Selling a used car online is the way to go to achieve the best results when marketing your vehicle for sale. You can reach a much bigger audience selling your used car online that putting a For Sale sign on it and parking it in the corner of the high traffic intersection closest to your home. If you do it right, within a very short amount of time you will have many eager buyers knocking on your door. Your car will sell sooner than you think. Here are a few tips on how to sell a used car online that I believe will benefit you greatly in the process. Class ready? Here we go!
1. Get all your paperwork ready. Make sure you have a clean title in your name for the vehicle. If the car was a gift from your great grandmother and it is still in her name, make sure that she can still be around to sign the title and paperwork if needed. Selling cars with third party titles can be tricky, and it is hard to convince the buyer to do so. If you can, have the title owner present to sign off on it when the sale is taking place.
Also make sure to have a bill of sale handy and ready to get filled out as the sale is happening. Here is a link to a very good free motor vehicle bill of sale that I have used many times in the past: Simply Google "free motor vehicle bill of sale" and look for the hoover web design page. Make sure to fill out all the information and have it signed by both parties. Make sure to give a copy to the buyer and keep one for yourself.
2. Get all the details of the vehicle and write them down so you know what to post on your listing. A standard car listing will need to include: Year, Make, Model, Mileage, Engine Size, Transmission Type (Standard or Automatic), Exterior Color, Interior Color, Vin Number, Price, General Description and Seller's Contact Information. Make sure you write down a nice and detailed description of your vehicle, including the great things about it first, then disclosing any issues the car may have. Always be fair and honest, and your seller will appreciate it and be more inclined to purchasing the vehicle from you.
3. Take great pictures. In order to sell your used car online effectively, you have to post great pictures of it in the listing. This begins by cleaning your car thoroughly before the photo shoot. Make sure the exterior is shiny and the interior looks immaculate. You have no idea how many interested buyers will complement you on how great the car looks online. I've had many people tell me that the only reason they came to see my vehicle was because it looked so nice and clean. Trust me, it makes a big difference.
Now is time to take the pictures. If possible take the car to an empty parking lot or an area that will not have many background distractions. You want the car to be the main focus of the picture. Now take pictures of the front, back, side front angles, side rear angles, front interior, back interior and engine. Don't try to hide any blemishes that the car may have. It will hurt you in the long run when the buyer comes in person to see the car. Disclosing all the information on your listing and your pictures will give you a much greater chance of the person purchasing the vehicle when they come for the test drive.
4. Find the value of your car. Now that you almost have everything ready to sell your car online, you have to know how much money to sell it for. The first place that you are going to go to is http://www.kbb.com. Input all the information of the vehicle and its condition, and KBB will give you the approximate value to it. This is a good start, but you are going to go a little further. You need to know how much your vehicle is going for in your community. Sometimes the price on the street will be lower or higher than the price listed on KBB. Having this information handy will help you sell your car quicker, and it may even put a few extra bucks in your pocket. Go to http://www.craigslist.com. On the search box, input the Year, Make and Model of your vehicle. This will give you the listings found on Craigslist of vehicles similar to yours, and how much they are going for. With this information in hand, price your car somewhere in the middle. Don't match the highest prices, but don't go for the lowest either, you want to give your vehicle the value it deserves while still making it a good deal.
Now that you have all the information you need, you are ready to sell your used car online.
5. Post your car on the Free Classifieds. Craigslist.org and Backpage.com are a must. They are free, easy and effective. Make sure you post in your community and your area. Be as thorough as possible in your description, which shouldn't be a problem since you already have all the details of your used car handy. Oodle.com and Kijiji.com are also great places to post your ad for free. Make sure that if you have a Facebook and /or a Twitter account you let your friends know your vehicle is for sale. Posting on these websites will ensure you great exposure, free and local. It is easy and it will not cost you a cent.
About this Author
Jay Chirino is an experienced used car salesman and owner of Cheap Cars 813 [http://www.cheapcars813.com] a local Tampa marketplace for used car buying and selling.
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