How to write an ad for my car

Okay, so you're not John Grisham and the last letter you wrote was a forged sick-note to your third-grade teacher. It doesn't matter because wording a classified advertisement isn't difficult.

According to the latest research, people shopping for a used car tend to make lists of cars that work for them in the advert, then go out and look at all of them. Your job, as a seller, is to make sure your car makes that short-list. After that, it's down to the car itself and your skills as a negotiator.

But it's the advert that has to get you to first base. Include in the ad anything that helps to justify your asking price. Features that might set it apart from the pack also help and include as many phone numbers as possible including work, after-hours and mobile phone numbers where possible. Nothing annoys a buyer faster than not being able to reach the seller.

Entertain and inform

You can spice up the ad a little. Inject some humour, but nothing that could be offensive. Even a phrase like 'chick magnet' could deter 50 per cent of the buyers interested in your sports car.

Resort to hype, if you think the car justifies it. If it's a Subaru Impreza WRX STi 22B, buyers will forgive you for describing it as "a solid gold collectible that can only appreciate in future".

If the car is dull, but very reliable and cheap to run, make that very point:  "This car has never let me down and it's as dependable as an atomic clock".

Don't overdo it though.

If you genuinely think you lack the aptitude to write a compelling ad, ask a friend, a relative or a colleague to lend you a hand. What might have you tearing your hair out from writer's block could be something your ghost writer can bash out in five minutes.

Mention the fact that your car has travelled less than 15,000km a year on average, particularly if it's less than six years old and the odometer is yet to hit 100,000km. Buyers will like that, especially if the alternative for the same sort of price has driven a much greater distance over the course of its working life.

Are you the first or second owner? That's a bonus, as far as prospective buyers are concerned. A car that's a little older can be counted on if it's only been through two pairs of hands. That speaks to its reliability and low cost of ownership. You may need to spell that out in your description of the car.

Does the car have a full service history? That's expected these days, but still worth mentioning if relevant. What about the balance of the factory warranty? If the car was sold new with a five or seven-year warranty, that remaining warranty cover could be a great selling point.

How about desirable options, like leather upholstery, climate control and advanced safety features like autonomous emergency braking? These, where fitted, will help you seal the deal.

Lastly, be honest about the car's condition in the ad. By all means tell the world how good this car is, but don't neglect to mention the little parking grazes and stone chips. It will save you an embarrassing discussion with a prospective buyer who might argue that they've been misled. Honesty will help ease the transaction process on its way to a successful sale.

The details you need to enter concerning your car's specification and any optional features fitted will be prompted automatically by the carsales.com.au listing form. The more information you enter, the more subsequent fields narrow down to the only possibilities. If you write that your car is a Ford, you won't have to scroll down past 'Calais', 'Camry' and 'Commodore' to select 'Falcon'.

The database populates the information in the  drop-down menus, according to your previous selections. That limits the possibility you might make a mistake. The sort of information you will be asked to select from the available data includes:

This story was originally published in January 2004, but has been recently updated.