Sell cars is often confusing

                
The automotive industry has gotten a lot of press over the last year or two as the prices have gone on a wild roller coaster ride. As things settle back to normal though, some changes we’ve seen in how cars are sold look to be here to stay. What was traditionally a second-thought transaction has become an important part of the market. And taking advantage of it means thinking through the options.
Many new options for selling
The automotive industry has exploded with new options and services offering to buy your used vehicle. Floated recently by high vehicle prices, this trend of selling vehicles directly as a singular transaction is continuing to grow.  
For the first century of cars, the sale of your vehicle was typically tied to the purchase of a new one. However, some tech-focused online dealers have disrupted this norm by introducing options for selling a vehicle without buying a new one. As a result, the number of dealerships with standalone "we buy cars" programs has increased significantly, providing welcome choices to consumers, but at the same time making it difficult to find the best option.
Different types of cars have different target markets
While nearly all of the available services will say they buy any vehicle type, they often specialize in a specific group of them. For instance they might want relatively new, mid-priced vehicles with no accidents like Carvana. 
What most people don’t realize is that these focuses can be extremely important to how much they’ll offer for a given vehicle. Carvana may give you a great price for a 2021 Camry, but a terrible one for a 2010 Ford pickup. Sure, you can sell the Ford to them, but it would be better to also check some other options that might cater to older trucks. 
The effect can be even more powerful when you consider selling vehicles outside the normal categories, like selling salvage vehicles. These are cars that have been written off by insurance companies after some sort of loss, but can eventually be brought back to the road under rebuilt titles. These can be especially difficult to get good prices on because many services just ignore them. 
This market segmentation adds to the confusion currently seen by many consumers who are just looking for a good place to dump their vehicle for a reasonable price. Few sellers want the stress of going to physical dealerships or going to a hundred websites to search for the best option. 
The industry is evolving, slowly
Interestingly, the industry is seeing development trends that we saw in the e-commerce space over a decade ago: the comparison platform. With so many new options to sell your vehicle, the space has gotten commodified in a way similar to hotels in a given city. 
https://www.topmarq.com/sell-salvage-rebuilt-cars
From a seller's perspective, this new approach can be beneficial. Prices tend to be higher when you get multiple offers as you see more of the market. While price is certainly a major component, that's not always the deciding factor. Some owners prefer to have the vehicle picked up over making slightly more but having to go to the dealership. Others want a specific new-to-them car from a dealership and prefer to make use of the trade in tax credit.