To answer all the "why isn't my boat selling threads"

[volvopaul]

Hi Henry, ive looked at your add very good indeed, especially your mention of me , thankyou!.

Seriously if anyone is looking for a Princess 42 its the one to buy, ha sthe best engine option thats does not emit smoke all over the stern and flybridge ( the earlier engines do!)

Good luck with your sale ( mine has fallen through yet again)

 

[henryf]

Wow !

Thanks for all the comments. In no particular order:

Yes, bought the site this morning. Not necessarily expecting to sell the boat directly off the website, more a platform on which to offer information and photos. So not sure SEO would be the way to go for what we're using it for. It still needs traditional adverts & / or the services of a broker.

We will be listing it through Princess with whom we have a good working relationship and through whom we may well end up sourcing a replacement. I just wanted to create additional info over and above the usual stuff Princess and other dealers provide.

Ultimately for less than 50 quid it can't harm the cause.

Some interesting suggestions and we will definitely act on some of them. The titles to the photos in particular are a great idea. Obviously I know where everything is and what the pictures are of but viewers may not.

Wanted to keep it all on one page for simplicity. The photos obviously enlarge when clicked on and you can then scroll either direction through them or simply click close and go on to another individual image.

I hope it works on different platforms as well, PC, Mac, pad, phone etc. One of my pet hate is flash based sites which alienate pad users.

I do agree that the more expensive an item the less comprehensive the information in many cases which seems bizarre.

Re: the brochure shot - very witty.

Re the carpets - you know what I mean. I treated Mrs Henryf to a lovely Dyson anti allergy all singing and dancing vacuum for one of her birthdays which she keeps on the boat to play with when we are aboard. We just haven't had them shampoo cleaned.

Henry

 

[lisilou]

I treated Mrs Henryf to a lovely Dyson anti allergy all singing and dancing vacuum for one of her birthdays which she keeps on the boat to play with when we are aboard. Henry

Really?????!!! Please tell me Mrs H requested this b'day pressie???

 

[henryf]

Hi Henry, ive looked at your add very good indeed, especially your mention of me , thankyou!.

Seriously if anyone is looking for a Princess 42 its the one to buy, ha sthe best engine option thats does not emit smoke all over the stern and flybridge ( the earlier engines do!)

Good luck with your sale ( mine has fallen through yet again)

No problem. On the subject I would have no qualms in recommending your services. I was a bit apprehensive moving away from the main dealers but felt my decision was totally justified as soon as the saloon floor came up. I knew the boat was getting a belt and braces service and check over with no risk of limited access leading to a blind eye being turned.

I also enjoyed being present to ask questions and learn a little throughout the day. In all my years of boat ownership I've never been present during a service. I'm pretty knowledgeable when it comes to things which turn money into noise but it was great to be able to glean info on the detailed workings of those specific engines. It was also good to see things being taken apart on the off chance I have to do it whilst out at sea.

You have my vote

Henry

I held off listing the photo with you down in the depths

 

[henryf]

Really?????!!! Please tell me Mrs H requested this b'day pressie???

Well she didn't specifically say can I have a vacuum for my birthday but I knew she'd get a lot of pleasure using it. Every time we're on the boat she'll take it out of it's cupboard under the stairs for a quick play so I'd say it was money well spent.

Henry

 

[jonic]

And, let me guess, ummm, thats where you come in

I don't do power

 

[sharpness]

Top of the class

An excellent advert; clear, precise and tells the "would be buyer" all the info they would need at the initial search stage.
As previously mentioned, all that would be required now, is if you can crack the Google search issue.

From viewing various sales adverts for boats, it amazes me the difference in standards out there, and also the condition that some boats are in when put on the market.

 

[jimmy_the_builder]

Not necessarily expecting to sell the boat directly off the website, more a platform on which to offer information and photos. So not sure SEO would be the way to go for what we're using it for.

I'm not sure I agree with this. I briefly owned a P42, and when I decided to sell it, like you I also created a website. However, I did load it up with keywords, and I spent a small amount of money on a PPC campaign. Perhaps surprisingly this did produce leads ... including the eventual purchaser of the boat. So imho SEO is worth considering.

Cheers
Jimmy

 

[henryf]

I'm not sure I agree with this. I briefly owned a P42, and when I decided to sell it, like you I also created a website. However, I did load it up with keywords, and I spent a small amount of money on a PPC campaign. Perhaps surprisingly this did produce leads ... including the eventual purchaser of the boat. So imho SEO is worth considering.

