The food truck industry is competitive and constantly growing. You need to stand out from the crowds and ensure that you can catch the attention of potential customers. For food trucks, the vehicle itself is one of the best advertising tools you have. With a modern, bright design and a style that shows off your company’s values, your truck has a chance at becoming a local lunch hotspot.
One of the best ways to give your truck a bold and noticeable look is with vinyl wrapping. Vinyl wraps allow you to create intricate and detailed designs, customized to fit your branding. With a short application process, you can turn a plain and boring truck into a trendy stand that’s hard to miss.
WHAT ARE VINYL FOOD TRUCK WRAPS?
For food truck operators, the design on the outside of the vehicle is essential to running a successful business. Your truck needs to detail the name of your business, what you sell, contact information and any other important details. The more you include, the better your chances of making sales will be. Get your business information across and brand your company. Your truck needs a logo and colors that stand out, making it noticeable and recognizable from a mile away.
Vinyl vehicle wraps are the perfect way to create a bold full-truck design. They consist of large printed panels of vinyl, which you can fully customize. You can include all the colors, graphics, text and designs you want. Once you have a design ready, an imaging company can print it onto the large vinyl sheets. Then, you can apply the printed panels to the outside of your vehicle.
Unlike a new paint job, vinyl wraps can achieve clarity and detail, even with lots of text, large images and background patterns. To use paint, it would take multiple layers of color, a painstaking amount of time to lay out the details and drying time in-between applications. And with all that effort and patience, you still would be limited in your design options. You’ll have none of those hassles with vinyl wrapping and can achieve almost any design scheme.
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TYPES OF VEHICLE WRAPS
Since you can do so many different things with vinyl wrapping, there are many different types. Vehicle vinyl is fairly standard across the board. The biggest differences are size and durability. Some imaging companies offer multiple levels of durability, and you can choose one depending on how long you want the same food truck wrap. This can be helpful, whether you plan on rebranding within the next few years or know you’re sticking with a design for the long haul.
You can also choose from different sizes of wrapping. Each size is dictated by the amount of surface area on the vehicle the wrap will cover. There are two basic varieties:
1. FULL WRAP
Food trucks typically have a full wrap on them, as it provides coverage for the entire surface area of the vehicle. It helps protect the truck’s paint, but it’s also a better choice from an advertising perspective. With a full wrap, you’ll have the advantages of:
- More room for design elements: If you cover the most surface area possible, you leave yourself with the most room to work with the design. While more doesn’t always mean better, creating a theme is easier when you have the full truck to work with.
- Visibility from all sides: You can easily improve the visibility of your truck with a full wrap. With a well-planned design, customers will recognize your brand from any side of the vehicle, increasing your chances of success. It also helps pique the interest of people passing by in cars or on sidewalks.
- Brand cohesiveness: Whether you run one food truck, a full fleet or are expanding from a stationary restaurant, you need to ensure your branding is cohesive. The exterior of your truck should have a design that matches any menus, business cards or other materials you hand out. A full wrap will allow you to better express your brand, even if a large part of the design is just color.
2. PARTIAL WRAP
Rather than cover the entire vehicle, some food truck operators choose to apply a partial wrap. Partial wraps cover about 1/4 to 3/4 of the exterior surface area. If you don’t want to commit to a full wrap, this is a great alternative. With strategic placement, they can be just as attractive as a full design. Some of the advantages of a partial wrap include:
- Easier on your budget: Since partial wraps use less vinyl and don’t require as much printing as full wraps, they typically have a lower cost. For startup businesses or those with smaller budgets, saving money is a must. Using a partial wrap is a great way to cut costs without sacrificing the branded design of your truck.
- Great option for temporary use: There’s always room for growth and improvement in the food service industry. Whether you intend to expand, purchase a larger or newer truck or revamp your branding, a partial wrap is perfect for temporary situations. Regardless of how soon you intend to make changes, you still need to advertise your services in the meantime.
- Incorporates the paint color: If the paint color of your vehicle is neutral or matches your branding, you can incorporate it into your design with partial wrapping. You can create a design that matches, contrasts or fades into the paint with a gradient.
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WHAT TO INCLUDE IN A FOOD TRUCK WRAP DESIGN
Whether you opt for full or partial coverage, the most crucial part of the vinyl wrap is the design. You need to both appeal to your target audience and let them know what you’re selling. At a glance, potential customers will judge your truck by the exterior and decide if they want to check out your menu.
While the possibilities are nearly endless, food truck wraps should include a few key elements:
- Color: If you want to stand out from other cars and trucks, you should use bright colors throughout your design. You can make important details, such as your logo or name, more striking by using contrasting colors from the background.
- Style: Before you create a look for your truck, you need to decide on a style. It can be casual, formal, playful or whatever fits your business. If you’re serving a certain type of regional food, you can either portray it as authentic or modern. For example, a French-inspired bakery food truck might lean more towards a classy, authentic look, while one serving fresh seafood might opt for a brighter, more casual appearance. Settling on the attitude you’re trying to convey before designing will help you make decisions and keep it cohesive.
- Logo: Include your logo, and make sure it’s large and bold enough to see from a distance. Placing it on either side of the truck and the back will provide the best visibility possible. You want customers and onlookers to remember your logo and business name more than anything else.
- Contact: Including your phone number, email, website or any social media pages on your truck is a must. Customers should have a way to contact you, find your business and follow you on social apps. Your business will also seem more trustworthy and well established if you have a strong online presence.
