Yard Sale Secrets…
So – you’ve done the spring cleaning thing and now you have a garage or shed full of items that you no longer need. You have little Johnny’s baby bed – God only knows why you haven’t gotten rid of it sooner, maybe it was sentimental at one time but now you are so over it. It’s one more thing taking up space, collecting dust. Oh, and what about the pan set you no longer use because your husband bought you a new and improved set? I won’t even mention the exercise bike that now functions as a clothes hanger… Don’t just throw it out – one’s person junk is another person’s treasure! Why not make some extra money? Have a Yard Sale!
15 Great Tips to Make Your Next Yard Sale More Successful:
Advertise –
In order to sell stuff, you need customers. Newspaper ads in local papers are generally inexpensive and reach a wide audience. Serious yard sale shoppers often start by searching out sales listed in the paper and make a plan of where they’re going, so you need to make sure you’re on their list. Your ad should include your address, date and times of the sale, and a general run-down of items you’ll have. The more people who know about your sale, the better your profit will be.
Post Signs –
You won’t have any customers if they can’t find you – even if they have your address already. Post signs at every intersection leading to your house, and expand out a few blocks farther than you think you need to. Use brightly colored poster board and a plain bold font, making sure the text stands out clearly at a distance. Remember, people trying to read your signs will be driving by, so potential shoppers should be able to quickly read your sign. Using the same color poster board and text for every sign will help your customers know they’re going in the right direction. Make sure you take down the signs at the end of your yard sale to avoid any potential fines.
Early Bird Gets the Worm –
Lots of yard sale shoppers are Early Birds, so plan on staring bright and early each morning of your sale. Prep everything you can the night before, especially posting your signs, if the law allows. Depending on your neighborhood, you might even go ahead and set some items outside, covering with sheets or tarps to prevent damage or theft. This can be especially helpful when dealing with larger items. At the very least, have everything ready to go where all you have to do is take it outside the day of the sale.
Scrub-A-Dub-Dub –
Would you want to buy something that looks like a dog chewed it and drug it through the mud? Neither will your customers! Even if they do buy the nasty-looking item, you can be sure they’ll only pay a fraction of what it’s worth. Make sure all your items are clean, smell good and are in decent repair. If something is broken or has missing pieces, make sure you point that out to potential buyers – and factor that into your pricing. Developing a good relationship with customers will have them coming back for more!
More items the better –
Having a yard sale is a lot of work – so don’t waste your time if you don’t have plenty of things to sell. In my experience, I generally make around half the total of all the things I have available for sale considering not all items will sell and nearly every item will sell for less than the asking price. You can increase your sales by having a good mix of inexpensive and high dollar items, such as furniture.
Enlist neighbors –
A really great way to increase the amount of items, and your foot traffic is to talk your neighbors into having their own sale the same day as yours. Then, you can state in your ad “multi-family” or “3 family” yard sale.
“FREE stuff” –
I don’t know about you, but anytime I see the word “FREE,” my interest is piqued. Try placing a box of items labeled “FREE” at the end of your drive in a prominent position to entice passers-by to stop and look – and increase the changes of them making a purchase while they’re there.
Organized –
Grouping items in some way that makes sense will help make your sales better. Try putting all the like items together, exhibit your collections by how things are used, or even display in themes. Think of how your favorite stores display their wares, and re-create that ambiance at your yard sale. You’ll make much more money with attractive presentations on tables than you will with items placed on old tarps or sheets on the grass.
Protect valuables –
Broken or stolen items won’t earn you any money. Be sure to place valuables in a safe location where you can keep an eye on them. Breakables should only be placed on sturdy tables away from roaming pets or children. Expensive items should be kept closer to the house or near the check-out area, and jewelry could be re-packaged into larger packaging to make slipping small items into pockets more difficult.
Clear pricing –
If your customers have to guess what you’re asking for something, many of them will just walk away. Make sure your price tags are easily found, and the prices are reasonable for the item. Expect pretty much everyone to negotiate, so mark your price a little higher then what you want to get out of it. However – don’t price things so high that people lose interest. Another great idea is to try the reverse, a technique one of my friends swears by – don’t put a price on anything, and make it clear you will take whatever people want to pay. Instead of trying to talk you down, your customers will make your job easier by frequently throwing out numbers higher than you were expecting!
Give something away –
Ice cold lemonade on a hot day, hot coffee on a chilly morning, or the enticing smell of popcorn will motivate buyers to stop and linger. There’s also the psychological effect known as the law of reciprocity – feeling obligated to do something for someone when they do something for you. Use that to your advantage and you’ll have customers buying more from you because you were nice enough to give them something for free.
Entertain kids –
Having a safe space where kids can play, and even offering something for them to do, such as putting out crayons and coloring books, will allow the parents to take more time looking around. It’s a proven fact that the longer someone shops, the more they’re likely to purchase.
…And husbands –
Placing items men are more apt to purchase in a highly visible area will increase the chances people will stop at your yard sale. Women may run the household, but the men are often the ones driving the car! The more male oriented items a guy can see, the longer he’ll let his wife browse.
Make paying easy –
Make sure you have plenty of change, especially quarters and small bills. You might be surprised at how many people will ask if you have change for $100. It also helps to price items in even amounts so it’s easier for your customers to do mental math in adding up their considered purchases, which also makes making change straightforward.
Give it away at the end of the day –
You know you don’t want to haul all the unsold junk back inside your house at the end of the day! It’s better to give it away than hold onto stuff you already know you don’t want. So, make the last hour a free-for-all, and schedule a local charity to pick up the rest of the left over items.
BONUS TIP:
3 Best-selling items at yard sales
- Any baby items, especially toys and clothes.
- Furniture
- Man-toys, such as sports items. I once had a yard sale where a mounted deer head was the first item sold!