Having a Successful Yard Sale
An organized yard sale can be a great experience for you as well as for the shopper. A good goal is to have everything clean, organized, easily understood pricing and accessibility to view your displayed items for sale. A yard sale can be a great way to earn some cash and get stuff you don’t need out of your house – but it won’t go well if you don’t prepare properly.
Start by going room to room throughout your house looking for items that you no longer want or use. This will also help to determine if you have enough items to sell. If you don’t, consider partnering with a friend or participate in a neighborhood yard sale. Once you have your items ready to sell, choose your date and time for the sale. Keep in mind that many yard sale shoppers are out early morning, so be sure that you are ready as advertised.
Some pricing strategies that will help your yard sale run smoothly are making sure that your prices are reasonable, clearly marked and visible. You could offer bundle pricing such as 2 for 1 price on items such as clothing, books, movies, board games, and puzzles to encourage shoppers to buy more. Keep in mind that things that are most likely to sell are kids’ toys and clothing, home decor, games, books. Puzzles, tools, sports equipment, and costume jewelry.
Prior to your yard sale, you will need to advertise your sale. The best colors for yard sale signs are neon pink and green. Black markers show up clearly on these colors. You can make your signs double-sided by folding the piece of posterboard in half. To make these signs stand up in the ground, staple 1×2 inch stakes onto the back of your yard sale signs. You may want to add something that will “move” with the slightest bit of a breeze — like balloons or streamers.
Make it easy for shoppers to find what they are looking for by keeping books, toys, clothes, electronics, kitchenware, and other categories clearly marked and separated. If you have large amounts of children’ s clothing, sort by size and clearly label them to make them easy to shop. Hide your storage boxes underneath your table by adding a tablecloth.
When your shoppers are ready to pay and leave, you want it to be as easy and painless for them as possible. You should have a check out table set up in a visible spot, and you should have someone assigned to manage it at all times. Make sure your check out table is well stocked with bags, boxes, newspaper to wrap fragile items, calculator (cell phone), pens, and petty cash. Just remember yard sales can be a lot of work but can be very profitable and lots of fun too.