Cheers
Jimmy

That's interesting. Certainly PPC is no problem and instantaneous. I just assumed everyone went on the boat listings sites and searched from there.

I'll have a little play


Henry

 

[jfm]

Great ad i thought. Buyers just want loads of pics, Boatsheddishly, which is what this delivers, but in addition the pics show a lovely clean boat not the usual boatshed stuff. If i were in the market for this category of boat I'd rsuh to view and buy this one. A few specifics:

1. nice to see teak looking properly 2-parted and cleaned, unlike loads of brit boats with grey teak
2. yup replace the bed photos with pics showing the beds all made nicely and tucked in neatly, boaty style
3. i'd get rid of the toothbrush and shampoo bottles
4. I'd reflect on the wording in a few places...
(a)"Reduces smoke emissions" implies they are still smokey, thoguh less so. In fact they are ~smoke free. So write "...which makes them smoke free"
(b) "In 2011 Princess were approached to replace all outside cushioning with the latest Movida Metallic fabric", is too much info. "Were approached" is a story we just don't want to hear. It's like saying "I ran out of baked beans and Waitrose were approached to supply three tins". It's only a bit of shopping man! So cut the BS and say "New exterior cushions in Movida Metallic fabric supplied by Princess in 2011" or something.
(c) There shouldn't be an apostrophe in your "it's"

But I'm being picky and thought it was a grand ad and a top-condition boat, so I wish you lots of luck in the whole sell/buy thing

 

[Nautical]

looks super to me !, better than some brokers I could mention ! Honest, if Henry prep's and looks after his boat they way he does his cars then she'll look "straight out of the factory". best S/H P42 I've seen for a long while.

 

[GSL]

Henry

Very well put together advert, I suspect most of us could learn a lot from you on this one, well done and good luck.

Graham

 

[Bojangles]

Nice work, the photos are excellent, possibly too many for my liking but agree that some folks love this. Nice to see daylight shots and the warm lighting on the evening shots.

 

[henryf]

Once again, many thanks for the feedback.

Re: the baked beans we must live different lives. On the odd occasion staff have allowed supplies to diminish we would indeed approach a local purveyor with a view to inviting their tender for re-stocking the pantry

I take your point about the flowery language. A bit of icing to get the juices flowing, I just couldn't help myself

I'll have a little tickle in the morning when I'm back in the office, but the cushions remain.

Henry

 

[thejonesey]

Films?

Great add and a lovely boat... good luck. One other thing to explore however is a link to (or embed) a couple of short films. My previous broker (James Dickens) did a boat walk through and I added one of her underway on the Solent.... If you live on the continent, as so many buyers seem to these days, it might just be enough to get them to fly over! I understand that films also help push your ad up the Google system too.

Just a thought...

 

[gjgm]

No doubt it is a good ad, so I have to be picky to find something..!
At the beginning.. "UK operated" oh-oh..what does that mean?Commercial?Charter?(I know you say more later). UK based,maybe?
"Is only available.." lets not get carried away, its a P42 not a Riva!
Change the detail about the engines.. just say higher spec, or upgraded or something, and the D series came out in 2005 (?)- I think we all know what a D series is !
Hard not to buy a D series, truth be told....
"Most work carried out.. "cripes - what work wasnt?The dodgy stuff?
Agree with JFM on the blagging about the seating.
Only being picky

 

[petem]

Google will find Henry's site easily enough and probably index it on the first page in the same way that it did for a cheap site that I built for a fellow forumite...

http://www.beneteau393.co.uk/

Search for "beneteau 393 for sale" or "beneteau 411 for sale"

As Henry says, you don't need to spend much (certainly no more than £100) and much much less if you're willing to have a go yourself..

Pete

 

[SpottyDog5]

You could use e-bay to drive traffic to you site, not suggesting you sell it on there, just be a bit creative

 

[joliette]

You could use e-bay to drive traffic to you site, not suggesting you sell it on there, just be a bit creative

I've tried selling my Settimo Velo on both eBay and boatsandoutboards, without success, but it did get plenty of attention ... from scammers! So, I wouldn't recommend that. I like what Henry has done and think I may follow suit.

 

[SpottyDog5]

We use E-bay to drive traffic to our website, true we want them to look at the other items we sell, can work out cheaper than PPC.
You have only have to google anything and e-bay comes up, as I said be creative.
Think about other social media too, it all helps getting found, the best website in the world won't work unless you find it.