See all Motoring AdviceIt’s not difficult to write a good classified ad when selling your car, and yet it’s clearly something with which people struggle. From poor-quality photography to the usual clichés, despite the fact that writing an ad for your car is simple, it’s very easy to put off a buyer faced with a line-up of similar cars and looking for a reason not to buy yours. Don’t give them one.
Remember, you’re not just selling a car, you’re selling yourself as a responsible, honest owner, open about a car’s faults while still standing by its good points. And the best way to communicate that is by first writing a straightforward ad that’s brief, packed full of useful information, low on stock catchphrases and which will encourage a buyer to make the phone call.
Here’s all you need to know about creating the perfect car ad.
Photography
Take a little bit of care when you’re shooting photos of your car as they’re the first thing that will catch a potential buyer’s eye. Take the photos during the day (preferably when it’s not raining), not too long after the car has been washed. Find a clear, open space to take the shots and if you don’t have room at home, drive somewhere else. Make sure to cover the car from all angles including a good front three-quarter shot (front and side) and don’t be afraid to take pictures of any damage to the bodywork as it’s important to be upfront about any defects. Take some detail shots of a valid tax or NCT disc if you have them and of the car’s odometer showing its mileage. If you’re taking photos of the interior (you should) be sure to give it a clean, vacuuming the mats. While there’s no issue taking pictures of a car using your phone, be sure to turn it sideways and shoot the pictures in the landscape format as few things make a car ad look less appealing to click on than rubbish-looking portrait shots.
Tell the buyer what the car is
Before describing its condition, tell the buyer exactly what they’re looking at. Give the make and model, the grade (SVE, GT, LS, Titanium — things of that nature which can indicate the car’s level of spec), the year of registration, colour, engine size/type, fuel, gearbox and horsepower. The latter is actually important as carmakers often sell cars with similarly sized engines but with different power outputs. If in doubt, look it up.
List its good points
Avoid subjective phrases like “drives well” and instead objectively list what the car has going for it, but always do so honestly. “Taxed and NCT’d”, “always garaged”, “full service history”, “one owner from new” are good things to list if they’re true. The same for any upgrades beyond base model spec such as an attractive set of wheels. Do mention any desirable equipment such as air conditioning, built-in navigation, electrically-adjustable seats, automatic gearbox or a heated windscreen, though, as it isn’t the nineties any more, you can probably do without mentioning if a car has electric windows or power steering. Don’t go overboard on the acronyms; FSH (full service history), AC (air conditioning) and the like are well-known, but others may be confusing for buyers. If a car has never been smoked or vaped in (the latter can leave a horrid sticky coating on interiors) and has never carried pets, do say so.
Any recent work?
Be sure to mention if your car has either been recently serviced (i.e. within the last 2,000km or so) or has had any major work done such as a replacement timing belt or head gasket. Buyers will likely have done their research and will know a model’s weak points, so mentioning that common faults have been rectified is great. It’s definitely worth mentioning any other work too as a prospective buyer will know that someone believed there was enough life left in the car for the work to be worth doing as well as it providing reassurance that they won’t have to fork out for repair work themselves.
Be honest about its faults
Buyers won’t expect a 10-year-old car to be unblemished, so there’s no need to list every stone chip. Do mention any significant dents or scrapes as that’s something buyers will want to know about. Also mention any mechanical faults that may be relevant. Your car may have failed an NCT and you may not be bothered getting the work done yourself, so if that’s the case mention on what points the car failed and include a photo of the NCT fail sheet.
Avoid clichés like the plague
You need to be brief when writing a good car ad, which means that every word has to add value to the car. Some common stock phrases to avoid include:
- Drives well (or similar)
- First to see will buy (meaningless and probably untrue)
- Future classic (all cars become classics if they survive long enough)
- No timewasters/tyre-kickers (needlessly abrasive)
- Cash is king (sounds seedy)
- No offers (bit abrasive and can put buyers off)
Another thing worth avoiding is writing the ad entirely in capital letters. It doesn’t just look like you’re shouting at the buyer, it looks like you can’t operate a keyboard.
Name your price
How you price your car will depend on what you deem to be its market value and that’s something that needs to be researched. When it comes to writing the ad though, two phrases to avoid at all costs are POA (price on application) and ONO (or nearest offer). POA means that a potential buyer needs to call the seller to enquire about the car’s price before they even consider anything else. ONO suggests that the seller is open to offers on the car (which is good), but given that buyers are going to want to negotiate on the price anyway, it’s best to make some room for that when you’re pricing the car in the first place, making the ONO bit extraneous.