Vehicle Graphics
Your vehicle is prime real estate for advertising. When you think about how many people are on the road, they become potential clients. With a wrap there are no recurring monthly fees or management, just hard return on an initial investment. Simple as that. Using Katalyst’s expertise, your vehicle wrap—no matter how big—is smooth-edged and lasting. Our proprietary print and install methods mean you don’t have to live with deficient wire-frame standards. Instead, we photograph your car, apply make and model dimensions and print a wrap that goes on flawlessly. And stays put.
Lets elaborate on this idea a little bit.
What is a wrap?
A vehicle wrap is basically a sticker. We all played with them when we were kids, and most of us probably loved stickering notebooks, bikes, skateboards, and the like. The material we use to wrap is a very technologically advanced sticker. The material is known as vinyl—it’s a PVC-based product that has added elements to allow it to conform to the contour curves of a vehicle. For wrapping we use a Cast vinyl which is thinner compared to standard, thicker, vinyl which is typically a Calendared vinyl. This cast vinyl is sticky on the back—it is coated with a series of adhesives that allow the wrap to stick to the car, be repositioned if necessary, and will come off easily when and if the time comes. This vinyl is loaded into a printer (there are many varieties of printers used for this) and the pre-designed wrap is printed onto the vinyl. From the printer it goes to the laminator where a protective coating is placed on top. This protects the wrap from everyday wear and tear. Most wraps will last 3-5 years; if the wrap is cared for and garaged regularly it can last much longer. The wrap is installed by a trained and skilled wrap technician using a heat source, such as a heat gun or propane torch. Heat makes the vinyl soft so it will "wrap" around the corners etc. of the vehicle. The wrap is then trimmed and is ready for the road.
What about my windows?
Windows—except the windshield and the front side windows—can be covered! We use a material known as perforated window film. It is similar to the wrap material but it has holes punched in it on a pattern that allows you to see out of the windows, but from the outside your graphic shows!! Amazing! We print and laminate this material the same as the wrap vinyls and allows for a bigger, uninterrupted message on the outside of the vehicle. This is especially useful on buses where there are lots of windows that can now be used as ad space. And more good news—we can use this same material for other commercial applications to spice up a storefront or a building. Really cool stuff.
What is the process for a wrap?
If possible we here at Katalyst like to take photos of the exact vehicle to be wrapped and make our templates from those. When that is not possible, say you are out of state, we use pre-fabricated photo templates of your specific vehicle. We then do a design consultation and begin to gather elements for your wrap, such as logo, photos, and any other creative elements that we may want to use. On occasion we will do our own photo shoots to ensure high quality output of your wrap. Design services are available for logo work etc., if you do not have that already. We love logos. After we gather everything we need we will disappear into the studio for a day or so designing to your vision. Proofs are then submitted for your approval. It may take a round or two to get exactly where we need to be. Then we print, laminate, install and get you back on the road to success.
How long will all of this take?
Typically we can turn a wrap in a week, depending on the amount of design that needs to be done and how prepared the client is prior to production. If you would like to know how to be more prepared to get your wrap out fast, give us a call and we will send over a checklist for you. We will typically need your vehicle for two days, depending on the wrap. We are available to work with you on schedule and we are known to work weekends to ensure you don't miss any business days.
Can I work with Katalyst if I am out of state?
Absolutely. We can handle all of the consultation, design and production here in-house. Then we carefully package and ship to a certified installer in your area where the installation will be done. This process still carries our stamp of approval and we work with only certified install technicians to guarantee the success of your installation.
Why should I wrap my vehicle?
Wrap statistics are amazing and plentiful. When compared to other forms of advertising wraps are unbelievably cost-effective. You may spend between 2k and 5k one time for your car wrap, less if you are doing spot graphics or simple decaling. It will be at work for you for as long as you choose to leave it on. A wrap functions similar to a billboard and reaches about as many people everyday. If you are on the road often you will reach between 10,000 and 70,000 people a day! A day! That is 10 million to 25 million impressions a year. The best thing is there are no renewal fees, no management fees, nothing except solid return on a one-time investment. Also you are not sharing space on the same page with your direct competition like in most phonebooks or online directories. 90% of travelers / commuters notice vehicle graphics on the road and 75% of them will make a judgment to use your company on the spot. Katalyst is aware of all of this and we put thought based around these numbers into every wrap we design, print and install. Wrap your ride!