Easy Ways To Get Your Business Started

Hey all! Lately in the shop we have been coming across some dreamers who want to start their own business. So today I want to bring some insight to anyone else who is thinking of doing the same. Anything is possible and the sky is the limit! If you are considering this please take in these simple guidelines to achieve some traction. These are easy simple way things that anyone can do!

Firstly, you obviously want to make sure you are aware what you are selling or what service you are providing exactly. Keeping that in mind will sway your decision of some options you will come across eventually. Make sure you have all materials to start and build a good clientele. 

Now that you have your idea and you are ready to take on the world, it's time to advertise! Advertising can seem cheesy and unreal to some people, but it is an essential tool to success especially this day in age. Advertising not only gets your product or service come across many potential customers, but it also adds to your reputation effortlessly! Any interaction is good interaction, so why not get the maximum amount possible?

Advertising organically is completely free and easy. The best websites to get started on are listed below. These are in fact in chronological order, but that doesn't mean one is more important than the other! These are strictly ranked by which has the most traffic and likelihood to achieve your consumer goal. You don't need all 5 but the more the merrier! 

• #1: Facebook
• #2: Youtube
• #3: Instagram
• #4: Linked In
• #5: Pinterest

After getting your small business set up on these social media platforms, your business is now in the cyber world. Considering most of the population uses social media on the regular, your next customer could be anybody! Advertising is not only online but its also important off the web too! Fast-Trac can help you with this part. We specialize in logo design, vehicle wraps, signage, business cards, and all other types of physical advertising. Reach out to us and we will collaborate and get you out there!

Physical advertising is proven to generate more conversion, customers, sales, and traction with ease. Imagine driving down the highway. You have to do a double take at a car driving by you because its out of the ordinary with advertisement. Or even that billboard that said something ludicrous that you wonder what that possibly could be. I bet in your car somewhere right now you even have an old business card from a while ago. This advertising is subconscious and works more times than not. 

Contact the pros at Fast-Trac today so we can get your business to where it needs to be guaranteed!

(Shamless plug 😅)

10 Ways To Get Results From Your Graphic Designer

Are you having trouble gaining momentum with your graphic designer? Are you not getting the results you are expecting? Do you feel like no one can grasp your vision? Whether it's a vehicle wrap, banner design, or even a simple sticker; you want to have something worthy of showing off. Here are some tips that can help you get the look you've always dreamed of with your graphic designer!

The average day of a graphic designer here at Fast-Trac Designs entails helping a customer bring a vision to life. Sometimes it gets difficult to design with a customer when they don't have much guidance or know what they want... so we made a list! Here are 10 rules to follow to avoid any difficulties and achieve an end result fast! (Hence the name)

#1: Find a Logo
This could be a make or break for your time limit. Providing a logo to your graphic designer is of the upmost importance, that being because it tells how your design will look. A graffiti looking logo will lead a designer to believe you are going for a street look unless specified otherwise. If you don't have a logo it's okay! Just know it might take a few tries for a designer to get it right because they are starting from scratch. Having a logo from the get-go is a tremendous help to the graphic designer.

#2: Look for Inspiration
It's always important to keep in mind that a graphic designer knows nothing but the information you give them. To build something from the ground up is a long process for one person! One way you can help your graphic designer is looking for pictures online that are similar to the look you are trying to achieve. "I want something that follows this style" is the phrase most commonly used. This way, a graphic designer can have a visual representation of what you are expecting and it gives them creative guidance.

#3: Grab a Font
There are a GAZILLION BILLION TRILLION fonts that exist in the world. When you have a font handy that you want to use, it lessens the work of a graphic designer tremendously. Therefore you will get to where you want to be quicker! A font also contributes to how the rest of the design will flow together. It is very important. When a graphic designer has no font, they have to go look for one and possibly have numerous trials and errors. You can eliminate the headaches by looking for a font yourself! DaFont.com is one of our favorite sites to find fonts, but you can search anywhere online for one that suits you best.

#4: Pick Your Favorite Colors
Colors play an important factor in completing your design. The color you pick will determine the contrast and compliment colors that will come from the mind of a designer. They also depict different moods to incorporate into the design. Just as the last two rules go, a quick search on the internet will help you determine what colors you would like to incorporate. A little goes a long way especially when in communication with your graphic designer.

