Reflective vinyl is not self luminescent nor apparent is normal day and night conditions. It is specifically designed to be visible at night condition. It's used to strikers with artificial light as motor vehicle headlights and road signs after dark time. It's used to without the cost of electric illumination.
All reflective vinyl is not the same. There are two basic sorts of it. First is retro-reflective and other prismatic. These are further fragmented into different types and grades determined by their reflective properties and construction.
Retro-reflective is made by blending glass beads in the shade of the face film. Retro-Reflective film is known as beaded reflective because the embedded beads reflect light back toward the viewer.
The prismatic reflective film is made by layering little prisms in the face film. After inspections these would look like very small pyramids in the vinyl. Prismatic reflective film reflects light back through the face toward the film viewer.