How to Host a Successful Yard Sale
Whether you are moving or just need to unload a bunch of old stuff, garage sales are a great way to earn some extra cash and lighten your load at the same time. With that being said, you just can’t throw a bunch of stuff out on the lawn and expect people to show up. Instead, take a little time preparing for your yard sale to ensure that it is a success. The resale and secondhand industry has boomed with TV shows like American Pickers, Storage Wars, and Auction Kings; to the point where more and more people have turned their love of “junk” into a thriving and lucrative business. By placing a few simple ads on a couple of major websites, you will be able to draw in a lot more interest to your sale by these kinds of buyers, as well as your average garage sale picker. But, if you rent to attract a high level of interest, you can take it one step further and target market-specific items that you think would generate the most profit. Of course, planning and preparation does not end there, here are our tops tips for hosting the perfect garage sale.
Our first tip is to be cutthroat when rummaging through your home to find items for the sale. It is easy to understand that you get attached to certain items, but if you have not used them in over year you should seriously consider selling them. This does not mean sell all your collectibles or your grandmother’s heirlooms, but it does indicate that you should sell your old designer jeans, that crock pot you never use, and all those baby toys that your now 10-year-old does not play with. With that being said, if an item is really trashed or stained, the chances are good that it will not sell anyway, so try to recycle it if possible instead of placing it in the sale. When collecting your items, try to organize them right off the bat so that the actual setup of your garage sale is fast and efficient.
Obviously, the point of hosting a garage sale is to make a little money from your gently used belongings, therefore it is not wise to spend any extra money on fancy signs and balloons to draw in people. Although these items are convenient and have good appearance, they will not generate any additional income over a plainly written cardboard sign. Place your signage in easily visible high traffic areas, that continue all the way to your house. This signage should go up a few days before, but not any sooner than that. In addition, using simple printed fliers, which can be placed in local grocery stores, your library, and self storage facilities, can be done up to a week in advance and will give your sale additional exposure. You should also hit up all the major resale websites like Craigslist, Backpage, Nextdoor.com, Yardsalesearch.com, and Garagesaletracker.com. Also pump your sale on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest. Remember it is key to get the word out and create a buzz around your sale, so this is where you can showcase big ticket items.
Last but not least, set up your garage sale so that it is easy for people to browse through your belongings. Use tables to raise certain items off the ground and use blankets to protect items displayed on the lawn. Also categorize your items by kids, kitchen, bath, clothes, etc. This way shoppers will be able to browse through things more easily and efficiently. In addition, provide electrical outlets and test batteries so that you can show that items are still in good working condition. When pricing items, be reasonable and price them to move. If you don’t want to price each item separately, put out signs that say everything on this blanket is $2 or all books are a 50 cents. Finally consider giving items away for free if they are not selling by the end of day two. This is especially great for large items that you will have to pay to have hauled away anyway.