5 reasons why I can't sell my car at online auction.

This is a very common question from people attempting to sell their vehicle at an online auction. I'm going to make this a short one, because it is ridiculously simple to answer. It is usually one of 5 reasons.

1. Your starting bid is too high. People see your car at auction, they see that nobody else has bid on it yet, therefore it is an undesirable vehicle. "If nobody else wants it why would I?". If you have a reserve price (least amount you'll take) on your car or truck then what difference does it make if you start it at $1.00. I know you're are thinking that "anyone that would bid that low is not serious about buying it". That doesn't matter. What matters is when the real buyers see that it is now at $7,200 with 46 bids they believe it is a desirable vehicle. "Other people want it, it must be good." People don't wear Nike tennis shoes because of the quality, they wear them because they saw someone else wear them, simple mob mentality principle.
2. Bad description, pictures and video. If you post a car with 3 pictures and a couple of sentences, congratulations I can see your future and it is bleak. You won't sell the car. No effort... no reward. You should have at least 15 or 20 pictures and 2 or 3 paragraphs to effectively describe your vehicle. Also, the more text you have in a description, the more keywords that will kick out in a search engine query. This will increase the amount of traffic you get to see your auction in the first place. On VprojectCar you can also post with videos if you are selling a project car and this drastically increases the confidence level of any buyer.
3. Communication. I can't believe how many times I've received an email on one of my vehicles that was posted at an online auction that at the end of their question they state "Please Reply". What? This tells me that they have experienced asking questions to other sellers and they have gotten no reply. That makes me happy because that means that I'm going to sell my vehicle, and for more money and the people that didn't reply to the bidders questions will get the opportunity to either cheap sell their vehicle or have to re-list it.
4. Timing. If you allow your vehicles auction to end in the middle of a work week during the day, the odds are you will decrease the amount of last minute bidders. Some people will be at work and are not around a computer and others will be involved in their daily rituals and completely forget that they were going to bid on it in the first place. Next thing you know, you will be getting an email stating that they missed the auction and was willing to give way more for it than it brought. If you close your auction during dinner time, you will get the same reaction. So, it is best to close an auction when you think that your target market will be relaxing for the evening. I'm in the Midwest and I try to close my auctions to coincide with the time differences from coast to coast. Usually I end them around 8:00 p.m. Central Time. Again, this maximizes the amount of people that have a chance to see the auction end. The end is where the action is.
5. Your price is too high! I know you have the nicest 2001 Dodge Caravan anywhere and it is worth way more than any book or person would even understand. Truth is, you may be right, but you will still own your vehicle. It just won't sell. Unfortunately we live on a planet called Earth and we have to abide by principles referred to as reality and these realities have a direct impact on what your car is worth. Books are just guides and nobody will want to give you top price of any book no matter how nice your vehicle is. Also, availability has a lot to do with pricing your vehicle. You may have the nicest 2004 Chevy Corvette, but unfortunately GM made a few more of those cars than just yours. There may be hundreds or thousands of these cars available for sale and this will effect supply and demand aspects of your auction. Do some research, see what other vehicles are being sold for. Notice I didn't say what other people are asking for a car but what two people actually agreed upon as a final price. Then make realistic adjustments to your price. Face it, if you gave the farm for it a few years back, odds are it went down in value (unless of course it was a collectible, muscle car, classic). You will be less stressed out if you just sell it an get on with your life. I'm not saying to dump it. Well this leads me to another point about car pricing. The internet is available to most of the civilized world. And many of the people that are looking for your specific car are seriously in the market and have done their own research in advance of bidding. If you think that you are the only person that knows what your car is worth, I'm sorry my friend, you are sadly mistaken.

Ok, I lied this wasn't a short article. I just couldn't help myself. These principles are so obvious that it had to be said. I have successfully sold hundreds of vehicles at online auctions. There is no magic formula to selling each one, but if you put some of these principles in play, you will drastically increase your chance of success. Good luck!

Source: http://www.thecontentcorner.com/Article/5-reasons-why-I-can-t-sell-my-car-at-online-auction-/62986