#5: What Is Your Company
You may not think of it as a big deal, but as we have stated before: the more information you give your graphic designer, the better. Give as much relevant information as possible regarding what you represent or what your company is exactly. Is your company a daycare center? If so, then your graphic designer will most likely create something child-like and cartoony. Letting them know who you are and what you're about helps with their creative process.

#6: Whats the "Vibe"?
Issa vibe! The definition of vibe states "A person's emotional state or the atmosphere of a place as communicated and felt by others." Examples of some vibes are tropical, corporate, girly, or vintage. A vibe is how a graphic designer will describe the look of something they are working on. With a vibe provided, they will make sure to make the design fit the desired vibe. It will keep the designer on track and fit the theme you are going for. Another valuable asset!

#7: Busy Or Simple
Determining if you want a busy or simple design is a key factor to the graphic designer. A busy design has lots of text, elements, information, and colors. Let's call the busy part of the spectrum an 'ice cream truck'. Usually on these trucks there is a lot of pictures and prices, making it look very busy. Meanwhile on the opposite side of the spectrum there is the simple look. This visual usually looks minimalistic and has hardly anything on it. Simple shapes, flat text, and limited variety of color are all examples of a 'simple' design, such as a taxi cab! Figuring out where you want to land on this spectrum will help the designer visualize what to do with what they are given.

#8: Your Target Audience 
Do you know who you want your target audience to be? If so, you guessed it! Tell the graphic designer! A younger teen audience would require a hip fresh design while an older audience might be more inclined to a corporate professional look. Whoever your audience, it is important the designer knows about it. If you don't have a target audience, it's fine. However if so you should still let the designer know. That way they can cater to a look that fits everyone. Yes it's possible!

#9: What not to do
Graphic designers don't want to waste your time nor have their time wasted. Avoiding confusion at all costs is a goal to create with them. If you aren't too sure what you want then you most certainly should have an idea of what you don't want. Ruling out any elements can help the graphic designer get a grip on a vision of their project. Whether you want to stay away from the color purple or avoid a certain ugly font, let the designer know.

#10: PATIENCE
Full disclosure: graphic designers are not magic! In some circumstances a project can take hours on hours on end, and making different proofs and drafts is not a walk in the park. These tasks can be tedious and stressful at times, so this is just a reminder to please be patient and have a positive attitude. Getting upset at the graphic designer is not going to make them work quicker! In fact, designers work best along side someone who is willing to work together and communicate effectively. If you plan on collaborating with a graphic designer, go in with a positive attitude and a passion.

Common Misconceptions About Vehicle Wraps

The vehicle wrap industry is in a constant growth with new materials, technologies and installation methods. Due to such a large growth and talk of wrapping vehicles there have been some myths and misinformation floating around so we would like to clarify some of these common misconceptions about vehicle wraps. 

Myth 1: Leased vehicles cannot be wrapped.

We often apply vehicle wraps to leased cars. The wrap serves as a protectant of the paint on the vehicle and can be removed when your leasing period is over.

Myth 2: Only white vehicles can be wrapped.

What a myth! We can absolutely wrap cars of any color, make and model. 

Myth 3: Wraps are a waste of money.

Compared to other types of paid advertising, vehicle wraps are the most cost effective. 

You already own your vehicle and with a onetime payment you own your wrap so there are not any monthly costs. The vehicle is driven daily getting more exposure than any online advertising host, plus the wrap often pays for itself with one or two jobs gained from a potential client seeing your wrap and using the services offered.

Myth 4: I (the customer) can install and/or design the wrap myself. 

This is not so much a myth, more of a suggestion. Sure, a lot of people can design the wrap and install it themselves but as the professionals here at Fast-Trac we advise against this if you do not have experience. 

Vehicle wraps are laid out on custom templates, designed and prepped for print in certain ways to ensure accuracy when installed. Clients that layout their own wrap risk their project taking longer if our design team must edit the files to fit properly on the vehicle. When wraps are purchased at Fast-Trac Designs we take your information and produce your layout then after approval and printing is complete we install in house. So, no need for our clients to attempt designing, installing and risking having a wrap with flaws.

Myth 5: Vehicle wraps are permanent.  

False. We can remove vehicle wraps and the only thing that may cause difficulties is 

if the wrap has been on for over five years and not maintained (cleaned, waxed etc.) 

Nonetheless we can still remove the wrap and even apply a new one.

We hope this information helped you understand vehicle wraps a little more. If you have more questions or have heard some other myths about vehicle wraps feel free to ask in the comments below. 

