Cycletrader worth $30?

[John Bennett]

Have any of you guys had success with Cycletrader.com?

They charge $30 for an advertisement. I have a 99 Bandit I'm trying to sell and I live in Lufkin (not the biggest bike market in the world).

Do you think it's worth it?

[AggieVFR]

I've had great luck finding and buying bikes there, but not great luck selling. Granted, the Quadracer and CR500R I had advertised with them have a limited market, so that was a contributing factor. You'll have to watch them like a hawk for errors and make sure they actually renew your ad when you go to renew it. I've had problems with their renewal system, so has my dad, and a few of my friends have had problems with errors. Just be on the lookout. They know their product reaches a wide audience that noone else can, so they can be a bit complacent. Good luck.

[Tourmeister]

Howdy,

:tab If you have a place where you can just host a single page website with pics and description of the bike, I would do that. Then simply visit some Suzuki/Bandit/Sport Touring forums and mailing lists and let them know. Most places like this don't mind a single post letting them know of the bike, repeated posts are frowned upon in most places.

:tab At one time, you could go to the traderonline site and post a free ad that would run for quite some time. Include a link to your webpage in that ad so people can see pics and a better description. I had good luck this way selling our Virago 535, not a hot selling bike. We tried the paper CycleTrader for the Triumph Legend and had zero luck even after running it for several months. It did not help that when it first came out, they had a picture of an RV camper with our description instead of our bike!! Chris is right, you really have to watch them because they make tons of errors.

:tab Of course, you can advertise here for free. There is also the Houston SportBike Network, Blue Goose Riders, Texas Sportbike Association, etc,... The B12 is a popular bike.

Adios,

[hillcountry]

I tried it about 6 months ago and didn't even get a call but I was trying to sell a Triumph Sprint. A bandit may go quicker.

Good luck!

[vfrhugh]

John,
I’ve had good experience with Cycle Trader. Two sold and one bought. The trick selling is to price your motorcycle fairly. I looked at what others were selling the same bike for and priced mine $50 less. One I delivered 400 miles on a trailer and the other I met the buyer half way. I both cases the buyer sent me $200 deposit/travel money. If they didn’t like the bike I wasn’t out anything but time. A buyer has to be serious to send a complete stranger $200. I had no response with newspaper classified adds. It also helps to have a good photo on the web site. Good luck selling your motorcycle. I hope it’s just to buy another one.

http://home.houston.rr.com/howellext/vfrhugh.jpg
vfr hugh

[John Bennett]

Thanks for the input guys!!! http://www.budoseek.net/vbulletin/images/icons/icon14a.gif

I made this webpage for my Bandit...

http://www.lufkinscrc.org/bandit

Are there any improvements or changes you would make to this webpage?

Do you think the price is too high? Too low?
KBB Trade=$3200, Retail=$4700

Should I include information about delivery options, or discuss that after I get an offer?

Any help appreciated!

[Tourmeister]

Howdy,

:tab The webpage looks okay. How many miles on the current set of tires? Original chain? I'm jealous of all that underseat storage!! VFR's are lame in that regard.

:tab A word of caution about test rides. I have sold four bikes. In every case I allowed a test ride, but only under the following conditions. First, the person had to buy the bike. They could pay cash (my wife works at a bank and could verify it was not counterfeit), certified check, or cashier's check. Then they could go for a ride and I would go with them to make sure they did not rag the bike. Upon our return, if they decided they did not want the bike, I bought it back from them. This seems like a lot of work but it will discourage joy riders and all but serious inquiries. All of my bikes sold to the first person that showed up and rode them. Also, if anything does happen to the bike, you are not screwed.

Adios,

[John Bennett]

Thanks guys!

Scott, I like the idea of getting some money before allowing test rides. That had not occured to me.

When I sold my KLR650 last year the prospective buyers were pretty honest. I offered them all a test ride. Two guys who I could tell really weren't interest declined. The Bandit I will do differently because it can be quite a handful. The power on that thing will sneak up behind you and bite you in the butt.

I was gonna leave out from my ad the details like tires and maintenance and discuss those personally with anyone who inquired.