How To Write An Effective Classified Ad

Overview:

Classified Ads are an effective advertising medium. Their biggest advantage is in attracting a specific group of buyers who are interested enough in the item being sold so all of the typical marketing hype isn't required to gain their attention. Items placed for sale in classified ads are (just as the name implies) "classified" by categories that further define their content. Therefore the odds are pretty good that anyone browsing your ad is a prospective buyer. However, there are generally a number of competing items within that classification or category so you need to make your ad stand out from the rest if you want your item to sell quickly and at the price you desire. We'll throw out a few pointers here for you to consider before placing your ad to help make it an effective ad. We'll try to make this information apply specifically towards RV products as much as possible.

Information and Details:

Vague ads just don't cut it. You need to provide enough of the basic details right up front. If many of the major points of interest are missing you probably won't get many inquiries on your ad. People just don't want to bother wasting their time asking things that should have been mentioned up front. If you can further define the item you have for sale your contacts will be better qualified and won't waste your time either. However, you don't want to bore a prospective buyer with an overload of unimportant details either. For this reason we've incorporated most of the specific details as fill-in boxes on your new ad form. That gives you more room in the detailed comments to list the bells and whistles and any other unique details.

The comments section is your freelance section where you can state anything you want regarding the RV. Typically this includes some of the popular options. Try not to go overboard on this. Don't list things that are standard equipment on that model because most buyers will know that. Instead, concentrate on any of the major options. Try to put yourself in the buyer's place. What type of information do you want to know when looking for a coach? Put that type of information into your ad.

Pricing Your Item:

Remember that most classified ads are geared towards someone looking to save a buck. If money was no object they'd buy new from a dealer. Therefore be realistic when setting a price. Remember, they are not interested in if you are upside down in payments or not. It's what it's worth to them that counts. If you are asking too much, you'll lose prospective buyers. You can generally ask a bit more than you are willing to take to allow for a little bit of room for the buyer who just feels they have to negotiate a better deal but don't make it too high or else those who take prices more literally will not bother to contact you. Always have a rock bottom price established in your mind ahead of time so that your emotions won't over-rule during the bargaining procedure.

Give It Time:

Classified ads for major items, such as motorhomes, don't sell overnight. It may take a few months until the right buyer comes along. Give yourself enough time to move it and don't wait until the last minute. This gives you time to reject any lowball offers and hold out for realistic ones. The time of year will also affect this because there are certain hot seasons as well as cold seasons for the RV industry. Generally, RV accessories will sell fairly quickly though as long as they are priced realistically.

Say It With Pictures:

The old proverb "A picture is worth a thousand words" is very true. There's room for up to 10 pictures on your ad. Use them! Try to take nice high resolution pictures with a decent camera. Digital images made with an inexpensive camera just won't do your RV any justice when blown up to full screen. Ideally you'd take pictures and resize them to 1024x768 pixels or at least 800x600. Our software will automatically create the smaller images and thumbnails that will be shown within the ad. Keep in mind that the photos that you upload will remain in the same orientation that you shot them with. If your camera was upside down or sideways, that's the way the photos will appear in your ad. If you need to change their orientation you'll need to do that in your photo editing software on your computer. Some photo viewers automatically rotate photos so that you can view them but that is only in your software. The photo will remain sideways or whatever when you upload it. The best bet is to make sure your photos are taken in landscape format (horizontally) rather than portrait format (vertically) to prevent problems later on. Then view them in your photo editing software to ensure they are saved so that they are not sideways or upside down. If you mess this up you'll have to correct your photos on your PC and then edit your ad to upload the new photos over the old ones.

Also, don't shoot at any old time of day. If there is bright sunlight shining in your RV's windows the pictures will be blown away by the high contrast lighting. Wait until an overcast day or use flash if needed. Remember that flash tends to bounce off shiny surfaces so plan your camera angles accordingly and don't shoot into any mirrors. Most buyers want to see two exterior shots, one from the front corner and one from the rear corner. That will show them both sides and the front and the rear of the RV with only two images. Then, shoot the major interior areas with the rest. If nothing else, you can always scan the floor plan from a brochure and make it your final picture. Remember that a picture of the galley area will convey more information regarding the refrigerator style and size, countertop material, stove and sink arrangement, etc than a few lines of text in your ad will.

Summary:

We've tried to make the Classified Ads section as easy to operate for both the buyer and seller while still providing plenty of information about each item. Our goal is to make it just another valuable resource for the members of the Tiffin RV Network.

Absolutely No Affiliation exists between this group and Tiffin Motor Homes Inc or the Allegro Club. This website neither endorses or discourages the use or purchase of any products offered for sale on this website. All ad content is the sole responsibility of the person placing the ad and any verification of authenticity rests with the buyer. Neither Tiffin Motor Homes Inc. nor the website administration endorse or accept any responsibility regarding any transaction occuring between the selling party and buyer of any item offered for sale on this website.