Wouldn’t it be nice if you could just toss your unwanted items out onto the lawn and make a nice profit? Although it would be nice, there is more to holding a successful garage sale. Consider the tips below for increasing your success and profits.
Declutter and organize
One of the first things you want to do is take time to go through your home and garage to see what items you can collect to sell. Look everywhere, both high and low. You never know just what might earn you some extra cash. If you don’t foresee a garage sale in the near future just yet, consider setting aside a box or two and slowly declutter your home throughout the year.
Set a day and time
The next step is to schedule your garage sale. There are some things to keep in mind when choosing a day. You want the weather to be nice and not too hot or too cold. Many successful garage sales happen in the spring or fall. Also, the weekend is the best time to have the sale as most people are home from work, looking for garage sales, and the like.
Advertise your sale
No one will know about your sale unless you advertise it. Don’t delay – go ahead and place an ad in the classified section of your local paper, on the web, and hang signs. The more you promote, the more business you will get. When advertising, list any hot items you will have as this will draw attention and more buyers.
Prep for the big day
When you are ready to have your garage sale, begin prepping for it so that you are prepared and not searching and scrambling to make it work.
The Week before
- Go through your items
- Decide on a price for the items
- Place labels on your items (color code the items if doing a multi-garage sale with someone)
- Gather tables, chairs, and other necessary items
The night before the sale
The night before the sale, gather your items and set everything up in your garage. Doing this will help prepare for the sale and make the organization process easier.
The big day
On the day of your sale, hang signs around your neighborhood pointing people in the direction of your sale. Use arrows, eye-grabbing colors, and large writing.
At the garage sale
Make Sure You’re Prepared
Ensure that you are ready to go and have all of the things that you need, including:
- A place to put your money
- A variety of change for any denomination of bills
- Places to sit
Welcome your potential buyers
When your potential buyers walk up, say hello and greet them instead of ignoring them. Friendly and outgoing garage sale hosts earn more profits than those who ignore the people walking up. Whenever someone is leaving, thank them for coming even if they did not purchase anything.
Prices and haggling
Many people like to haggle over prices at garage sales and if you are not comfortable with it, just let them know you are firm on your prices. You don’t have to give your items away.
As you reach the close of your sale, consider offering the remaining items at a lower price to get rid of them. If you can’t get rid of them, you can donate them or hold onto them for another sale.
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