So, you have a used outboard motor that you want to sell. Maybe you don't need it anymore, maybe you want to upgrade or downgrade, maybe you just need some cash? There are many options available to you that will help you sell your used outboard motor fairly quickly. I outlined some options for you that should help.

The most important thing to remember when trying to sell a used outboard motor in today's busy marketplace is that:

THE MORE PLACES YOUR AD APPEARS...
THE BETTER THE ODDS OF YOUR AD BEING FOUND AND
THE FASTER YOUR USED OUTBOARD MOTOR WILL SELL!

Marine Dealers

First things first. I have nothing against yacht marine dealers, but you must understand one simple truth. They are in business to make money.

Now there is nothing wrong with that, however, our purpose is to help you to sell your own used outboard motor, keeping most, if not ALL of the profit. They accomplish their simple goal by buying low and selling as high as the market will allow.

Consignment sales always come secondary to their own 'bought-and-paid-for' inventory and they must make a profit when selling and item for you. This profit can be a percentage of the sale or a commission / flat fee. Either way, you will take home far less than you had originally hoped for and far less than had you taken the time to sell it yourself.

Many Marine Dealers will take your used outboard motor and display it in their showrooms for a negotiate fee. The odds are against a fast sale for the price you want when your motor only gets seen by people who visit only one place.

Trading In

This is no different than the used car market. One of two things are going to happen:

1. You will get what you think your outboard is worth in a trade-in allowance and the dealer will not discount their new item as steeply to cover their loss on your trade = you think you are happy but you are paying too much for the next item

OR

2. You will take less than you wanted or maybe entitled to on your trade in and probably still not get the best deal on the next item

Do you see the theme here? You lose on a trade-in. You will ALWAYS get a better deal by negotiating a price WITHOUT a trade. They really don't want your used outboard motor because they don't want to offend you with how little they are really willing to pay for it. Yes, they will sell it for big profit but you will not get any of that. Unless you have a really highly-desired make or model to trade and don't want much money for it, you lose all your bargaining power. Sell it first... yourself or anyway you can. Get rid of it BEFORE you try to buy another boat.

Print Ads

Placing a printed ad can be effective at reaching and targetting potential buyers and prior to the internet, this was pretty much the only option other than using a dealer's showroom.

While there is still a place for print ads, your reach will be limited and since many of these publications are not free anymore, you will be missing the people who refuse to pay for a static ad medium where they actually have to look at each and every page to see what is for sale.

The online versions offered by some publishers of printed ads often come at an additional expense and not all ads appear in both places. The other major issue is that printed ads cost much more money and run in limited distribution areas for a short period of time. The return on investment is far less now than before the internet took off.

Printed ad resources include:

• Newspapers
• Local Buy & Sell Publications
• Boat Trader Type Magazines (several distribution areas available)
• Boating Magazines (national distribution)

Internet Advertising

I won't bother telling you how many people turn to their web browser to find products and services online. I know I would be preaching to the choir.

Suffice to say, that posting ads (yes I said ads... plural) online is likely the most efficient use of your advertising time and money. A well-crafted online ad will be exposed across the world, but more importantly, will be found by shoppers looking for a used outboard motor in YOUR area. There is no additional cost to having all that exposure. Any good quality ad, complete with the right information and on a site that is frequented not only by people but search engines, will increase your exposure exponentially overnight.

By well crafted, I mean that it contains all the details that a prospective buyer would want to see before making an offer to purchase. Furthermore, the site must be made search-engine friendly and be accessible to people on dial-up internet connections using an old internet browser.

The content of your ad should contain all the details that you would want to know when shopping for a used outboard motor. There should be at least one flattering photo of your boat to peak curiosity and excite the imagination.

There are hundreds of websites online that have used boat and outboard motor ads. Of those sites, only a few hundred are actually of sufficient quality to attract both buyers and search engines. Of those hundreds, only a handful are dedicated to the Canadian marketplace. Of those handful in Canada only a few offer a quality ad that meets my standards for layout, content and ease-of-use.

If you are trying to sell a used outboard motor or boat in Canada, you need to advertise on a Canadian website. The American used boat market is hundreds of time larger than ours and, as such, the pricing is lower, the availability and selection is higher and there are more used boat websites.

If your item is in Canada, you are far more likely to sell it to a Canadian, somewhere in your Province than anyone else.

To find Canadian sites on which to advertise your used outboard motor, you can simply Google a term like: "used outboard motors for sale in canada".

I have picked one particular site that I like that meets all my criteria and does something that most others don't. They actually offer FREE advertising.

This site features used power boats, sailboats, dinghies, outboard motors, boat trailers and marine appliances for sale by owner. There are some ads by dealers and brokers, but most of the ads are from private vendors. Most of the ads are Canadian but it seems as though some Americans have found success in advertising on this site since there are US boats and motors online too.

No matter what shape your motor is in, you can always count on this one fact that people will not consider your motor if... [ Read More ]

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