I've owned a sign business for over 14 years and I think one of the most overlooked forms of advertising is the basic car magnetic.

In an age of booming online and home based businesses, along with a myriad of small business owners out there, magnetics are far and away the signs that will give you the most bang for the buck. As a specialist in marketing and visual communication, I always look for ways to advertise our sign business and look for ways to help our clients advertise theirs. I have tried Yellow Page ads (which can be QUITE expensive), network marketing, outdoor signs, bulletin boards, the internet and a myriad of other ways to advertise.

Still I come back to the simple car magnetic-

WHY?

There are many reasons. One, the car magnetics are very inexpensive. In a day and age when saving money is so important, magnetics are one of the most cost effective signs you can invest in. A typical set of magnetics will run you about $75-150 a pair ( depending on the complexity of the design, how many colors are involved and size of the magnetics)

Secondly, magnetics can be removed, which is great for customers that don't want to be in business "all the time", or plan on selling their vehicle, which in that case you can just remove your magnetics and voila- no residue or problems to solve.

Thirdly, it's imperative to have some form of advertising for your business, especially if you are a small or home based business. By and far, magnets will bring in far more customers than you realize. As a general rule of thumb, I tell my clients that they can expect to get their investment on magnetics back fairly quickly, sometimes immediately ( within days) or within a month of advertising ( results may vary depending on what type of business you are advertising)

Lastly, one of the best things about car magnetics is that you CAN advertise on your car without having to get special permits or permission. This is one of the most overlooked pluses of this form of advertising.

Every trip you take the store, driving on the freeway, and picking up your kid from school are chances for you to advertise to the world that you have a business. You'd be suprised at how many times clients of mine have been stopped as they were gassing up to give out a business card because of the attention their car magnetic recieved!

One of my favorite illustrations of why it's important to advertise is this scenario which can and has happened:

Suppose you are a realtor and your neighbor whom you are acquainted with decides to sell their house. You come home one day to see someone else has listed their home for sale. You wonder why they did'nt ask you? Well maybe you had never told your neighbor what kind of work you do so how would they know? If they had seen a magnetic on your car you would have been far more likely to have got that listing- but instead your neighbor may have gone to the Yellow Pages not even realizing they had a realtor living right next door! A missed opportunity!

The one concern my clients have had is some of them worry about their magnetic falling off. I have made hundreds of sets of magnetics and have only heard of a small handful of customers having this problem. Usually they've only fallen off because it was on a work truck that brushed up against something like a tree, or they did not put the magnet back on properly after cleaning it, or put it over a curve or emblem on the vehicle ( you don't want to put magnetics over a curve or emblem because that can create a wind pocket that can flip the magnetic off at high speeds)

I've also heard of one customer having her magnetic stolen, which was unusual, but it turns out that some kids on her block had decided to be funny and remove them.

If you have a business and you need a low cost advertising tool consider a pair of magnetics for your car. A good sign company can help you decide what size is best for your car and what colors would compliment your car and image. You don't have to look "cheap" while driving, a good sign designer can make your magnetic look like part of your car and present a very professional and clean image.

(For more information about sign design you can request more information from Dorsi Diaz. She specializes in helping small businesses market themselves in creative and cost effective ways)