Is Magnet Advertising Right for You?

by | Sep 22, 2011

A reader wrote in recently to ask about magnet advertising. Many smaller, independent car dealerships in his home town are using magnet advertising on promo cars as a way to get clients who are out and about more interested in the product.

While this is not a bad idea, we feel conflicted as to whether or not it’s a good one. At the end of the day, it all comes down to the same issue – quality with the advertising. As with automotive direct mailers, if your advertising doesn’t come off the line with quality, a great value proposition and a great look that really pulls customers in, you might be wasting money on your advertising.

Magnet Advertising – Does it Work?

Let’s take a look at the things that would specifically make magnet advertising work better on a car:

If the magnet advertises BMWs, make sure your car is a luxury vehicle.

Try a strong call to action, such as, “Want this car? Find out more at …” and then prominently display your dealer name for the world to see.

Create an attractive magnet. Blurry pictures, a stretched-out logo, or other do-it-yourself type magnet printing situations will not only be a waste of money, but could cause some negative publicity for your dealership. Obviously the whole point is to get people excited about buying a car from you, so make sure any magnet advertising you use features only high quality magnets.

Make sure the car is clean. Whoever’s driving around the magnet car won’t leave a very good impression on potential customers if the car itself doesn’t look completely perfect. This includes a good coat of wax.

Many dealers stencil their dealership names onto the cars they sell, so it makes little sense to reinvent the wheel by sticking a magnet on your car that advertises another vehicle. Most likely the name is stenciled somewhere near the trunk, so clients are going to want more incentive to buy the car other than seeing the dealership name on the magnet.

Making Business

If you’re considering magnet advertising, you’ll need to keep the above tips in mind. Most dealerships find stenciling is enough and magnet advertising isn’t a good choice for their businesses, but it is something to consider.