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Don't forget your truck! Business card are good, keep them simple. Mine are black on yellow with large print. A lot of your customer are older and can not see that small print. JMO

I just took my nuisance trapping test. So I went ahead and ordered some business cards from a guy I work with. He recommended a magnetic sign for my truck. I'm gonna get some tshirts done next for sure.

Yeah, I need to go ahead and get some shirts made. Who doesn't like getting a shirt?

I'm just learning so I'm gonna go with tshirts and business cards for now. But I like the idea of a business card magnet.

Business care magnets
Business cards
Flyers
Website
All from vista print.

But my black truck with yellow lettering and logo gets more attention
I did have door magnet from vista print, never got a lead from it, so I paid $700 and got the truck done, plain simple to the point worth every penny, have had calls from people that are driving with me in traffic

It's always advertising except when it's in my driveway ( I live in the country, rural area). Most work is in town but a few jobs out here in the sticks

I put magnetic signs on the door of my truck when I first started, I did not like them from day one. They look to cheap. When I put up a flyer I never make them on WHITE paper because they look just like all the rest, you want yours to stick out!! I park my truck at the end of the drive way so when people drive by they see my truck with my phone number and what I do, I have got jobs parking it that way.
I live in a real small town, no big city's close. I do not do this for a living, that is what makes it fun. I get about 85% of the jobs that come my way. NO bee's or Bats.

I would like to see some really sharp looking truck advertisements. Mostly because I want to steal your ideas.
We had about a dozen trucks wrapped + lettering because it was cheaper than painting. ( or so the thought was ) In as little as 6 months we had air bubbles and wrap missing near handles + large air pockets where the wind could find it's way under the wrap etc. They still look ok if you don't look very close but time is taking it's toll on the wraps we have.
If other wraps are like ours they have a very short life span.

IMO your name and phone # is about all you need on your truck. Much more and the people reading it will miss the phone # while trying to read all the rest.

I live near Chicago, I have a lot of competition. I give out business cards like water (at least two per customer), I give them to everyone I meet. But being in an urban area I have a large computer presence with a nice website. The website and my Facebook accounts are what bring in the bulk of my business. Always treat customers as you would want to be treated. I do not advertise on my truck as many of my clients do not want the neighbors to know they have a problem. Anyone near Chicago looking for work in the industry give me a call as I am giving away quite a bit of business as my partner and I can't cover them all.

when I first started out in the late 70's it was word of mouth and flyers hanging around places to be seen. Name recognition was the key. in the 80's the phone book became my main form of advertising as the flyers and such was hit and miss, again getting the name out there to be seen in the different adds gave name recognition. It takes the average person 7 to 14 time seeing a name to place it into their memory bank. today it is the web and I hate it LOl, because what I found that worked in phone adds, that sold the jobs and got folks to me over the next person, that same info can be place that same way in a web program and it will work, IF I can get it in front of folks.

Understanding what cards, magnets, flyers and contacts do, is the key to making them work but they can only work a fraction of in a marketing program. We by nature go to them when we are first starting out because they are easier to do and cheaper, but really only serve a small part of marketing. Think about all the cards you get and what do you do with them same with all the flyers and such. Cards are introductions, they do not sell. Most cards are lost or thrown away after a short time. Most cards given to folks that do not have a problem have no impact except name recognition if they get enough of them. So get 7 cards to that person over a month and you will achieve that purpose LOL Flyers and news paper adds are the same as cards. It is a % game, hoping the adds hit the folks that have a problem now and read it other wise you will need to do 7 promotions to get the name recognition for when they do need you. This is why the big pest control companies do tv adds not to sell a job but get name recognition. Magnets good for your customers that you do the job for but I found that the best results happen with them long term is when I placed them on the refridg rather than just giving them the magnet LOL All these tools work, but in todays world the web and search engines are the ticket but expensive. Just my thought and what has worked for me in MY BUBBLE.

Jonesie, good point. I'll tell ya what happens to most business cards I get that I think I may need someday...they go in my wallet to be forgotten, only to be thrown away when I clean out my wallet, or...they get tossed right after getting them if they aren't something I think I'll need.


That's why I liked the magnet idea so much. Stick em to a desk or stick em to a refrigerator and they'll be there. I really like the idea of business card magnets

My business cards are trap tags with name and phone number. Doesn't get lost as quick as a business card. Bit of a novelty item I guess

x2. Within a year everyone in town and out will know who you are and what you do.