Whether you are trying to sell one machine that’s been sitting in your plant or garage collecting dust or trying to offload dozens of machines & equipment as you close or upgrade your plant, there’s a lot of resources out there for you to use, but which ones are the best? And how do you know who you can trust? And perhaps most importantly, where do you make the most money?
Whether you are trying to make the most money for your used and surplus machinery or just trying to offload the machine, we’ll help guide you on your best options. We’ve been helping dealers and regular people like you sell machinery for 98 years now, so let us point you in the right direction.
We’ve narrowed it down to 3 main options which you can read in depth below:
- I want to make the most money!
- Don’t care about money, just get this machine out of here!
- I’ve got a lot of machines and may need to auction or liquidate them all!
I Want to Make the Most Money for My Used Machinery & Equipment!
If you want to make the most money for your machinery, you’re going to want to sell it to an “end user”. These are manufacturing plants or people that will actually use your machine. So whether its an engine lathe, an old band saw, grinder, you name it, these are people or machine shops that need that equipment and will put it into their production line and use it.
There are a couple ways to go about trying to find an end user. Some people will try eBay, but then they are hit with a 12% commission fee + sales tax which in nearly all 50 states, sales tax on machines used in a manufacturing plant are exempt from being taxed yet eBay still tacks it on their auctions! So, when selling a machine for $5,000 you will be hit with a $690 commission fee, and another $300-$500 for sales tax charged to the buyer! It all adds up quickly.
The better option is to list it on Surplus Record. You can list 10 machines for $90 a month, and there are ZERO commissions on any machines sold. Surplus Record sends out a catalogue of your machinery listing to 50,000 manufacturers/end users every month and 137,000 throughout the course of the year. Our website is one of the most visited heavy and industrial machinery & electrical equipment websites in the US and Canada, and there’s thousands of machines sold each month on the website!
We can also do e-blasts for your machines to target certain manufacturers that we know will buy your machinery! If you have an account with us, there are large discounts for doing those e-blasts!
Opening an account is easy, and our team of experts do all the work for you with creating clever listing titles that end users understand and will find easily, indexing everything into search engines like Google and letting the world know your machine is for sale! Reach out to us to get started today and learn more!
I Want to Sell My Machine Now for Any Price!
The other option we hear a lot of times at our company is that people know nothing about this machine, perhaps it was left behind in a warehouse from a previous tenant, or it’s been in a garage for 20 years unused and the new owner doesn’t know what it is. Whatever the case, they want it out of their life ASAP and don’t care about anything else.
Your choices here are limited to machinery dealers who will pick up the machine from you and take it back to their own warehouse to pay for storage, fix it up, and then pay to advertise it. You also better hope your local machinery dealer is a genuine company and will offer a reasonable price.
OR you can post that machine for free on Surplus Records Wanteds & For Sales which will automatically notify HUNDREDS of machinery dealers in the US and Canada that you want to sell your machine and they will email you offers. You’ll need to understand these offers will be much lower than an end user, but it’s a good way to get rid of your machine right away and let a dealer who specializes in that machine buy it from you. From there you sit back/relax and accept the highest offer, or the one that works the best for you!
The form is a breeze to fill out, you just click “Sell” at the top, select the industry your machinery is related to, you’re allowed 1 photo, and you can add a description of the machine and then add your contact information and click Post Now! Did we mention, it’s free to do?
I Have A Lot of Machinery & Equipment I Want to Get Rid of on a Tight Timeline!
Another common scenario might be if you’re closing down your shop or business (or upgrading to all new machines) and want to get rid of all your existing/surplus machinery and equipment in one fell swoop. Here at Surplus Record, we work with nearly every industrial auctioneer in the country. We’ve seen it all, we know them all, and we meet with them all in person every year. When deciding you want to auction your equipment, you need to be careful, finding the most honest and best auctioneer for your auction can make the difference of hundreds of thousands of dollars.
