How to sell a scooter.  By  scooter (Read 1,943 times)

only things i can tell you is take good pictures, use "scooter" in your title and don't negotiate on the phone. i was told by someone much smarter than me to tell them "come take a look at it and i'll make you a good deal." (if they try to negotiate a price on the phone)

timing is everything. just keep bumping your ad to the front every few days and it will sell eventually.

I've never tried selling a scooter, but I've been in retail for 20 years. And I know what catches my interest on CL.

Number one, first, and single most important of all--POST A FEW PICS OF THE THING!!!!!!!!!!! Dang people, why would anyone expect me to spend my time on his whatsit if he can't bother to take a couple extra minutes to take and post pics? Even assembly-line things like scooters, I want to see it!

Number two--MAKE THE PHOTOS CLEAR, IN FOCUS, AND USEFUL. Don't show the tire rim. Or the gas cap. Or the brake lever. Why bother with this garbage of details (esp when said posters usually don't bother with a pic of the entire bike). Show side and front. Sit on the seat and show the dash. Maybe show the trunk if it's especially roomy (and put in something that shows this, too).

Sorry. Ranting over. Just irks me that folks post ads with no pics or fuzzy out-of-focus pics or really up-close pics that show me nothing.

Number three--make your ad either totally to the point, or fun. Or both. Fun always catches my interest.

Number four--be honest about any scrapes or scuffs or anything a Type-A might consider a flaw. And include any details that you would want to know if you were the one looking to buy. And include why you're selling. I always wonder if you just changed your mind about getting this, or if you've upgraded, or if you buy and fix and sell.

Number five and one and twenty and hundred--don't just post "scotter blu lo mile" And also then include no photos. And no price. And sometimes no contact info, even. Are these people just idiots?

Sorry again. As you can tell, I've a low threshold of tolerance for folks who are just stupid.

Basically, post like you'd want to know. And like ramblin' said, remove your old ad and repost it every few days. Don't do it every day, seems that's a no-no on CL. And don't leave the old ads--also a no-no, I guess.

Good luck selling!

>'Kat

Hey, great to hear, scooter!

You know, all it takes is just the one looker sometimes to sell to. Just needs to be the right looker for what you're selling.

>'Kat

A few things I've learned selling on craigs. Set the price higher than your rock bottom price, everyone wants to walk away thinking they got a good deal. No test rides w/o cash in hand and M/C endorsement. Good pics of at least the 4 sides of the bike. Patience is key too, scooters are a niche market maybe 1% of the pop. M/Cs are only 5%.

All the bikes I've ever owned (except a new Helix from a dealership years ago) were used and bought online. Some I actually went to see before buying because they were close enough. Others were further away, but the sellers that were serious about selling, if I asked, would send me more pictures even if they already had several pics in the ad. Most were also willing to answer questions too. If they would not do that for me, I would would not continue to try buying that bike.
Showing up to actually look at them also made getting a lower price more likely with face to face negotiations.

I was always satisfied with my purchases and felt that what I got was worth what I paid for. But I have to qualify that by saying that the sellers seldom had any reason to hide anything or lie about any flaws not specifically detailed when asked*. The reason for that is that the bikes I usually bought were clearly damaged, not running or had whatever issues that would generally make them unattractive to most buyers. (hard to get screwed when what one buys is already knowingly pretty much a basket case)
So then I would fix them and ride them or sell them.

* (when I got my Silverwing, it wasn't until much later after having to do some disassembly that I discovered panels with cracks and scrapes that had been repaired and even a tab or 2 broken off and missing from inside. I had asked if the bike had EVER been down even if just a tip-over...... I got lied to. It wasn't serious damage obviously because I had ridden it for a while and not noticed it. But it irked me that I had been needlessly lied to about it.)

Buyers appreciate honesty. Detailing the small flaws but also pointing out that they are really minor shows sincerity about the item being sold without detracting much from its sale value.
For example: (( got some scratches from XXXX. Most, but not all have already been buffed out. Tab for XXXX repaired.... pics of repair available...)) That sort of thing.
ABSOLUTELY!!! Honesty is ALWAYS the best policy.

Indeed, start with a higher price (but not ridiculously high) to allow reasonable negotiation. Or set a reasonable fixed price that reflects the current going rate for the item as it is and stick with it.

Most of that is my view from a buyer's perspective.

While I'm at it, I'll offer my views/advice when buying on auctions like ebay:

Bid once, make your bid the maximum price you would be willing and satisfied to pay, bid near the end of the auction if possible.
That way if you win the item at or below your bid then you can be happy you got a fair deal or bargain without subjecting yourself to buyers remorse. If you don't win the auction then you are sure to NOT get buyers remorse and can see how the other person paid too much for the item. Bidding near the end of an auction makes it less likely that somebody will have enough time to out bid you and prevents the temptation and time to engage in bidding wars or nibble bidding.

DO NOT get into a bidding war. You may win the auction, but you are far more likely to regret having done so.

Don't worry too much about not getting the item up for auction/sale. There are almost certain to be other times when a desired item will become available. Just look at previously sold similar items history to see the range of prices and how often an item seems to appear for sale. "Good things come to those who wait" holds some truth.

Have to disagree with you there, scooter.

Sometimes it really IS the deal of a lifetime, and the chance of ever getting that good a deal again is pretty nil.

Example--I've been saving up "splurge" money for a bass flute. "Splurge" as defined by birthday or Christmas money, or finding stray dollars in pockets--you know, money you didn't plan on getting. I got in touch with a bass flute pro lady to get some idea what I should be shooting for. She replied, and we maintained a periodic email correspondence. Then I found what was most likely a Chinese bass on eBay that looked to sell for what I had currently saved. I emailed the pro asking if it was better to get a Chinese bass and play now, or wait and save for several more years to get a good legit brand. She wrote back that a lady had just contacted her about selling her very good brand bass flute...for almost 1/5 the msrp new.

It's doubtful I'll ever find this quality of bass flute for that amazing a price again.

But then, deals like that, it's pretty obvious that it IS the deal of a lifetime and you should jump on it while you can. If it's not obvious, then like you said scooter, there'll be others that come along for a similar good deal. You just have to know what you're looking at and what it's really worth. And have some luck riding on your shoulder.

Btb, in the flute world, Chinese-made usually really is garbage. And unlike scooters, there is squat anyone can do to make them less garbagey. It actually will break if you try to adjust it.

>'Kat, NOT tooting her bass flutin' while scootin'!

A video of start-up walk around always helps too,,you can put a link on CL for that.
Good pics of all angles including a lit up dash with odometer,,I hate when there is only one pic and its fuzzy..drives me too the next ad.