Create a more powerful boat listing.
If you have a boat for sale, creating a listing on boatsforboaters.com is very straightforward. You will see a form to fill out that pulls together all the technical information about your boat. There are links to more information available should you need assistance with particular items. The listing information will be displayed just as you see it in the Sample Listing.
Getting Started
Before you get started, it’s important that you pull together all the pertinent information about your boat. You may download our PDF check list that includes a list of items that you will need—not all the fields will relate to your boat. Gather all of your boat photos and put them in a file on your computer desktop for easy access.
Photography
You can place up to eight photos in your boatsforboaters.com listing. So be sure to show as many angles as possible. The more a buyer can see, the more effective your ad will be.
Here are a few helpful tips before you get started:
Photo 1 will be your Main Photo so be sure it shows your boat at its best.
Photos should be saved as .jpg (JPEG) files and should not be any larger than 300 x 300 pixels (in most photo editing software you can simply save your shots as small or medium size files). The per-picture file size should not be larger than 900k. Again, collect all photos into a file on your desktop for easiest access and uploading.
Text Editing
For best results, type all your text directly into the fields provided. If you paste your text from a word processing program, be sure to make it "plain text" before pasting. Some programs include additional code that will display certain characters incorrectly.
Make the Most of Your Listing
The Sample Listing points out several areas where you can enhance the effectiveness of your listing presentation. Click on any of the numbered buttons to get quick information on ways to improve your presentation. Below are more detailed suggestions for creating an effective boat listing.
1. Create an Engaging Headline (2 to 35 characters—about 5 to 6 words)
This is the place to state what you are selling and add a little flare to catch the buyer’s attention. Create a short headline that accurately and enticingly describes your boat and the qualities it offers. Use words that will generate a quick, positive emotional response! Examples might be:
Bluewater passagemaker (for an offshore sail or powerboat)
Proven Race Winner
Ready to live aboard
Perfect restoration candidate
One of only 7 (make/model) built
Classic wooden trawler
Fantastic bass boat
Authentic 1930 OldBoat reproduction
Located in Maine
Ready for family cruising
ABC Yachts flagship model
2. Good Photographs Make a Difference
Your main listing photo should show your boat at its best, usually under way from either the front or rear quarter or abeam. Make sure the sun is behind you, the entire boat fills at least 1/2 - 3/4 of the frame, and take the photo when there is little in the background that detracts from the image of your boat. Sailboats should have the sails up. Try to avoid mooring shots, dock shots or boat-on-trailer shots for your main photo—the buyer wants to imagine him- or herself in the boat and under way! Canoes and other small boats always look great when hauled ashore or at the waters edge in a beautiful location. Fishing boats can show someone fishing, but don’t let that detract from the boat itself.
The rest of your photos should highlight the important features of your boat. The cockpit, interior, engine, special details are all important to show to the buyer. Don’t use up your photo space on trailers or accessories—save your listing photo space for the boat. If the buyer gets interested additional photos can be emailed or sent to them once contact has been made.
Before you take your photos, look through other boat listings on boatsforboaters.com and see which ones make the greatest impression on you. This will help you decide what kind of photos will best represent your boat.
3. The Description—Pull it All Together Here (up to 200 words)
This descriptive area is your chance to fully describe your boat, it’s features, and what is most appealing about it. You don’t need to restate information in the text that can be found in the "Additional Information and Specifications" section unless some of that information is especially important to highlight. Instead, the descriptive area is where you might list the history of the boat (races won, cruises made, awards won, celebrities who’ve owned it in the past etc.), where and how it was built, changes and repairs that have been made etc. You can also describe some special features and equipment that the "Additional Information" section does not list. You might also state how easy it is to view the boat, highlighting its location or other information that will encourage the buyer to “take a look”. Use this descriptive area to your advantage.
Please note that there is a fill-in box on the listing form for your boat’s hull ID#. By filling this in you may enable a buyer to go directly to our Boat History Report link to get more information about your boat. In fact, if you do this yourself you can advertise that your boat has a clean record of ownership and damage history. Note; not all boats will show up in Boat History Reports.
For more information on preparing your boat for sale see our article—Tips For The Boat Seller.