[Jim_77]

(apologies to those who've read this once already)


Has anyone ever used any sort of mobile advert?

I've got the chance to get my hands on an old 6ft trailer. I was thinking maybe I could modify it by stripping the body off and turning it into a kind of sandwich board on wheels.

I've got friends who work in the sign trade, so getting something printed and fixed on it wouldn't be a problem. I'm just trying to think of where I could actually put it!

I'm not sure about the legal situation, i.e. if you need a council permit to leave it parked in certain places or if there are any bye laws against doing this sort of thing, I'll try to find out.

If it's left hitched to the van it could go in a lot of places but would obviously mean that I'm not working whilst it's parked up, so would be a weekend thing.

If I was going to leave it unattended I'd need to fit a wheel clamp and some sort of guard over the tow bar. Otherwise it might be a very mobile advert!

It might be possible to leave it outside Tesco all Saturday, for example.

This is just a silly idea that popped into my head because at the moment the trailer is still serviceable but is destined for the tip!

Anyone ever done this?

[carlton care]

Seen many Jim from tiny trailers to huge containers parked in fields at the side of motorways............it's how I found an excellent office a couple of years ago.

Often though about parking my small van at a supermarket on weekends, changing weekly.

[hooch]

if your in my area jim scrap the idea.

[Jim_77]

and which area's that?

[Mike Halliday]

work out how much time it will involve and how much cash you will have to spend to make this idea work, then ask yourself......

'if I commit the same amount of time & cash to the marketing i already do ( and know works), will it reap greater rewards'

I have all sorts of marketing ideas rattling around my brain , but when i ask myself the above question they never leave the drawing board.

[Chris Galloway]

tbh its a better idea than advertising on yell.com for an example.

Ive nothing out of £500 doing that, and to get a beat up trailer with some decent signage would be a good idea imo!

as you say drive round on Saturday mornings and park up by garden centres or tesco's for example

Let me know how you get on if you ever do it 

[Jim_77]

I know what you're saying Mike, that's why I'd be keen to hear if anyone has ever done this because I don't know if it's worth it. I just like the idea, and when I like an idea I tend to do it anyway... even if it is only to prove to myself that the idea was bloody awful in the first place!

I reckon it'll cost me two new tyres, some paint etc to tidy it up and a crate or two of beer for my mate to do a bit of vinyl for either side.  Then I'd need the security locks if I was going to unhitch it and leave it unattended.

I'd have to strip off the existing body, chop it about a bit and tidy up the chassis/framework.  Building the new body would probably take me a weekend, on and off between other things, so probably two or three weekends on and off whilst getting distracted with other stuff.

After that, the only time and money I'd need to invest in it is towing it a couple of miles here and there and changing the vinyl every now and again.  Plus of course in the long run keeping the bits maintained on the trailer body.

It's a bit of hassle initially but after that it may turn out to be very low-cost advertising for a long time to come!

But it might not work... lol i don't know

[Jim_77]

Legislation-wise, I can only find this:

242

You MUST NOT leave your vehicle or trailer in a dangerous position or where it causes any unnecessary obstruction of the road.

[Laws RTA 1988, sect 22 & CUR reg 103]

250

Cars, goods vehicles not exceeding 1525 kg unladen weight, invalid carriages, motorcycles and pedal cycles may be parked without lights on a road (or lay-by) with a speed limit of 30 mph (48 km/h) or less if they are

    * at least 10 metres (32 feet) away from any junction, close to the kerb and facing in the direction of the traffic flow
    * in a recognised parking place or lay-by

Other vehicles and trailers, and all vehicles with projecting loads, MUST NOT be left on a road at night without lights.

[Laws RVLR reg 24 & CUR reg 82(7)]

Basically, don't park it anywhere you can't legally park a car and don't leave it on the road at night.

