Before you book, you need three things: vector artwork of your logo, a decision about what actually goes on the van beyond the logo, and the wrapper’s vehicle template so the design is laid out for your exact model rather than guessed at.
The most common and most expensive mistake is leaving the artwork until the van is already booked in.
1. Sort the artwork first
Vehicle graphics are produced at enormous size, so the artwork requirement is stricter than for anything else you have bought. Your wrapper will ask for vector files. A PNG from your website will not do, however good it looks on a screen.
Sorting this before you book means the van goes in on schedule. Leaving it means either a delay, a rushed job at extra cost, or graphics that look soft on a vehicle you are paying a substantial sum to have wrapped.
2. Decide what actually goes on it
A van is not a business card. Someone reads it at a junction in about three seconds, from an angle, often in poor light. That has practical consequences:
- Your trade should be legible before your name is. People need to know what you do. “Bramley & Co” means nothing; “Bramley & Co — Electrical” means something.
- One phone number, very large. Not three. Not a mobile and a landline and a Facebook handle.
- A website only if it is short. Nobody types a long URL from a moving vehicle.
- Cut the list of services. Six bullet points at 40mm high are unreadable at any distance and make the vehicle look cluttered.
- Leave space. The cleanest vans on the road are the ones that look expensive, and space is what does it.
3. Get the template from your wrapper
Every vehicle has different panel shapes, door lines, handles, fuel flaps and window edges. A design laid out on a generic rectangle will have your phone number crossing a door seam or your logo half-hidden by a wheel arch.
Any competent wrapper has a scale template for your exact make, model and wheelbase. Ask for it before design starts. If artwork is prepared on the correct template, what you approve on screen is what arrives on the vehicle.
| Before you book | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Vector logo artwork | The wrapper cannot produce clean graphics without it. |
| Vehicle template from the wrapper | So the design fits the actual panels, not a guess. |
| A decision on what goes on it | Changing your mind after production is expensive. |
| Colours specified for vinyl | Screen colour and vinyl colour are not the same thing. |
| A proof you have actually looked at | Once it is cut and applied, it is yours. |
Full wrap, part wrap, or cut vinyl?
Cut vinyl — your logo and text applied directly to the paintwork — is the most economical and looks smart on a white or light-coloured van. A part wrap adds printed panels for more presence. A full wrap covers the vehicle entirely and gives you complete freedom, at the highest cost.
What matters more than which you choose is that the artwork is right for it. A design that works as cut vinyl on white may need rethinking entirely as a full wrap, because a full wrap means the background is yours to control — and that is a design decision, not a printing one.
Worth asking while you are at it
Is this the logo you want driving around your area for the next eight years? A first van is one of the few natural moments to fix an identity that has fallen behind the business — and it is far cheaper to do it now than to re-wrap later.
Common questions
How long does vehicle artwork take to prepare?
Once the logo exists as proper vector artwork and the wrapper has supplied a template, laying out a van is not a long job. The time almost always goes into sorting the logo first, which is why it pays to start there.
Can I use the same artwork on a second van later?
If it is prepared properly, yes for the same model. A different model needs relaying out on that vehicle\u2019s template, though the design work carries over.
Do I need my address on the van?
Usually not, and it uses space that would be better spent on what you do and how to reach you. Some trades have their own requirements, so check anything specific to yours.
What about magnetic signs instead?
They are a reasonable temporary option, but they are visibly temporary. If the vehicle is staying, applied vinyl looks considerably more established for a modest difference in cost.