Prefer to listen to the podcast version of this guide?
“Why am I having bad luck selling my semi-truck?”
So, you’re attempting to sell a used commercial semi-truck or trailer, but for one reason or another, you’re either not getting any bites or the interested parties tend to evaporate before your very eyes. What gives, right? In this guide, we’re going to explain some of the reasons why your deals are falling through or failing to materialize in the first place.
1. You’re Vague About Pricing or Payment
While you’re entitled to stick a “Call For Price” listing on your semi-truck sale listing, you’re essentially giving semi-truck buyers an errand to carry out, whereas the next listing down may be upfront about their requested price.
Also, if you’re not clear about how you expect to be paid, commercial truck shoppers may assume whatever they’d like—which can lead to hiccups and deal derailments further into the transaction.
2. You Overpriced Your Semi-Truck
So, you took down the “Call For Price” listing and replaced it with a high-ball offer. This is somewhat of a “two steps forward, one step back” approach. Though you may feel you’re entitled to that price, it pays to be realistic—literally.
When determining a price for your semi-truck for sale, do some research into how much similar models with similar mileage are selling for. Consider how much money you’re likely to save with an easier transaction process versus the time wasted as you’re getting whittled down from your higher asking price or the time in which your phone isn’t ringing at all.
This leads to another possible dealbreaker…
3. You Didn’t Reply Promptly Enough
So, you’re not one to immediately reply to emails, phone calls, and text messages from buyers. That’s fine, but your competition definitely does. The longer you wait to get back with someone calling about your semi-truck for sale, the more likely they are to go with a seller who is Johnny-On-The-Spot about getting back with them.
Answer every call, reply to every text message, and shoot back answers to every email—and not just initial correspondence, but every call, message, or question until the truck is sold. Just like you could lose a buyer with a slow initial response, being slow with additional questions can kill deals at any stage of the selling process.
4. Your Truck Photos Look Like You Took Them With a Potato
If your semi-truck listing isn’t getting any bites, your pictures may be to blame. For a quick sniff test, take a look at your listing and ask yourself, “Would I want to buy this?” If the answer is “eh, probably not,” why would someone else?
The good news is that you don’t need fancy camera equipment or photography classes to take truck photos that will make people want to call. These days, the camera built into your smartphone is more than capable of taking magazine-worthy images. To help you with this, your friends at My Little Salesman have provided a full guide to photographing commercial equipment for sale with nothing more than the camera in your pocket.
5. You Left Out Details That Buyers Want to Know
“Well, if they want to know, they’ll ask.” No, they won’t. They’ll move on.
If you’re hoping to hold back certain details about your semi-truck for sale without consequence, you’re sorely mistaken. If you won’t provide the details upfront, they’ll look to someone who will—the other person selling their truck. The more details you can provide about your semi-truck, the less work you make for buyers. Be ridiculously transparent about every detail, nook, and cranny of the semi-truck you want to sell. Why? Well, because your competition is.
All details will eventually come out. Even if a particular detail turns off a particular buyer, wouldn’t you rather run them off before they call rather than waste their time and your time as a deal-breaker comes to light further along in the transaction process? Even if there are some less-than-perfect aspects of the truck, the buyer will appreciate your honesty and feel better about their purchase.
Put yourself in the buyer’s shoes. Include all model information, engine specifics, mileage, relevant hours, maintenance records, and absolutely anything else a buyer would want to know. The more questions you’re able to anticipate, the less work the buyer will have to do and the more trust they will have in you as a seller.
But while you’re at it…
6. You Left Off Accident Reports
If your semi-truck was involved in an accident and you were hoping to not mention it, nice try. Failing to disclose any accidents will almost always come back to bite you—either in a lost sale, a poor review later, or possibly even legal action. For this reason, it actually pays to include the CarFax report for the semi-truck (usually if a vehicle has a VIN, CarFax has information about it) or any similar record. If you’re not sure about any of these details yourself, beat the buyer to the research race and get to the bottom of the history of the semi-truck you’re selling.
7. You Haven’t Cleaned Up Transactional Speed Bumps
If you’re still paying off the loan on the truck, waiting for official documentation to come in, or have any pending or conditional items that need to be addressed before your semi-truck can be sold, handle them before you list the truck for sale. Truck buyers don’t want a messy purchasing experience, so do what it takes to make the process as easy for them as possible.
8. You’re Dying On The Wrong Hills
It’s fine if you have a rock-bottom price that you refuse to sell below. You can refuse to make any truck upgrades. Those are fine. But if you are being rigid on the less-crucial aspects of the transaction, such as letting all calls go to voicemail and replying only via text message, you may end up losing sales for petty preferences. Communicate with your buyers in the way they want to. Be willing to compromise when it isn’t actually that big of a deal.
You don’t have to be a pushover, just choose your battles accordingly so you can win the deal.
9. Your Truck Isn’t Listed On My Little Salesman
Yes, this last step is a bit of a plug for My Little Salesman, but it encompasses all online semi-truck marketplaces and listing services (we just happen to think ours is the best). While you could just park your semi-truck by the highway with a “For Sale” sign on it, you’re missing out on a lot of eyeballs if your semi-truck isn’t listed for sale, in detail, on a searchable online semi-truck marketplace.
List Your Semi-Truck For Sale Today
In less time than it took you to consume the information in this guide, you also could have signed up to list your semi-truck for sale to buyers all over the world using My Little Salesman. Create individual listings as a seller or place unlimited listings as a heavy equipment dealership—choose whichever route makes the most sense for you. Enjoy no contracts, no commitments, and maximum exposure for your listings.
Simply visit mylittlesalesman.com/sell to get started selling your semi-truck the right way.