over the years better than cars painted more adventurous colors like yellow or green. This trend is important information for fleet managers to consider. After all, many of the same consumers in the market for a white, silver and black vehicles are the same customers examining retired fleet vehicles. By choosing a paint-job along the lines of consumer resale preferences, fleet managers can further maximize the return on their paint job investment.

Fresh visuals help contribute to a company’s brand
It’s hard to overstate the importance of branding in today’s society, pointed out Fast Company. From Apple to McDonalds, most consumers purchasing decisions are driven by their relationships with logos, signature colors and fonts. Painting trucks with new images and lettering is a great way to boost awareness of a company’s services and location. The most effective types of branding can communicate a company’s mission statement, experience level and expertise in a glance. If your company makes use of a memorable logo or slogan, it makes perfect sense to feature these images on the sides of fleet vehicles.

Fleet managers will have to make some creative compromises if their company’s logo is not the right fit for the side of a vehicle. In cases like these, consider using the brand’s signature color as accents for a more neutral shade, like silver or white.