If you want to go down that road, we can certainly help you and make several recommendations for auctioneers that we know and have trusted for nearly 30+ years in the business. Contact us today, and we’ll help you get started.
Tips for Selling Used Machinery and Electrical Equipment
No matter which of the three scenarios we outlined above is the one motivating your sale, we have several specific tips that can help you turn your unwanted machines and electrical equipment into cash. They include:
Be Clear and Thorough with Your Listing Details
Whether you’re selling a piece of used machinery or used electrical equipment (e.g., panels, distribution boards, circuit breakers), put yourself in the place of your potential customer prior to penning your listing details. Most buyers will view used equipment with significantly more suspicion than they will new items, so compensate for that caution with highly detailed descriptions that explain everything about your listing that someone might want to know — and then perhaps just a little more.
Being Dishonest has its Consequences
If you sell equipment that differs from its description, has unacceptable levels of wear and tear, is nonfunctional, or poses a risk to others, you face more than merely an angry complaint, a hit to your reputation, or a request for a refund. You may also find yourself facing legal action. That’s why you should always test your old circuit breakers or put that manual lathe through its paces. Sell working equipment that’s in the condition you listed it as, and you’ll go a long way toward avoiding potential problems.
Research What Your Product is Going For
A very old proverb goes like this: “‘Worthless, worthless!’ says the buyer, but when he goes his way, then he boasts.” Sellers often fear that their physical assets will go for far less than their perceived worth, and the mental image of a bragging buyer has caused more than one lister to up the asking price. The problem with that approach lies in the fact that sellers can easily overvalue what their used electrical products and machines are worth. Do some honest research first before you list. A correctly priced item moves more quickly, and secondhand goods usually don’t get more valuable with time.
Clean Your Machine!
Benjamin Franklin did much to popularize virtue during the founding of the United States and nestled in amongst his list of fine character traits — which includes familiar ones such as industry, sincerity, and justice — you’ll find a surprising one: cleanliness. People may debate over the moral merit of remaining clean, but one thing is sure. Keeping machines and electric items clean before you list them helps guarantee a faster sale at a better price. Not only are cleaner items more attractive, if you’ve kept them cleaned and serviced during their operation, they likely are in better condition, too.
Take Several Pictures from Varying Angles
Pictures that feature only a single angle invariably raise questions. Why isn’t more of the item shown? Does it have damage the seller wants to hide? Is it even functional? Is the seller intentionally attempting to avoid showing certain details or is the single angle an oversight (and if it’s an oversight, what does that say about the reliability of the rest of the listing)? These aren’t questions you want a potential purchaser asking. Go the extra mile and take multiple pictures from multiple angles in order to stave them off.
Build a Network of Interested Buyers
We’re believers in the power of online listing platforms. After all, it’s our business! But we also know how important it is to make personal connections. That’s what Thomas P. Scanlan, the founder of Surplus Record, did in the early 1920s, going door to door throughout Chicago’s famous manufacturers row. You don’t have to wear out your shoes to sell your machines or electrical equipment but reaching out to a pre-existing network can help move it faster.
Research the Market
Market research involves more than merely understanding the secondhand price of a particular piece. It also involves grasping which items are wanted, any specific shortfalls that have pushed demand higher, and which sections of the industry are booming or slumping. Knowledge helps you discover opportunities as soon as they arise.
Pricing and Trends
An important part of market research involves learning how to intuit pricing and spot trends. As much an art as a science, mastering this knowledge has tied tons of experts up in knots. Some may advocate for complicated equations while others may suggest compiling reams of historical data, but one thing is sure: If you want to pick up on trends and understand pricing, you’ll need to remain regularly engaged with the related data.
Promote, Promote, Promote
Industrial machines and electrical equipment aren’t liquid assets. You can’t convert them to cash at the drop of the proverbial hat. It can take time and persistent effort to make a sale. So in addition to the steps we’ve listed, add a measure of patience to your professional equipment portfolio.
