Section 8.2. Selling on eBay Motors
When you list a car in the local classifieds, your marketing reach is only as wide as the paper's subscriptions. When you list a car on eBay, you have the potential to reach 10 million buyers who are browsing the site looking for a deal. eBay may thus be able to help you get a faster sale, a better priceor both.
Note: eBay Motors isn't just for cars . There are categories for motorcycles, boats, RVs, scooters, airplanesjust about any transportation with a motor. You can also list vehicle parts and accessories on eBay Motors.8.2.1. Revving Up
Before you can sell on eBay Motors, you have to be a registered seller on eBay (Section 5.4). Beyond that, there's no separate registration needed to sell a car.
Tip: Don't make selling a car the first thing you ever do on eBay. Buyers are wary of zero- or low-feedback sellers offering high-priced items. Spend some time on the site and build up your feedback (Section 2.1) before you try to sell a car or other big-ticket item.You do, however, have to do some research before you list. To make this easy, eBay has created a Sell Your Vehicle Checklist. Print it out and fill it in offline to save time and frustration during the listing process. You'll find the checklist, shown in Figure 8-6, at http://pages.motors.ebay.com/sell/Sell_Your_Vehicle_Checklist.pdf.
Here's what the checklist covers:
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Vehicle information . This section includes your car's unique vehicle identification number (VIN); year, make, and model; engine size ; transmission type; any warranty or special equipment; and a checklist of photos buyers want to see.
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Vehicle description . This section asks a bunch of questions that will help you write a good vehicle description. The main categories are the car's history and current condition, and the terms of the sale.
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Vehicle price . This section explains your pricing options: starting price, reserve price, and Buy It Now.
After you've gathered information about your vehicle and done your research, you've got one more thing to do before you create your listing: take photos. As you probably noticed when checking out other auctions, car sales tend to include lots and lots of photos. And that's a great a strategy. When a buyer can't inspect a car in person, multiple photos are the next -best thing.
eBay recommends that you take exterior photos of the car's front, back, and both sides; the front and back seats; the dashboard (including a close-up of the odometer); the trunk; the engine bay; any special features; and any damage. Try to take photos so that the subject fills the frame as much as possible. Buyers are going to be looking closely at the car; they don't want to see your garage door or the neighbor's kids playing across the street. Avoid shadows or harsh lighting that make the details difficult to see. For general photography tips, see Section 6.2.3.1.
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8.2.2. Creating Your Listing
Listing an item on eBay Motors is similar to the Sell Your Item process on eBay: you choose a category, write a title and description, add photos, set payment and shipping, then review your listing and submit it. When you're ready to create a listing for your vehicle, go to eBay Motors (http://motors.ebay.com) 
Sell Sell Your Item. The Sell Your Item: Choose a Selling Format page appears. eBay Motors offers regular auction and fixed-price listing formats. Choose one, and then click Continue to go to the five-step Sell Your Item form. This form looks a lot like the Sell Your Item form you use for auctions on the main eBay site (Section 5.4.3), but its specialized for motor vehicle sales.
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Choose a category .
On the Sell Your Item: Select Category page, choose the general category that matches your vehicle, as shown in Figure 8-7, then select the appropriate subcategories from the choices that automatically appear. Click Continue to move on to step 2, the Sell Your Item: Describe Your Item page.
Figure 8-7. Selecting a category for your listing on eBay Motors is the same as on eBay's main site. Choose a general category, and then keep choosing subcategories until you run out. If you have any questions, you can ask an eBay Motors staff person: just zip to the top of the page and click the Live Help link.
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Write a title and describe your vehicle .
On this page, start by writing a title for your listing. As on eBay's main site, titles can be no more than 55 characters long. (For tips on writing a good title, see Section 6.2.)
The "Item specifics" section of the Sell Your Item: Describe Yor Item page asks for all the details of the vehicle, from year and mileage to safety features (like airbags and anti-lock brakes) and luxury options (like leather seats and sunroofs). "Item specifics" is where you type in your vehicle's VIN (vehicle identification number). eBay requires a VIN for all cars whose model year is 1981 (the year VINs began ) or later. If you're having trouble locating your vehicle's VIN, check out the box on Section 8.2.3.
