Van Sign Writing Ideas: Using Colours and Graphics to Draw Attention and Improve Brand Awareness

If you’ve never designed a livery or van wrap for your business or are stuck thinking of van sign writing ideas that will represent your brand, the best advice is to have a chat with the signage specialists at WrapUK!

We speak with business and fleet managers from companies of every size, many of whom recognise the value of mobile advertising but find it difficult to know how to get started or visualise how a logo or slogan will translate when printed on the sides of commercial vehicles.

This guide shares some inspiration and suggestions about some of the principles of van sign writing to bear in mind and gives you a glimpse into the professional design process our creative teams run through when we’re consulting with a client who wants to guarantee their decals will stand out.

Aspects of Designing Van Sign Writing to Think About

Creating a noticeable, memorable sign for your van, truck, or fleet is a great way to capture interest and improve familiarity – and the trick is always to spend ample time in the planning phase, ensuring your finished design delivers the outcomes you want.

Here’s a quick look at some of the many questions we’ll ask, or suggest you consider before we start creating mock-up designs:

• Colours: Do you have specific colours you already use in your logo, uniforms, website and stationery that you’d like to incorporate?
• Placement: Have you decided where on your vans your logo or graphics need to go?
• Business Details: What information do you want to share? Will this include a company name, web address, and contact details, for example?
• Sizing: Are you looking for a bold graphic that covers a panel of each van, or would you prefer smaller decals you can add to every vehicle in a fleet?

You might already have a clear idea about how your signage will look or have on-brand images you’d like to use, but otherwise, it’s a great idea to have a look at some of our previous work on the WrapUK pages.

Defining the Message Your Van Graphics Need to Portray

Talking about branding with business clients helps us understand the concept – or what they want their graphics or wraps to convey. This matters because, if you’re hoping to appeal to contractors, for instance, the style and tone of your decals might be different from those that would draw attention from families.

It’s well worth sitting down and drawing up even a quick list of the key elements of your signage project, such as:

• The sector or niche your business operates in, and which customer demographics you’d like to receive enquiries from.
• Where your vans will be seen – will they be parked outside of a customer’s house, on major motorways or making deliveries on industrial estates?
• What your branding currently stands for, and whether this remains up to date, or is being revised with new van signage created as part of a brand refresh.

There are thousands of ways to add colour and interest to even a small, subtle decal or logo, from using lightning bolts for electricians to featuring paw prints for dog groomers – but you need to draw up a few basic guidelines about how you want your business to be perceived before we move on.

Picking the Size, Emphasis and Location of Your Van Sign Writing

For most businesses, the obvious places to use sign writing are on the side of each van or truck, which is easily visible to motorists and passersby when parked or sitting in a traffic jam, or on the rear doors or bonnet, where your logo and graphics will be shown to vehicles in front and behind yours.

If you’re unsure where your decals need to be positioned, and how large each panel will be, you’ll find more information about the different options, from full and partial wraps to decals, logos and signage via the WrapUK resources library.

Should there be several models in your fleet, or you drive a company car and a van, and want your logo displayed on each vehicle, we can provide personalised advice on the right ways to adapt your signage to each while maintaining consistency.

Choosing Colours and Imagery for Van Graphics and Sign Writing

Colour plays a big role in ensuring van decals motivate potential customers to absorb the information or recall your brand when they’re looking for the products or services you provide. That said, any graphic you use should be high resolution, without blurry edges or pixelated images that lack the polish of a professional wrap.

Shades that stand out against the bodywork of your van, or that create a contrast between backgrounds and text, are ideal, as this ensures the lettering can be read even at a distance and won’t be obscured by other elements of the signage.

As a general rule, simpler, bolder and brighter graphics work well, rather than photo-grade imagery, which can become distorted or make it hard to make out the detail of your fonts. 

You can also pick opposing hues, such as red and green or yellow and purple, to ensure there is no potential of having similar shades that blend into each other.

Tips on Extracting Maximum Impactfulness From Van Sign Writing

Finally, think visibility above all else: avoid complex swirling prints or italic fonts that can’t be absorbed in a few seconds, and opt for crisp signage that is bold enough to see from a distance and impossible to miss up close.

Mobile billboards work best when they are straightforward and encapsulate what your business is all about, whether that’s credible and reliable, fun and playful, or professional and experienced – or a blend of all of these attributes!

For more information about incorporating colour and graphics into your signage, or for help at any stage of your van wrapping project, please get in touch with WrapUK or check out our project galleries to get an idea of what would work for your business.