Must See RV & Trailer Wrap

Custom graphics are a great way to turn a surface from ordinary to stunning. Fast-Trac Designs has the ability to change the color of a vehicle using 3M 1080 graphic film or we can go extravagant with a custom design that
shows off our client's personality.

Recently we had a client that wanted to take the extravagant route and have an RV wrap & trailer wrap custom designed, printed and installed by Fast-Trac.

It all started with about 35 hours of design time. The design flows along each side, curves around the back then continues onto the trailer it also contains extreme amounts of detail. To ensure that the graphics would align properly took accurate measurements, careful planning as well as a skilled installation team.

The installation time spanned nine days with a team of 3 to 5 installers each day. Wrap installers must take their time with preparing the vehicle surface then verifying that all of the prints align properly. This part of the process was a bit more tedious that standard vehicle wraps due to such a detailed RV body style. 

The before and after transformation is incredible to see. Overall our team at Fast-Trac Designs put in a lot of hours and hard work to create an amazing must see RV and trailer wrap.

Click on the photos to enlarge and let us know what you think about this project.

To get more information and to see more projects from Fast-Trac Designs 

visit our website HERE.

Passing A Decade

It is official, Fast-Trac Designs is 11 years old. It has taken a ton of hard work and dedication to grow from a garage based business. Our success and continued growth has been amazing and we could not have done it without our customers. The ones who return and the ones who refer, every client makes this possible and we are so grateful. We look forward to continuing to provide screen printing and vehicle wraps here in Arizona and cant wait to see what the future holds.

Flippin The Bird - Window graphics

  Occasionally we get some very unique vehicles at our shop in Phoenix, Arizona and the owner wants to have vinyl graphics created to make it even more one of a kind. This recently occurred when a client brought in an old airplane that he had converted into a camper. The wings have been removed and the inside adjusted to create a  comfortable sleeping space however, it was not complete yet. 

  Our client wanted to add some fun to the camper by adding photos printed on 3M vinyl to the windows creating a look that maybe there was a party going on inside.

He gave all creative freedom to our lead graphic designer to come up with something "wild" well, he did just that. 

We applied window wraps to the plane with a very extraordinary printed design showing a crazy pilot, a dog with a 6-pack and a monkey in the back just to name a few. Our customer was thrilled with the layout and said "you nailed it!" to our designer, whom created the appearance of chaos in the plane windows. There is a lot to look at if you happen to pass this on the road or at a camp site. It will make you laugh or at least say "that's crazy."

                                                                                                                                                                           

Protect Your Investment!

A goal of every company is to grow, right? Fast-Trac Designs is very excited to introduce another division of our company called Wrap Detail LLC. We provide hundreds of clients whom are also business owners with vehicle wraps and we will also now provide care and protection for the wraps. 

  Wrap Detail LLC currently has three products available that were specially created by Fast-Trac Designs to  keep your vehicle wrap clean as well as protect it from the elements we drive through daily. 

  The first is Finishing Touch spray that is to be used after washing while the surface of the vehicle is still wet. a few sprays will eliminate water spots & remove any remaining residue. 

Finishing Touch can also be used on any surface including windows, chrome, paint and certainly on vehicle wraps. 

  Next is the Fast Wax. Fast Wax spray will shield your vehicle wrap from minor scratches, keep your 

wrap looking new and only needs to be used every 3 months. This wax also features rain dance technology that repels water drops to keep your wrap spot free. The final product is another wax called Water Craft Wax. This is great for boat wraps and keeps your boat looking new! 

  Only supplied and sold by Fast-Trac Designs these items can be purchased for $20.00 each or $35.00 for both the Finishing touch and Fast Wax. We will also refill your bottles at our shop for $15.00 each.

If you would like more information on Wrap Detail LLC contact us at 623.780.1168 and don't forget to

Wash, Rinse and Protect your investment with Wrap Detail!

What Color Is It?

  Our company vehicles are

on the road a lot and of course they are wrapped with custom designed graphics not only to be a 24/7 advertising machine but to also show what abilities the Fast-Trac team has when it comes to design and installation. Many people have seen and commented on the Fast-Trac Hummer however this blog is about the Fast-Trac truck. The truck took some time to have the wrap applied since there were so many ideas of what to do then as we approached a year of a nearly blank vehicle it was decided that we would go with a full color change. 