Below "Item specifics" is the box where you write your item description. It's just like the "Item description" box in the Sell Your Item form of eBay's main site (Section 5.4.4). Click the links to spell check and preview your description. When everything's all set, click Continue to go to step 3, where you add photos and other details.
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Provide photos and details .
The Sell Your Item: Enter Pictures & Item Details page is where you set your starting price (see the box below for tips), add photos, and choose various features to enhance your listing. Most of the bells and whistles cost extra, so keep an eye on how much they add to the cost of your listing. If you'd like to participate in Giving Works (Section 8.5) and donate part of your auction proceeds to a nonprofit organization (minimum $10), you can specify that here, too. When you've finished, click Continue to go to step 4, where you specify details about payment and shipping.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTION
Setting a PriceHow do I determine a good price for the car I want to sell ?
If you were selling a car locally, you'd probably check out the classified ads, used car dealerships, and maybe a guide like the Kelley Blue Book before you set your asking price. When you sell on eBay, you can use the same strategies.
Start with an online pricing guide: Kelley Blue Book (www.kbb.com), NADA Appraisal guides (www.nadaguides.com), or Edmunds (www.edmunds.com). Each of these sites lets you search by year, make, and model to get an idea of what your car is worth. You can be sure that potential bidders will be checking out these price guides, too.
Next, search eBay for cars similar to yours. Don't think in terms of just make and model; look at mileage, condition, features, and so on to find the best matches. Make a note of the starting price and whether there's a reserve (Section 5.4.5). Then use Advanced Search to search completed listings (Section 1.3). Notice which cars sold for a good price and which failed to meet the reserve or generate any bids. Study the successful auctions for tips about how to set up your own auction. (Don't, of course, violate eBay policies by actually copying text or pictures.)
Use your researchthe books plus the current and recent auctions on eBayto determine a price range. What's the lowest price you'd be willing to settle for? What's a price you might want to pay if you were buying this car? What price (within reason) would make you happy with the sale?
Once you've determined a target price, think about your strategy for getting that price. Setting a relatively low starting price will attract interest and get the bidding goingand once you've got a few bids, more are likely to follow. If there's a threshold price you can't sell below, set a reserve price. (There's a fee to set a reserve price, but eBay refunds that fee if the item sells.) If the bidding doesn't reach the reserve, you have no obligation to complete the sale. Another option to get the price you want is to make your auction a Buy It Now auction. As soon as someone clicks the Buy It Now button, you've sold your car. Just don't set the BIN price unreasonably high; you'll be wasting your listing fees if you do.
Tip: Car auctions feature a lot of photos, and eBay typically charges 15 cents for each photo beyond the first one. To save money, choose the Vehicle Picture Pack: for $2.00, you can display up to 24 photos. You also get the Supersize option (buyers can click a small photo to enlarge it) and a slideshow of your photos at the top of the auction page as part of the deal. Or you can host your photos on another site (Section 6.2.4.2). -
Set payment and shipping terms .
This page, Sell Your Item: Enter Payment & Shipping, is where you tell buyers how they'll pay you and whether you'll ship the car or allow local pickup only. Common practice on eBay Motors is for the buyer to pay a deposit within three days of the auction's close. Most sellers accept a deposit through PayPal and the balance in the form of cash (forked over in person) or a cashier's check. If you want to accept a personal check, you can. (For your own sake, don't hand over the keys and title until after the check has cleared.) In most cases, buyers are responsible for traveling to your location to pick up the car, but if you want to offer a different shipping method, you can. After you've explained your payment and shipping policies, click Continue to go to the last step, the Sell Your Item: Review & Submit Listing.
Note: eBay now offers financing to buyers who want to purchase a vehicle on eBay Motors. Buyers can prequalify for a loan, which means that buyers know they can afford your car before they bidand you end up with more dependable bidders and faster payment at the auction's end. If you want to accept eBay financing as a means of payment, look under "I accept the following payment methods " and turn on "Loan check."UP TO SPEED
eBay Motors Listing FeesIf you've been selling for a while on the main eBay site, you might turn a bit green imagining the fees when you see cars selling for tens of thousands of dollars on eBay Motors. Fortunately, eBay Motors has its own fee schedule.