[dan roberts]

Hi Jim

That my friend is what i call a good idea,
Firstly, four months ago we needed a plasterer, not urgently, we made a small loft conversion, needed plastering at some point, it was only when I saw a car, outside a supermarket, sainsburys, with signs inside each window, printed, not scribbled, for a plasterer, so we called and hired.
Cant remember my 'secondly' point, but a sign written with quality graphics etc, with marine ply upright facia's and a discreet painted up trailer wont cost alot, my 8' 5' trailer for my other business cost me 160 quid on Ebay, its a bobby dazzler, so that coupled with two sided decals and structural wood (shopping wisely) will get you that mobile advert 6x6 ft outside your leading supermarket for under 500 quid.

Go for it

Dan

[sherco]

A friend of mine owns a field near a busy roundabout and he has a trailer parked by the hedge advertising his farm shop, if it has wheels you don't have to have planning permission so every now and then he moves it 5ft so the planners can not do anything...Thats why you see lorry trailers parked in fields beside motorways advertising.

[Steve Barnett (Carpet Care Plus)]

There is a carpet cleaner near me that has an old metro and an old skoda, both sign written with 3 rooms £ 49.99 + vat all over it. The cars are spotlessly clean and are parked in lay-bys on main roads and near stations.

Even though he only has the 2 cars and parks them in different places I see them virtually every bloody day !!

Don't know who he is or even if the offer is genuine as opposed to bait and switch but I bet he gets business from it - it almost becomes subliminal after a while.

Steve

[nick p]

no it wont work dont do it lol

[Paul Davidson]

Got to be worth a try Jim   

Sounds a pretty good idea to me anyways!

cheers

Paul

[Jim_77]

Nick, I'll park it in the lay-by opposite your house... or even better on the grass where you pull your van up!

[Doctor Carpet (Ret'd)]

Hi Jim

You don't need to do this - you do it already. It's called a sign-written van!

Your van is mobile, you park it outside where you are working and the neighbour's then quizz either you or the client for whom you were working.

So, don't do it. Seems like a lot of work for a minimal return and lots of hassle.

Roger

(PS Most unlike me to post a strong opinion!)

[Mike Halliday]

if you do make this it will have to be top-notch, if it looks like a bodge up job it will reflect badly on your company.

how good will it look when you've finished? ( were you a cabinetmaker if a past life? )

its Ok for people on here to give encouragement and tell you to give it a go,  but they can, its not costing them any time or money

[Jim_77]

If I do go ahead with it, the trailer won't look like a rag n bone cart that's for sure!

Roger I understand what you're saying, but when I'm parked down a driveway with tall hedges either side, the only audience I'm reaching with my van is the sparrows in the hedges.  I do a lot of my work out in the sticks, or in cul-de-sacs with only a few houses around me and most of those will be out at work.  Thinking back over the last couple of years, I can count on the fingers of one hand the amount of times I've had a neighbour come over and ask for a quote.

My neighbour nudgers are designed to hit the houses around the job I'm working at.  I'm trying to get my company name in front of lots of people at a time where they may be able to stop and take the number, or a leaflet/card left in a dispenser on the side of it.

It may not generate huge returns directly, it might be a sort of brand advert so when people look in a directory or on yell.com they recognise the name.  I don't consider it to be too much hassle as such - once it's done it's done, all I have to do is keep the lights working and change the sign every now and again if I want a different message.

[derek west]

i agree with roger, your van is your A-board. i do see some good points like leaving it outside tesco all day saturday but theres a lot of cons like, tesco's not being very happy with you leaving it outside tescos all day saturday.
if i were you i'd just go shopping all day saturday in tescos, have a coffee there, and maybe some quisants, quasants, quesants, ahem, some pastries and go in your lovely sign written van, park right near the entrance and voala, voila vuala, and hey presto, job done.
derek

[clinton]

Jim

Why dont you  hire space on an advertising board

There is a few near me and usually say to advertise on here phone the above number.

They are placed on main roads near the shoping villages etc..

[Jim_77]

Whilst my van is parked up somewhere I'm not doing any work, unless I'm working in Tesco's!  Plus it'd have a million dents in it from people who don't know how far their door opens when they get out of their car.