Having difficulty selling your bike? | GTAMotorcycle.com

Having difficulty selling your bike?

JoeRider

JoeRider

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Several people are having issues selling their bikes, here is what I consider as legit:

- At least six good quality images with good lighting (all sides + odometer + vin)
- Details (cosmetic + maintenance)
- Listed on multiple sites (Kijiji, Autotrader, Craigslist)

I ignore all other ads as the seller is most likely too lazy (reflects on the maintenance on the bike) or fake ads (seller trying to make their prices look competitive).


Example of bikes to stay clear of. Several Ducati owners purchased a base model bike brand new for 20K and are trying to sell it 7 years later for 14K. No maintenance on the bike has ever been done including:

- changed belts
- check/adjust valves
- coolant
- brake/clutch fluid
- tires
- fork fluid/seals
- battery

The seller considers the bike "MINT" however it requires more than $2500 worth of maintenance (at a reputable Ducati dealer).
 
Agree on most of the above, but actually REPLYING to your inquiries in an extremely timely fashion is also critical. Nothing frustrates me more than someone who lists something for sale that I want to ask a question about, come and see, or just buy outright no questions asked...and you don't get a reply. For hours. Or DAYS. And then all of a sudden 3 days later they answer you. Dude, by then there's almost a 100% chance I've moved on.

A potential buyer should not have to chase the seller. If you're trying to sell something put some damn effort into making it easy for the buyer.

I'm reminded of all of this once again while looking for several new iPhones in our household recently. It's been going like this:

- Quick response but didn't actually bother to read what I asked and didn't provide the requested info in the reply.
- Replies 10-12 hours later after I've already been talking to 3-4 other people who did respond promptly...sorry, you're now at the bottom of the pack.
- Doesn't reply for days only to suddenly come out of the blue and say "Yeah, I still have it".

The people who respond fast and with all the info I asked for (and are happy and prompt to supply any additional info I request) are the ones who've made the sale.
 
I will say that I usually give someone a day. Not everyone can check their phones/ messages all day. But I would, and do, expect an answer by the end of the workday.

Sent from my custom Purple Joe Bass mobile on Tapatalk
 
Joe Bass said:
Not everyone can check their phones/ messages all day.
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I don't automatically discount people who don't reply immediately, but the truth is that I do keep looking for alternatives during that time. In the case of a motorcycle where there may not be 5-10 choices of the same bike you are specifically looking for out there it would be different, but for some items where the market is flooded (cellphones for example), the reality is that the person who replies first is the person who I'm going to pursue.

If I was restricted from when I was able to reply to an an ad I have listed, I'd be sure to initially list it during a time period that I'm off and *am* available consistently - a weekend for example. At least for the first few days of it's listing (when it's going to attract the most attention) I'd be available.

I just got a reply this morning from someone with an iPhone for sale that I inquired about Thursday.
 
Did you stop to consider maybe they are away...or medical issues or other things that kept them from replying right away.
 
-D- said:
Did you stop to consider maybe they are away
Click to expand...

Don't list stuff for sale when you know you're going away and won't be able to reply. Again, that just seems stupid.

...or medical issues or other things that kept them from replying right away.
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Again, I get and respect that, but also as I stated....I move on. If you're the only one selling the item I'm looking at needless to say I'm going to be more patient simply out of lack of other options, but if you're selling (for example) a motorcycle for which there's 25 others listed online that all look to be in equal condition/mileage/price, don't expect that people are going to just sit and wait for a day or 10 for you to reply to an inquiry.
 
The biggest factor that will get it sold is.....P R I C E.

A lot of Kijiji "Liquidators" out there!!
 
PaisaMed said:
The biggest factor that will get it sold is.....P R I C E.

A lot of Kijiji "Liquidators" out there!!
Click to expand...

This is 100% it. If your bike is taking too long to sell then it is priced too high. I will email or call someone who has 1 picture, 1 sentence about the bike, but is selling at a good price. Worst case scenario I lose some of my time to find out the bike needs 5k worth of work before it can get on the road. If youre asking for 2k more than everyone else, you could have 18 million pictures and a 19000 page history of the bike, I am not interested. Maybe someone will eventually email you and make an offer but being out of touch on your price is a good indicator that you will be a completely unreasonable person to deal with.
 
I waited 4 months for a buyer for my last bike at what was a reasonable price. As much as there are some over the top asking prices out there, the number of people who want concours collectible for pinto pricing is undoubtedly higher. I let many walk away without batting an eye. And what about the trade offers!? Like seriously, everyone seems to think they can talk you into trading down in value for something you probably don't even want. I blame reality tv.
 
People need to focus on the person/owner and the what they are getting.
Getting a fair deal results in good karma.
If they are 'giving' you a steal...likely you are getting a lemon...why else are they letting it go for a 'steal'...friend, lol
 
Honestly the market is really over valued right now. People with 2008 CBR1000RR with 40K asking 9 or 10K, when you can buy a brand new 2015 for 11500.
These people are crazy and will never sell
 
Sonduren said:
Honestly the market is really over valued right now. People with 2008 CBR1000RR with 40K asking 9 or 10K, when you can buy a brand new 2015 for 11500.
These people are crazy and will never sell
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I agree with you, it's always funny to see a used bike selling within $500-$1k of a new bike.
To those reading this thread that are new...if you don't get a good vibe about the seller/bike...don't buy it.
 
As others have said, price is the key factor. Everything else is secondary.

Unless you have some sort of a niche vehicle, that's a potential collector item, you lower your asking price until you start having people show up to see what you got.
Having patience is a bonus though, no need to change the price every day. Wait a week or so.

Having a couple pictures and a brief description helps of course, especially if it's a popular item but do not delude yourself that pics will sell your bike.

2nd most important thing, after a price within the market range, is to constantly repost your ad.

Personally I find Craigslist utterly useless, at least for automotive stuff. Kijiji has killed it.
Autotrader is more of a dealer tool. Most private Autotrader ads are also posted on Kijiji.
 
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Sonduren said:
Honestly the market is really over valued right now. People with 2008 CBR1000RR with 40K asking 9 or 10K, when you can buy a brand new 2015 for 11500.
These people are crazy and will never sell
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I'm trying to find a reasonably priced cr50 for my kids. I swear people with worn out 1980 models are asking 500 less than a 2015 model. Wtf?
 
DemonPig said:
2nd most important thing, after a price within the market range, is to constantly repost your ad.
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Agreed...ads get pushed down quickly in some categories and the $3 to bump your post is rediculous when you can copy/paste the description and re-add the photos in a minute or so and have your ad at the top again.

I also agree with just waiting sometimes. When I sold my wifes 250 beginner bike a while back it had been listed for about 2 weeks with not much interest, but eventually the right person came along and snapped it up within 12 hours of them first contacting me. That was, of course, after I was very responsive when he first emailed me - as mentioned above, there's no shortage of motorcycles for sale this time of year and it's definately a buyers market, so being very responsive to his inquiries surely helped me get the sale as he was very clearly motivated to buy ASAP.
 
starboy869 said:
I'm trying to find a reasonably priced cr50 for my kids. I swear people with worn out 1980 models are asking 500 less than a 2015 model. Wtf?
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My first bike was a YZ50 in 1983. My parents paid $275 for it. I saw a similar one listed recently in Oshawa for $2000.

Try selling a trackbike on kijiji. The amount of idiots that have no idea what it costs to build one lowballing an already well-priced one is annoying. I sold mine to a cocky arse that claimed to be a racer (he's never raced and only done 3 trackdays).
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