Car dealers and car owners are quickly realizing the power of selling their cars online. More pictures, more text and longer airtime for less money. Online ads are the new way to go!

I remember trying to sell my car in our national newspaper’s classified ads. I had to squeeze all I needed to say into 3 measly lines (because every additonal line meant an extra S$9). I had to be creative with the way I phrased my words, think of short cuts and even leave out some vital selling points. It cost me S$27 and it appeared in a sea of thousands of other ads. All that, for one quick and momentary day. Oh! I was also at the mercy of the advertising representative who handled my ad. If she misspelt any words, it’s not her fault. So you could be selling a “Honda Feet with spots rims and body kid.”

Enter the online classified ad. Last year, I sold my car and purchased my new car through a classified ad based website. I had fields and fields of data to input, extra space to key in my car’s details, description, and photos! I could upload photos! Not just one, but 3! My ad was up for more than a month, and it cost less than my newspaper ad! Awhile ago, that might not have meant anything, simply because no one cared about the Internet, much less surf the web for automotive deals. How times have changed, now in every household and office there is a computer wired up into the World Wide Web.

And it’s not just the younger generation. I recently sold my dad’s Kia Cerato to a soft-spoken middle-aged man who got his daughter to help him look for a car through the Net. He found mine, and the rest is history. Car dealers are also getting into the picture, and the results show for it. “I put up 5 of our cars and in 2 weeks all the cars were sold. Last time, we had to wait for months before selling a car.” said Vincent Loh, a car dealer. “At least now we can be more detailed with our description in the ad, which attracts more enquiries.” More advanced websites allow potential buyers to search and zero in on the specific cars they want. They can even filter according their budget, or the car’s make/model, age and even body type.

With all these advantages going for it, it’s no wonder I’m seeing a lot less cars for sale in the papers.