advice for selling a bike

[beachhead1985]

My dad wants to sell his 2005 Harley Fatboy and I've been trying to help, setting up adds on kijiji, but we're not having any luck. A deal he had to sell it through a dealer even fell through.

The bike is in great shape, but I feel like we're overlooking something, missing something, you know? It's a great bike, this should not be that hard.

I am not trying to sell the bike here, I just feel very out of my depth. Most of my selling experience is on Ebay and dad doesn't want to use that, or paypal; he wants either cash, or a bank transfer. Which maybe makes things difficult.

It doesn't help that I know very little about bikes in general, but I could really use some help here to get some more sounding data, because right now, I feel like I'm shooting in the dark.

[Deathrider6]

  Bikes are very difficult to sell quickly and the payment options you dad prefers will slow the sale down some. Best thing to do is make sure you have a really good photo and make sure all your info is spot on accurate. Most of all be patient it does take a bit of work. Most people consider a bike a "toy" so they are put off. Odds are a prospective buyer will want to hear the bike run as well. I am not an expert but hopefully this info will help.

*Note: Where I live the bikes come out when the rain stops and get put away for the most part when the rain starts.

[mdauben]

Not sure where you are located, but in the Northern Hemisphere this is generally the time or year when people are thinking about prepping their bikes for winter storage, not thinking about buying new ones.  If there is no rush, you will probably have better luck selling it in the spring when people are eager to get out and ride. 

Is the bike more or less stock, or has your Dad done a lot of customizing on it?  Unlike most things, quality accessories and modifications can actually increase a HD's value, but they can also limit your audience to a potential buyer who likes your particular modifications as much as you do. 

I know 10-15 years ago HD's were a sellers market.  People often bought what they could find and were happy for it, as the demand was exceeding the factory's capacity.  Not sure if that's still the case today or not, though. 

[beachhead1985]

He's added some stuff, but nothing major.

What you guys are saying re; time of year makes a lot of sense.

[Bosefius]

As someone that worked in a motorcycle shop/dealer for 14 years I can tell you that from about Labor Day it's a hard sell unless it's dirt cheap. People are putting their bikes away, looking towards the holidays and the Winter months. His best bet is to start advertising it in February, as people get their tax returns back they will be looking to buy for the following season. And will have the cash in hand usually.

[wasp]

If you are in an area that has it, Craigslist is a possibility.  You can also try your local H-D dealership or other bike shop.  Might not get as good a price from one of those since they will want to make a buck themselves, but it is an option.

Wasp

[beachhead1985]

What would be better payment options I could try to talk him into? Most of my experience is paypal and ebay and he doesn't want that, or didn't anyways. That was almost a year ago now, I might try talking him into it again.