You pay a fixed insertion fee when you list a vehicle and a fixed transaction service fee when you sell oneno graduated FVFs. As on the main eBay site, if your vehicle gets zero bids (or if you've set a reserve price and bidding fails to meet it), you pay only the insertion fees.
Here's how eBay Motors fees work:
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Passenger vehicles . $40 when you list the vehicle and $40 when you sell it.
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Motorcycles and powersports . $30 when you list the vehicle and $30 when you sell it.
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Pocket bikes (miniracing motorcycles) . $3 when you list the vehicle and $3 when you sell it.
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other vehicles . $40 when you list the vehicle and $40 when you sell it.
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Parts and accessories . These items are subject to eBay's regular listing policies (from the bottom of eBay's main page, select Policies
Listing Policies to stay up to date on eBays listing policies).
Of course, any listing features you select when you create your listingextra photos, gallery-featured, listing designer, reserve price, and so on (Section 5.4.5)cost extra. And because they're associated with the listing, not the auction, you have to pay for these features whether or not your car sells.
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Review and submit your listing .
Take your time before you hit that Submit button. Check everything over carefully ; use the Sell Your Vehicle Checklist you put together (see Section 8.2) to make sure you've included everything buyers might possibly want to know about your car.
| UP TO SPEED Help! I Can't Find My Car's VIN |
| What, you don't know your car's VIN like you know your phone number? Actually, nobody does. Here's how to find it. Check the driver's side dashboard and door jamb for a small tag with a combination of 17 letters and numbers . If you can't find the number in either of those places, check your auto insurance card or vehicle registration. If your car was built before 1981, it may not have a VIN. You can still sell it on eBay. On the right half of the page that asks for the VIN, there's a section for older cars. Click Continue in this section to fill out specific details about the car and proceed with your listing. |
8.2.3. During the Auction
Stay involved in your auction while it's running. You're likely to get questions from potential buyers; answer those questions promptly and accurately. You might also see bidders who make you nervous moving in on your auction, like a bidder who registered yesterday and is already bidding on three cars. Check the auction often to see who's bidding. If you have a question about a low-feedback buyer, contact that person to make sure they're serious about following through. If you're not convinced, cancel their bid (Section 6.6.2).
Tip: Avoid troublesome bidders during the auction. Before you auction a vehicle, block bidders you know you don't want messing with your auction (Section 6.6), such as bidders with negative feedback, recent Unpaid Item strikes, or no PayPal account.What if nobody bids? You can edit your listing to add information or photos, but chances are that you set your starting price too high; try lowering it. You can also lower your reserve price (Section 5.4.5), even if potential buyers have already made bids on your auction.
Note: When you lower a reserve price, eBay sends an email to all bidders notifying them of the price change, but still keeping the reserve a secret. If you lower the reserve price to meet the high bidder's current bid, eBay automatically lowers the high bid to $1 below the new reserve price, giving the high bidder a chance to confirm that he or she still wants the vehicle. In other words, you can't force the high bidder to buy your car simply by dropping your reserve to meet her bid.8.2.4. Crossing the Finish Line
The transaction is complete when you've received your money and turned over the car, the keys, and the title to the buyer. You specified payment and shipping terms in the auction listing, and the buyer should go by these; you're under no obligation to change your terms if the buyer finds them inconvenient. When the buyer arrives to pick up the car, have a receipt ready for both of you to sign. You also have to transfer the vehicle's title to the buyer. Different states have different rules governing title transfers, so check with your state's Department of Motor Vehicles to find out what you need to do. Don't transfer the title until you've got the payment in handcash nestled in your wallet or a personal check safely cleared in your bank account.
8.2.4.1 What if there's no sale?
Buyer's remorse is widespread on eBay Motors. That hot-looking car a buyer can't live without can look a lot colder when the time comes to fork over the cash. If the winning bidder backs out, or if the auction didn't meet your reserve price, you have two options:
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Relist the vehicle . After the auction has ended, go to the auction page and click the Relist link. eBay takes you through the listing process again, with most of the fields filled in and choices made. Change anything you want to change; click through each of the Sell Your Item form's five steps to list the item again.
