Research
Preparing the bike
Working out the price
Advertising it
Handling the sale
The next question is how you're going to sell it. Direct to a Trader is the fast and easy way, either through a local dealer or one of the on-line sites such as SellBike, but obviously they want to make a profit selling it on so chances are you won't get the top price. Selling it yourself on one of the on-line market sites like EBay, Autotrader, MCN will give your sale a lot of exposure. You'll be competing with thousands of others so don't lose out with a poorly written advert and get some good photo's to go with it. If your not that great with a camera we've included a link to a decent on-line photo editing site to help you sharpen up your shots.
Good starting point is to look at some of the 'Book Price' sites. We've listed a couple here, each will give a different valuation because of the criteria they use so just take the average. Also note that 'Good' condition usually means absolutely mint! so be realistic is assessing your bike. Trawl around some of the on-line market sites to get an idea of how many of your model are being sold, if there's a glut it'll affect how much you can ask. One of the hardest parts will be working out what to leave on the bike and what to sell seperately. Most buyers will want to customise it to their style... not buy your's. Anything that improves the performance such as Scotoilers, braided brake lines etc will add value, the electric blue titanium footpegs and matching levers probably won't.
It's not just about getting a better price for a cleaned and prepped bike, it's also about shifting it faster. Given a choice of two identical bikes buyers will tend to go for the smarter one, won't you? If your selling it off as a 'run around' or 'do up' project you'll probably not want to spend much more time and money on it, after all you're selling it cheaper so they can spend their money on doing it up (just make sure it can actually 'run around'); otherwise at the very least it should be well cleaned and mechanically sound. Your buyers will have done their homework too, so any defects they find that you haven't pointed out in your advert will become a haggle point to knock the price down. You might find the T-CLOCS list helpfull to check it over, if you're not happy fixing anything you find, book it in for a service job.
Time for a bit of bed time reading. Having a poke around the internet will give you an idea of what the markets like and what you'll need to do. It'll could also help to avoid you getting ripped off. Take a minute to think about why your selling the bike and what sort of buyer you think will go for it, that should help you work out how much to spend on preparing it, what ad to write and the price you'll ask. Put yourself in the buyers shoes and think what you'd do if you came to buy it, amongs other things you'd check it out mechanically and make sure it's not listed as stolen or finance owing. The last thing you want is the bike not starting or databases with wrong information on them, because that sure fire deal will end up walking down the road. So be ahead of the game and check it all first.
You've done your research, prepared the bike, and written a great advert. Buyers are tripping over themselves, so how do you close the sale. Forewarned is forearmed they say, your buyers will have done their own research, have a look at the advice they have and it'll help you form your responses to their questions. Selling really is a game, so don't get rattled if they point out faults or start haggling over prices, just play the game. Remember nobody needs a bike, but they want one, your job is to make them want yours.
Experian Check A Bike costs £19.99, worth checking for peace of mind and to show to any buyers
It's an American thing but you might find it usefull
T-CLOCS
T - Tyres and Wheels
C - Controls
L - Lights
O - Oil
C - Chassis
S - Stands
T - Tyres and Wheels
C - Controls
L - Lights
O - Oil
C - Chassis
S - Stands
A whole range of articles including this one on getting your bike ready for sale
Some straightforward advice on selling your bike
Enter your bike details to find out what it's worth. Shows price for Dealer, Private and Part Exchange
Another up and coming bike pricing site, also does a good review section on each bike
Finally, don't fall foul of the Law, check out the DirectGov website on selling your vehicle and make sure the all important paperwork is completed correctly. Don't forget to send a registered letter to your insurers letting them know it's been sold on.
How to -
Sell your Bike