- Patterns: Using patterns can create a unique appearance. A pattern can consist of anything from bold lines to stylized images. Whatever you choose, it should match the theme of your menu. For example, if a food truck is selling seasonal summer items, it makes sense to include patterns like brightly colored stripes or alternating images of suns, flip-flops and other hot-weather items around the sides.
- Point of interest: While it isn’t an essential part of your design, having a point of interest can be a benefit to your business. It could be a creative sign, truck mascot or image that encourages customers to take photos. If you have a display worth sharing on social media or with friends, you’ll get an organic advertising boost and create a memorable experience.
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BENEFITS OF FOOD TRUCK VEHICLE WRAPS
Well-planned food truck wraps do more than look great. If your exterior design can portray what your business is, what it sells and the level of quality at a glance, it will help your food truck succeed. Some of the many benefits of vinyl wrapping in the food truck industry include:
1. START WITH A GREAT FIRST IMPRESSION
When it comes to running any kind of food business, first impressions matter. From the style to the menu, you have a limited window of time to catch your customer’s attention before they move on to a different option. For food trucks, this window of time is short, especially in busy cities where the competition is high.
Think of your exterior design as a way of introducing your business. If you were to pitch your food truck to a potential customer, you’d typically mention the company name, what you serve and why they should try your menu. However, like all restaurants, you can’t sell your concept personally to every interested visitor. Vinyl wrapping takes care of the first impression for you, conveying everything a customer needs to know in seconds.
With the right details included, people walking or driving by should be able to get the gist of what your food truck is selling. Including a quick word or two about the sourcing or preparation methods can say even more. For example, adding details like “caught fresh” or “locally sourced” will help you market to the health and environmentally conscious.
Your design should have enough for an accurate portrayal without being crowded. Using vinyl wrap allows you to put together a design plan for exactly what you want and print it, so you can get the perfect layout on all sides of your truck.
2. EXPAND YOUR AUDIENCE
Food trucks are always on the move, making their external designs one of their best forms of advertising. Even when you aren’t serving, your truck can catch the attention of potential customers. Vehicle wraps are one of the most efficient forms of advertising, reaching a higher number of consumers at a lower cost than every other form. If the design is memorable enough, it can convince passersby to try your food.
Since your business is completely mobile, you’ll have the advantage of exposure to all demographics. Countless people will pass your truck on busy streets and sidewalks, even while you’re driving. Full vehicle wraps with a well-placed logo or name can spread your brand faster than any other form of food truck advertising. Taking advantage of the open space on your truck is an excellent marketing move.
If your design is particularly artistic, you may even be able to turn your truck into a photo op. With a fun pattern, slogan and social media hashtag, you can turn part of your vehicle into a backdrop. People can pose with their food or take a snap while they’re waiting to be served. If you include it in your design, you’ll have the added exposure of organic social media posts. You can take it further by connecting with those posts and running contests for the best picture — maybe even offering the winner a discount or free item.
3. PROTECT YOUR VEHICLE’S FINISH
One of the largest expenses in the food truck industry is the vehicle itself, next to keeping a sufficient stock of ingredients. From performing maintenance checks to making sure your appliances are all in working condition, you need to put a lot of time and effort into keeping your truck in tip-top shape. But you also have to consider the exterior of the vehicle.
Over time, your truck can become susceptible to rust, bubbling paint, stains, scrapes, scratches and other forms of surface damage. Some of these superficial eyesores can evolve into larger structural issues, especially rust. If water gets under the paint of your vehicle, it can begin to form rust that eats away at the metal underneath. Also, your customers will judge your food truck by its exterior. You don’t want blemishes to deter your business — but they just might.
A vinyl wrap does more than brand your truck. It provides a layer of protection over the finish, defending your paint from staining, minor scratches and scrapes, rust and other forms of surface damage. The vinyl can last for years, depending on the climate in your area and whether or not you properly maintain it. Also, the adhesive doesn’t harm your vehicle’s paint or finish, and you can strip the wrap off and replace it at any time.
Protecting the finish on your truck means:
- It’ll have a higher resale value if you decide to replace it.
- You won’t have to pay for a repaint in the near future.
- It’s less susceptible to surface damage and will look more appealing to customers.
4. REVAMP YOUR BRANDING EASILY
When it comes time to make changes to your truck’s design, faster and simpler processes mean you spend less time off the streets. From conducting a full rebrand to freshening up your style, staying up to date is essential. If you have to have an entire food truck repainted, it can be expensive, time-consuming and you may not get the exact results you want. Spending time waiting for a detailing job means losing time and money.
Vinyl wrap is easy to remove and replace. With the help of a professional, you can design, print and apply your new look fast — no need to wait for drying paint or intricate detail work. Even if you have a detailer change your truck’s appearance multiple times, the vinyl adhesive won’t damage the finish. If you want to sell the truck and upgrade, all you have to do is remove the vinyl rather than have your truck repainted.
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MAKE YOUR FOOD TRUCK STAND OUT WITH SPEEDPRO WESTWOOD
Running a food truck can be a challenging job. But with a well-designed vehicle, you can encourage success. We will help you create and apply food truck wrap graphics that’ll make you stand out.
SpeedPro Westwood will assist you every step of the way. We’ll help you create your food truck design, ensure the project fits your advertising budget and print it on to vinyl sheets for application. You’ll have access to industry-leading products and top-quality printing, so your design will last as long as you want it to.
Contact us to get started with a consultation and quote for the best food truck wrapping near you.