eBay Motors –  How to Sell a Car on eBay

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Sell Your Used Vehicle on eBay Motors for Hundreds More than the Dealer

I think we have all been there.  You have an older car that needs to be traded in for a newer model.  It is a great car ; you have maintained it well, it looks good and you just know it will make a good car for someone.  So you clean it up and head off down to the new car dealer of your choice. Everyone knows what happens next --- the dealer does not have such a high opinion of your trade.  The new car market is very competitive. With rebates and financing deals, many times the dealer is only making a small margin on the new car sale.  However, if you have a car to trade the dealer stands to make more off your trade than he does the sale of the new auto .  This is especially true if the car is only a few years old with a reasonable number of miles.  The dealer will usually resell this car right off his lot and make a substantial profit.  If it is an older car or high miles car , the dealer will usually just send it straight to the local auction and make a tidy sum there as well.   Be assured that you sitting in the new car showroom, really wanting that new car , is not a good situation to be in if you want fair money for your trade. The new car salesman will use every tactic he can to give you minimal dollars for that trade.  It is just the nature of the business .

The Advantages of Using eBay Motors to Sell your Used Vehicle

eBay Motors affords everyone a marketplace that reaches millions of potential buyers but that comes with a caveat.  You have to understand the difference between a buyer and a seller’s market and you have to market your vehicle correctly on eBay Motors.  Buying a big ticket such as an auto sight unseen over the internet requires special marketing techniques.  Lets’ take it step by step.

Do your eBay Motors Homework

It is natural to think your used auto is in the best shape and worth the most money of any car in town.  Over pricing your vehicle on eBay Motors is a common mistake.  You have to do your homework and decide what the fair market value might be on your used auto .  A good place to establish fair value is Kelley Blue Book.  eBay Motors has protection options in place like reserve prices and buy it now options which will insure your vehicle does not sell for less money than you intended.  Check eBay for definitions of these options and how they work.  Your vehicle must be fairly priced.  If you set the price too high, you will get plenty of lookers but no bidders.

Market your Vehicle Smart

Think about it…. You are placing a vehicle on eBay Motors which you expect to get several thousand dollars for when it sells.  That prospective buyer is going to decide to place a bid on your vehicle sight unseen based on your marketing.   Put yourself in the buyer’s shoes and think about what you can put in the listing to increase the confidence in your vehicle .

Make it Easy on the Buyer

One of the best ways to advance the sale of your vehicle on eBay Motors is to open the lines of communication.  If a potential buyer asks me a question via eBay, I respond  and make the response public on the auction so other can benefit from the answer.  I provide an email link in the auction to email me directly and I put a contact phone number in there so a prospective buyer may call me direct.  If you act like you are hiding,  the bidders will question the credibility of your auction.  It you are upfront and available, your credibility will soar!

Closing the Sale on eBay Motors

Deadbeat bidders can be a problem on eBay.  A deadbeat bidder is one who has no intention of purchasing the car or has no hope of paying for it.  You can control this somewhat by requiring all bidders to have a certain minimum positive feedback. I require a positive feedback of 5 in my auctions.  The other thing you can do is require a significant down payment within 48 hours to determine the validity of the sale.  It can cost up to a few hundred dollars to list a vehicle on eBay Motors.  If the vehicle does not sell, you still owe the insertion fee.  If the sale does not go through you may have to pay the entire fee just like it actually sold.  eBay Motors will refund a portion of the fees under certain circumstances but it can still become very costly to relist a car .

The Advantages of Using eBay Motors.

If you list your car in the newspaper, a few hundred people may see a text add with no pictures.  If you list it in auto Trader, a several hundred may see it along with a small picture.  On eBay Motors, I have had as many as 7,000 people view an auction and I have sold vehicles to people in California, Washington and Canada.  I live in Texas!  What kind of reach is that?  eBay Motors is the perfect venue if you have a car that is desirable. That is because it turns into a seller’s market at that point.   Your unique, one of a kind  collector vehicle will sell for top dollar on eBay simply because there is someone, somewhere looking for  that particular vehicle and they will be willing to pay YOUR price.  If you have a common, ordinary vehicle that is not in great demand, chances are it will do poorly on eBay Motors unless you plan on selling it for a bargain basement price.  On the other hand, if you have a vehicle with unique equipment, low miles or if it is a classic, it will do extremely well on eBay Motors.

Basic Points for a Successful Auction on eBay Motors

Andy Jones is a self employed entrepreneur who has used eBay since 1997.  He sells several cars each year on eBay Motors.  Visit his web site at Texas Interceptors.

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