On ESPN Machinery a listing with 10 pictures is 15 times more likely to sell than a listing with 3 pictures. So having great pictures is the starting point to increase your chances of selling.

Make sure your pictures are clearly showing the equipment, with good lighting and focus. Try as well to show your machines from all possible sides, with close-up pictures as well as overall shots in order to allow buyers to get a clear overview of the outside conditions of the machine. Once that’s done, move on to the inside of the machine: pictures of the machining area, table, conveyor, etc… will help buyers assess the condition of your equipment.

Then remember, the more pictures, the more chances of selling, so do not forget to include pictures of name plate and the accessories such as tooling,spares, etc… On ESPN Machinery you can upload as many pictures as you want.

On ESPN many buyers use category search, so choosing the right category is key to making your used equipment visible to buyers.

We have worked hard to put together a sophisticated categorization system that makes sense for buyers and sellers. A good example is the “lathe” category. Most marketplaces use a generic “lathe” category, but here at ESPN we broke it down into 9 lathe categories. Why? Because a vertical turret lathe is not the same as a Swiss-type lathe.

So take a few extra seconds to carefully select the category of your listing, in order to make it easily findable for relevant buyers.

When writing your description you should consider 2 points:

1. Buyers are much more likely to inquire if they trust your listings– so giving many details about the condition, the options, the maintenance, the usage and the reason why you are selling your machines will make your listings more trustworthy
2. Longer description makes your listings more visible– our internal search engine as well as Google or Bing uses the content of the description to show your listings in search results pages. The more keyword-rich and detailed will be your description, the better your listings will rank in results

In general here what our buyers need to know before purchasing:

• What was the machine used for?
• How was is maintained?
• How many hours/runs does it have?
• Is it a first-hand?
• Is it viewable in production?
• What are the technical parameters (data sheet)?
• What is included with the machine (parts, accessories)?
• What are the terms of sale? Is loading on truck/container included?
• What are the dimensions and weight?

Answer all these questions in your description to make sure you have it all covered!

Listings with a price displayed online are 3 times more likely to sell than listings with no price shown.

Showing your price online attracts buyers who are much more qualified than on other listings, because they inquire knowing how much you want for your equipment.

Of course, it’s always good to keep some margin for a discount, as this tends to happen when dealing with used machinery. Our study shows that on deals made through our marketplace the average discount was 11%.

When a buyer places an inquiry on your listing, he has on average done the same for 4 other listings. Being responsive to an inquiry makes your offer stand out compared to the other ones. It’s also a better customer service provided for the buyer, which creates trust and shows seriousness.