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Make a Second Chance Offer (SCO) . You can contact any of your bidders and offer to sell them the vehicle at a lower price than the auction's reserve price. You can send a nonwinning bidder an SCO from your My eBay page: look under Items I've Sold, find the vehicle, then use the drop-down menu to select Send a Second Chance Offer. Or you can click the Second Chance Offer link on the auction page itself. Either lets you send an underbidder a Second Chance Offer.
8.2.5. Tips for a Successful Sale
Car sales are hot, hot, hot. Vehicles zoom off the eBay Motors site at an astonishing rate. To attract buyers to your auction and get the bidding off to a good start, follow these tips.
8.2.5.1 Build up your feedback score
You know you're honest, but there's only one measure eBayers rely on to confirm that: your feedback rating (Section 2.1). If you try to sell a car with a brand-new account and a low feedback rating, your auction might get some bids, but it won't generate the excitement it would if you had a nice, high feedback score and a 100 percent positive rating. If you want to get a good price for your car, don't rush it into an auction. Spend some time on eBay, get to know the site, and prove that you're someone worth doing business with.
8.2.5.2 Make your vehicle look great
Before you start snapping photos, make sure your car looks its best. On the outside, give it a wash and a wax, shine up that chrome, clean the windows , and polish the hubcaps and tires until they gleam. Inside, wipe off the dashboard, clean out any junk from the back seat and the trunk, vacuum the rugs and the seats, and take those fuzzy dice off the rearview mirror. The car should look ready for its new owner to hop in and drive it away.
8.2.5.3 Perform needed maintenance
Spring for routine servicing or an oil change if it's time, and take care of any minor maintenance issues you've been putting off. Dig out maintenance records and include information about what was done and when in your item description. Buyers are impressed by someone who takes good care of his vehicle.
8.2.5.4 Think like a buyer
If you were buying a car online, what would you want to know about it before you bid? Play up any extras, like an enhanced sound system or headrest DVD screens for the kids. But don't downplay the problems. If the rugs are stained or the upholstery is torn, say so. If you've driven the car for five years , smoking cigars with the windows rolled up while transporting a couple of carsick German shepherds, buyers will want to know. (If you're a nonsmoker who doesn't own a pet, they'll want to know that, too.) An honest description makes you more trustworthy as a seller.
8.2.5.5 Advertise locally
Even while you're running an auction on eBay, put a For Sale sign in the car and tack up some flyers around town. For a minimal cost, you might be able to sell to a local buyer. Just remember to cancel your eBay auction before it endsand don't forget eBay's 12- hour rule (Section 5.6)! If you do advertise locally, say in your auction terms that you reserve the right to end the auction early if you make a local sale. Before you end an auction early, cancel all active bids. And be aware that if you cancel a running auction, you forfeit your insertion fees.
8.2.5.6 Have the vehicle inspected
Buyers may be more confident bidding on a car that's been inspected by a third party. You can let buyers pay for an independent inspection (Section 4.2.3.1), or you can have one done yourself and share the results with bidders in your item description.
8.2.5.7 Spiff up your listing with CARad
CARad, shown in Figure 8-8, is an eBay subsidiary that helps you create an attractive, complete, professional-looking listing. CARad lets you choose and even customize a listing template and select your preferred photo layout. It offers some cool photo-display options, like an impressive zoom feature, and hosts up to 35 photos for your listingas opposed to eBay's max of 24. During and after the auction, CARad offers a variety of management tools, like an email manager and listing reports . CARad costs $9.95 for a listing (that's in addition to the eBay Motors insertion fee) or, if you have a lot of cars to sell, $299 a month for unlimited use. Check it out at www.carad.com.
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8.2.5.8 Get Help
It's always true: the only question you really regret is the one you didn't ask. So if you have questions about what you should do before, during, or after an eBay Motors sale, ask. At the top of every auction page on the eBay Motors site is a Live Help link. Click it if you want to chat online with an eBay staffer. (Be sure that you follow a link from eBay Motorsnot the main eBay siteto chat with a vehicle specialist.)
To get advice from other eBayers who've been there, jump into one of the discussions going on in an eBay Motorsrelated discussion board. From the eBay home page, go to Community Discussion Boards and, under Category Specific Discussion Boards, select either eBay Motors or Motorcycle Boulevard.
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