Ever looked at an online listing for a piece of farm equipment and found yourself with more questions than answers? Me too, a lot. I’m a details person, so maybe it bothers me more than others, but in any case, there’s a lot of poor listings out there. Here’s my opinion on what makes a quality Ag Equipment For Sale listing.

edited 8-12-16 to add reason for selling.. thanks @jerrodwestfahl

TITLE
Year / Make / Model  only

• Keep it simple
• Use long form — instead of “JD”, use “John Deere”
• Use the correct syntax — it’s “9870 STS”, not “9870STS” — spaces and symbols can make a big difference
• Don’t use eBay style or crazy special characters .. ex:  “L@@K”, “****____****”, emoji, etc.
• Maybe in rare cases it’s ok to put “low houred”, “like new” etc, but not on websites that require specific structure. On some websites, your listing may not make it into the right category if you get creative with a custom title, make, or model

 

PRICE
Why even advertise if there isn’t a price?

• Seriously, my guess is 95%+ of people won’t bother to make any contact if no price is listed. You might was well type in “too much” for a price
• I think a number isn’t enough. Use the description area to justify your price, tell whether you’re firm, or if there might be attachments that could be taken off to lower the price. If something needs to be sold as a whole unit and not separated, you’d better put that or expect to be asked
• Sometimes unknown events like repairs may justify a change in price in one way or the other, but I think its best to put in some price, even if it’s too high. Use the description area to forewarn others of a potential change
• If you’re not negotiable, this must go in the description

 

MEDIA
Multiple pictures are a requirement, video might as well be too

• Try to take them outside. Poor lighting makes makes for poor pics and video every time
• Step back to show the machine from all angles, keep pics in order, and zoom/walk closer on critical features like wear items and options
• Don’t forget the inside of the cab – floor, roof, seat, and controls. Power on any displays
• Turn the lights on, even if it’s daylight outside
• Set quality to high, even if you know you’ll need to downsize later  (YouTube does a great job at adapting video to viewers’  internet capabilities)
• Try to avoid shaky video – turn on stability settings, even better use a stabilized camera like the DJI Osmo
• Avoid showing attachments that don’t come with the machine – or better yet take them off before filming
• Have the machine cleaned up inside and out, but not damp – everyone knows faded paint looks better wet
• Make your first picture uploaded to the website one of a good quality overall view – some sites feature the first uploaded pic and it cannot be changed
• Optional: watermark images in a non-obtrusive way

 

DESCRIPTION
Be detailed, be honest. Do it right once so you won’t have ten thousand repetitive questions

Tell the story behind it – before I get to the details, I tend to write a small pargraph about the piece; Basically I write it as if someone on the phone had asked me to describe the piece in some decent level of detail

Line by line list:

• Why are you selling the piece? – Downsizing, traditional rollover, chainging colors, etc
• Usage – hours, aces, etc
• Location – at least a nearby city and state.. no need for an address here unless piece is parked outside in a public place
• Build Sheet – ALL THE OPTIONS: engine, trans, hyd remotes, tires, tire brand, etc. etc. List any options that have been added or taken off (ex: combine 4wd). Keywords are important here for built-in site search options. Ex: MFWD, IVT, 16 row, 120ft, row cleaners
• Specifications for the machine (hp, speed, size, etc.)
• Owner history – how long have you had it, where has it been since new
• What you’ve used it for
• Stored inside / outside
• Condition / inspection – wear items, paint condition, etc. Better yet have a tech do an inspection and include it in the listing
• Repair history
• What piece listed does include
• What piece does not include
• Types of payment accepted and if you’re willing to work with buyers outside your country
• Delivery options – if you were to offer delivery, help loading, etc.
• Price – anything that doesn’t fit in the price box — see above segement
• Financing options

 

CONTACT INFORMATION
No phone number, no calls

• A real phone number – note your time zone, what times are acceptable to call, and if texting is acceptable
• An email address
• I like to put these in a picture. I very neatly write call / text, my full name, hours I’ll answer and time zone, cell number, and email. This not only cuts down on junk calls and emails, but puts off many scammers too
• Expect callers to ask redundant information, not everyone reads every detail before calling, nor do they have it in front of them when calling

 

FINAL THOUGHTS

Not sure if I’ve gone overboard here or forgotten something (probably both), but feel free to follow me @AaronBobeck and chime in on Twitter or in the comments below. I’m still tweaking the structure of my listings. If you’re local to North Central Indiana or surrounding areas, let me know if you’d like me to writeup a listing or sell something for you. I’m always glad to look at taking large Ag equipment on consignment

Example listings:

Byron 1514 Dump Cart (SOLD)

1997 John Deere 8300 (SOLD)

2013 John Deere 7215R (SOLD)