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Pakwheels is a common user based community emphasizing on helping each other outand diminishing the risk of being conned by showroom owners/mechanics/spare parts dealers.

Many of us already know how matters unfold in the used car market: If youre looking for a Mitsubishi Lancer 2005 and find it parked in a showroom, it will be classified as the most reliable car and drive pleasure is unmatchable and since it is to

tal genuine, hence priced at 1 Million. However if God forbid, you visit the sameshowroom to sell your Lancer 2005, you will be greeted with remarks such as Outof market Maintenance too expensive re-painted hood, and since it is such a pain, thedealer will offer to do you a favor and buy it off at 0.7 Million, which is unreasonable, and so is the 1 Million tag.

Pakwheels essence was to diminish the huge dealers margin. A seller would post anad of his Lancer 2005, price it reasonably, the potential buyer would inspect itand they would bargain to a deal.

However, this essence was lost somewhere. Sellers started to overprice their vehicles, and buyers started to make ridiculous offers resulting in frustrated sell

ers and disappointed buyers. This post is to address the common mistakes buyersand sellers make on Pakwheels, and tips to find better deals.

Common Seller Mistakes

No Details:In many cases, sellers post the make and model, and leave the rest to potentialbuyers imagination. The potential buyer opens the thread, sees nothing and hits the x button on the right corner of his explorers window. Presentation is a key aspect in the selling business. If it doesnt appeal, its the end of the game. The result is the thread being buried under the newer threads within the first half hourof posting.

No Photos:Although the decision of buying a car isnt reached solely by looking at photos, they do play a very vital role in reaching that decision. We tend to believe whatwe see. I have personally come across situations when an acquaintance bought aNissan Sunny instead of a Suzuki Khyber which he planned to buy just because thephotos of that Sunny were mouthwatering and he couldnt resist visiting to see the car.

No Phone Number/Contact details:Yes, theres an option of posting a comment, but a serious buyer who is looking for a similar car will just pick up his phone, plan a meet and inspect the car. If

theres no number provided, hell move to the next car available. Were an impatientnation; we cant wait for an undetermined period for the poster to post a commentand keep logging on and refreshing that particular thread meanwhile.

Overpricing the car :This is unarguably the most critical mistake sellers make : Hypothetically foreseeing that there is going to be bargaining involved, many sellers keep a marginof up to 15% in a vehicles demand and the price theyll sell it off for. This critically lowers the chances of sale because many potential buyers dont even read thedetails after seeing a car which is priced way above the market.

Over-rating the car:

The phenomenon: The car is total genuine, immaculate condition, 45,000 driven, single owner, Islamabad, etc etc.The fact: Genuine as far as the papers are concerned, immaculate only when parke

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d, meter reversed, single owner because has been on open letter for a while, present in Islamabad however registered in Quetta.The result: Wastage of time of both buyer and seller. Potential buyers are disappointed and negative comments on the ad making it controversial and creating doubts in the minds of potential buyers.

Indecisiveness:One of the key factors in selling a car is deciding that you want to sell it. Ifyoure still contemplating on whether to sell it or not, you should wait until youre clear in the head. Thoughts like If I get 875,000, Ill sell it, and otherwise Ill keep it will not favor your cause. In fact, it harms it by keeping your car ondisplay for long. A general phenomenon is you get the best offers within the first week. If your car has been there for over a couple of months, it makes the potential buyers think about the reason for it not been sold for so long.

Attitude:As soon as you post an advertisement, you become a seller. Politeness is the fir

st principle in selling ethics. If you adopt a rude tone, thrash and threaten any members, you may as well say good bye to any chances you have at selling yourvehicle. No one likes to deal with a badmouthed arrogant bighead.

Tricky business it is then, selling a car online.

Here is a 10 Tips summary to what you should do while selling a car.

1- Decide if you really want to sell your car or not.

2- Know the market value of your car. Visit a few showrooms to get your car priced. Generally, dealers will quote you about 8-10% lesser than they will ask fora similar vehicle.

3- Price your car correctly. Leave a margin for bargaining. 2.5-3% margin is reasonable enough to keep your price in competition without making you look stubborn and inflexible.

4- Post maximum details. Ads posted with vague details create doubts in the minds of potential buyers.

5- Post quality photos. Presentation is one of the key factors in selling business. Photos of a dirty vehicle covered in dust and parked near a peg of garbage is not the way to go. Take photos in daylight to enhance the shine. Take severalphotos from different angles, and also include the photos of engine bay and interior photos.

6- Be honest. State the work needed to be done on the vehicle. Although it seemsincorrect at first, but honesty always pays. For a start, it will filter the buyers who actually are looking for such vehicle from the ones with inflated expectations.

7- Be polite. There are always low-ballers looking for a steal of a deal who post ridiculous comments to bring your price down. The best way is to politely turnthem down by stating Thank you for your offer. Arguing uselessly will derail yourthread from buying/selling to useless rants.

8- Keep your phone on. A potential buyer will call once. People looking for a Ho

nda Civic 2000 will make a list of all the 2000 Civics theyre interested in, andstart calling. If a call goes unattended, they will dial the next number in thelist.

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9- Filter the potential buyers from time wasters: A lot can be understood when you talk to someone on the phone. Do not give wrong impressions. Be clear about the final price you will let it go for in order to filter the buyers who plan tonegotiate enormously.

10- Document every transaction. Get everything in written. State the token money

paid, the amount remaining and the date of remaining payment.