  The owner chose the 3M 1080 series film in the Gloss Flip Deep Space. This material known as "color flip" changes color depending upon what angle you are at and what light is around. Then we printed the company name and phone number in reflective which appears to be illuminated when light hits it. 
  So you may be wondering what color is it? We will leave that up to you to decide, go ahead and check out the photos below then feel free to leave a comment. 

The Best Cheesecake in Town

  Susie's AZ Kitchen is sure to make your mouth water featuring homemade lasagna and famous ribs as the main course then for dessert the owner of this food truck created Better Than Sex Cake and she also offers The Best Cheesecakes in Town. You cannot go wrong with these options and you will definitely come back for seconds.
  Owned and operated by a veteran, Susie's AZ Kitchen food truck can be seen at local events, fundraisers or you can reserve them for your personal occasions.  
  The wrap on this food truck completed by the team here at Fast-Trac features a suitable color combo along with retro looking layout and amazing photos of the food that are sure to send you cravings. 

What Do You Know About Dog Training?

  A well trained dog can amaze a crowd and impress your friends but the main focus on dog training and obedience school is to have a well behaved pup as well as a protector. A few months ago we met a new client that specializes in several types of dog training. Located here in Phoenix,       Desert Sky K9 All Breed Dog Training has all of the knowledge needed to teach your furry friends right from wrong and of course how to do tricks. With over 20 years of experience in family pet training and working K9 training, Mark and Gail are sure to provide an effective and useful learning experience. 

  We hope hundreds of potential customers for Desert K9 see there full custom vehicle wrap that was designed, printed and installed here at Fast-Trac Designs. Since they do specialize in training the Malinois breed our design team was sure to incorporate that photo into the wrap design and a gorgeous photo of an Arizona sky. Another service we provided to Desert Sky K9 is custom printed T-Shirts featuring their logo with diamond plate texture. We were very excited to see them on a news special showing off their new apparel and well trained pup. 

Here at Fast-Trac Designs we enjoy seeing our clients succeed. We had a great time working with Desert Sky K9 and look forward to their next project. 

Do You Have Proper Artwork?

If you are looking into having vehicle wraps, large format graphics or T-shirts done you will be asked this question. Do you have proper artwork? Maybe you are uncertain but the Fast-Trac Designs team is here to help you understand proper art formats, unusable art formats and what options you have to acquire the necessary art in order to complete your project.

First we would like to tell you about raster art and vector art. Raster art is what most internet images and photographs are formatted in. Made with pixels, (small squares that make up the image.) raster art cannot be manipulated without distorting the picture. Therefore, if we enlarge a raster image it will become pixilated (blurry.) Some raster files can be used depending on resolution of the photo however the image may still become pixilated. Raster file types are commonly .jpg .png .tiff & .gif

Now for vector art. This is what we need in order to properly produce vehicle wraps, screen printed apparel and other large format prints. When art is created in vector format it is made with lines and points that allow the ability to enlarge the art and it will never lose resolution. This art format is created in design programs such as Adobe Illustrator. Vector file types include .ai, .pdf & .eps

I know, now you are asking "Can my raster art be converted into vector art?" The answer is YES! We do have a very knowledgeable design department that can recreate your art to be the proper usable vector format.

Whew! That is a lot of information, but don't worry because the team at Fast-Trac Designs is here to guide you and your artwork is just the beginning. We work with our clients throughout the entire design process on every project. We hope that this helped you understand if you have proper artwork.

Thinking of a Wrap Change? Read This.

So you first may ask yourself, If I spent money on a vehicle wrap why would I change it? A few reasons to get a new wrap or update the design would be if you are trading in your vehicle, the wrap has been on for longer than 3 years or maybe you just have a new design vision that you prefer. Whatever the situation our team here at Fast-Trac Designs can guide you through the process.
Recently we helped our client Kelli Mealy with The Mealy Real Estate Team remove her old wrap on a vehicle she was trading in, then we created a new wrap design for her new vehicle. Kelli was looking to simplify and brighten the design of her wrap and adjust her logo. Our design team
brought her ideas to life featuring a clean design with an Arizona sun set. 

Kelli and her husband were thrilled with the new design on the new vehicle which they proudly displayed on Periscope and social media HERE

No matter what the reason is for your wrap change we believe it is worth it to keep your wrap up to date, looking its best and most importantly working for YOU.

In the photos below you can see the old wrap and the new. What do you think of the change?

New Wrap

Previous Wrap