It’s true. You can get paid to drive your own car – whether to work, to church, to your kids’ soccer games or any of your other normal destinations.

You won’t get rich doing this, mind you, but in these recessionary times, taking in an extra $300 to $900 a month can definitely come in handy for a lot of folks.

These “brand driver” promotions are run by a special segment of the advertising industry that pays regular people to affix vinyl decals to their cars – decals that, at first glance, appear to be painted on the vehicle.

These decals are known as “auto wraps” in the business, and they typically consist of the logo of a particular company or brand. Or, the “wrap” may have a message, like the “Follow Me to Find Out How to Get to the Closest I-Hop” wrap used by one company for its client, the International House of Pancakes.

This niche form of advertising has been around for about 10 years, and initially, the firms would actually provide people with cars that had been painted with the client’s company logo or brand

While many of the drivers are stay-at-home moms or working people who need the extra cash, others want to have their cars wrapped just because they have a strong feeling about the product.

They’re called “free car” programs or “get paid to drive” promotions. These programs do exist, although they aren’t as plentiful as they once were. The key is knowing where to look and having what it takes to make you an ideal advertising driver.

How it works

Here’s the basic premise of the “paid to drive” concept: A company seeks people — regular citizens, not professional drivers — to go about their normal routine as they usually do, only with a big ad plastered on their car. The ads are typically vinyl decals, also known as “auto wraps,” that almost seem to be painted on the vehicle, and which often cover a large portion of the car’s exterior surface.

The car owner is then compensated, usually a few hundred dollars per month, which is essentially a “rental” payment for letting the company use that space. In the past, there’s also been a “free car” version of this concept. The company provided the driver with a new, pre-wrapped car. In this situation, the drivers usually didn’t get any cash; their payment amounted to the free use of a new car

What does the company get out of this type of ad strategy? Lots of exposure. The auto wraps tend to be colorful and eye-catching and attract lots of attention. Plus, it’s a form of advertising with a captive audience, meaning people who are stuck in traffic and can’t avoid seeing the wrapped car alongside them

The vehicles in these programs are often equipped with GPS tracking devices, so the companies can make sure the drivers spend sufficient time in the desired areas.

‘Paid to drive’ primetime

Paid-to-drive programs were very popular five to 10 years ago. Gas was cheaper, and people were spending more time on the road. There were plenty of Web sites devoted to these programs, including many fee-charging sites that acted as a middleman and promised to connect willing drivers with companies seeking vehicles for their ads.

Then, fuel prices spiked and people weren’t spending as much time in their cars, Clarke says. At the same time, online advertising became the rage.

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