Whether you believe it or not, most people buy with their eyes and their hands. Don't underestimate the power of feeling a steering wheel in your hand, or looking over the leather interior that is shimmering in the sunlight... okay that is a bit much, but you get the idea.
This is why it is so important to make the effort to clean your car, inside and out. Make it sparkle! Popping an air freshener in the car will also get rid of any musty smells that older, used cars tend to have, it also gives that 'just out of a showroom' feel and smell. If it appears as though the interior and exterior of the car have had little maintenance, the buyer may assume the same is true of the engine and other parts of the car. First impressions can be everything.
Compare the market. Not to sound like the meerkat from those adverts, but this is really important to guarantee a quick, fair sale. Find out what price the car you are currently selling is going for in your area, this is a good basis for what you would ideally like to sell your car for and whether what you were initially asking for is or was a reasonable price. You also don't want to sell your car for much cheaper and lose out on a couple of hundred pounds, so this is quite an important thing for you to do first and foremost.
When you are advertising the car, don't forget to write down everything about your car that makes it different, competitive and sale-able. For example, if you have just had the clutch and brake replaced, let the buyer know this - "brand new clutch and brake installed on (_insert date here__)". If you have kept all of your maintenance records for any work carried out since ownership of the car, let the buyer know that these records are available to be viewed. Any cosmetic/performance modifications you have had done to the car, let the buyer know of this. The more information you can provide, the more confidently you can haggle a decent price with your potential buyer. Research the important or desirable features of the vehicle to become an effective salesperson. A skim through the owners' manual is a good place to find the answers.
Effectively advertise your car, these days you don't have to spend a penny to advertise personal items thanks to online advertising and free ad websites. By effectively, we mean put a picture up of the car, you'll be surprised how many cars are overlooked because they have no image to look at - don't forget customers buy with their eyes! There are many free photo hosting websites out there - photobucket.com is one or image shack. Both of these generate a link where you can copy it on to your online ad so buyers can see it. The more photos, the better, - inside & out. If computers and technology aren't your forte, then why not put a 'For Sale' sign in the window of the car, along with price, statistics and MOT date and park it on a busy road. You'll be surprised how many people sell their cars this way.
Lastly, don't forget about the payment. Make sure the buyer of the vehicle doesn't pay with cheque, as much as you'd like to trust every person that says they have the correct amount of money in their bank to pay, can you guarantee that when they walk off with your car they haven't left you with a duff cheque?? Make them pay with cash or a certified cheque! A certified check can be obtained from the buyer's bank and guarantees that they have the funds available in their account.
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