company van

Should You Buy a Company Van? 4 Compelling Benefits

Image Credit: Clifford Smith on Flickr

If you own a small business, you might feel like you can get by using your private vehicle for all your professional needs. So you use your own car for client meetings as well as supply runs. But could you benefit from a company van?

Though they can be quite sizable, a company van offers numerous potential benefits. For example, you’ll find it useful for everything from advertising to wholesale shopping. In fact, your van could serve as a business headquarters all on its own. It’s just a matter of imagination.

Company vans are most commonly associated with plumbers, dog groomers, and other on-the-go operations. However, you can push an ordinary van to its full potential. Consider these four powerful applications. You might be surprised at just how useful a company van can be.

 

Onboarding Advantages

One of the main advantages of buying a company van is that it can give you an edge in the customer onboarding process. That’s because a company van will increase your business’s visibility. The secret is in branding. That is, you can either add your business’s logo to the side of the van or apply a van wrap.

A one-time application, van wrapping can make your vehicle extremely eye-catching. What’s more, it will provide all the necessary contact information in one place. As you drive around, potential customers will see your ad. This can lead to as many as 30,000 to 70,000 views per day. Even Facebook can’t achieve that level of exposure for small businesses.

The only problem with van wrapping or even branding is that you do have to own the vehicle in question. That’s why you have to consider the financial differences between leasing and purchasing a van outright. Luckily, in addition to its use in advertising, a company van typically comes with some tax advantages. Additionally, it can provide your business with some day-to-day cost savings that will cover the initial expenses.

 

A Polished Presentation

Commercial vans come in all different varieties, from cargo vans to flatbeds. The one thing they all have in common, however, is that pulling up in a branded commercial van makes a great first impression. When you drive a personal car, customers don’t have an immediate sense of recognition when you pull up. They may even wonder if they’re just a stop in the middle of your personal life. What’s more, it’s much easier to keep a professional vehicle clean and neat. You can also keep it stocked with any business supplies you might need, all while putting your best face forward.

 

Make Way for More

Supply costs can be tough on a small businesses, because they often don’t qualify for bulk order volumes. Luckily, when bulk orders fail, there are always traditional wholesalers. But if you have a company van, you can purchase products in wholesale volumes. This makes it easier to turn a profit. It cuts back on wasted trips and wasted time going back and forth to the shops. But you’ll need room to haul bulk goods back to your storefront or office. And that’s where the van comes in. You can’t realistically shop wholesale for a business without having a vehicle to accommodate the load.

 

RELATED ARTICLE: REASONS YOUR COMPANY MIGHT NEED TO BUY GOODS AT WHOLESALE

 

Get on Trend

Finally, at this particular moment, commercial vans are on the brink of becoming cool. And this isn’t just because white vans are trendy, but because food trucks and other mobile businesses are taking over. With a good idea and a little ingenuity, you can run an entire business out of your van.

Beyond traditional food trucks, inventive entrepreneurs are running other businesses as well. Think florist operations and sidewalk coffee shops. Some entrepreneurs are even taking clothing and jewelry boutiques on tour with commercial vans. A company van is great for businesses that attend a lot of craft fairs and outdoor markets. And they can also cater to those who prefer an on-the-go kind of lifestyle.

A commercial van isn’t right for every business. However, those that are looking to innovate on the traditional model can use this mobile business model to improve their operations. From branding to sales and everything in between, putting your small business on the road can help you race ahead of the competition.