Successful yard sales are one of my favorite ways to earn extra cash. What other money-making scheme allows me to clear my house of clutter, to teach my kids about being entrepreneurs, and to get enough money to pay for some of our summer fun? You can’t just gather a bunch of stuff in the front yard, though, and announce that you’re having a yard sale. In order to have a successful yard sale, try following these five tips.
Organize your merchandise. Do you like to shop in a store that’s a mess? Of course, you don’t; that’s too much like work. Well, your yard sale customers feel the same way. Try to organize your sale into sections based upon what you have to sell. You’ll want to make sure that large ticket items are visible from the road. This organization will make your yard sale more attractive and encourage drive by traffic to stop.
Price your merchandise. Many people hate having to find someone to ask about prices at yard sales. Often, the lack of price information will result in the prospective buyer simply putting the item back and walking away. Spend an evening or two before the sale making sure that everything has a price tag on it. With large items, you may even want to hang larger, decorative signs. Finally, small items that are too plentiful to price (boxes of children’s books or McDonald’s toys are great examples) individually, should be placed into boxes or crates that have price signs.
Advertise your sale. If your neighborhood is having a “Neighborhood Sale” day, you can probably get away with a sign or two placed around the neighborhood. If you are having a stand-alone sale, though, you’re going to have to do a little more work. You can list your sale on Craigslist for free. If your city has a local bulletin board on the web, you can probably list there, too. If all else fails, you can always hang real signs up around your area. Just make sure that you get the word out about your sale somehow.
Join forces. If your kids’ outgrown clothes are the only thing you have to sell, you may have a hard time drawing a large customer base to your yard sale. That doesn’t mean, though, that your sale will be a flop. Instead, why not invite another family or two to join in with you? You can use different colored price stickers to help you separate your sales from your friends’ sales. You also get the benefit of having helpers on sale day.
Be prepared. Once sale day arrives, the important thing is to be prepared to facilitate your customers’ needs during the sale. What things did you wish you had with you the last time you went to a yard sale? Have an extension cord plugged in at the house or garage so customers can test electrical items. Make sure that you have a well-stocked change box, too. Once someone shows that they are interested in a particular item, you don’t want anything to deter them from making their purchase.
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Grate tips thanks for the sharing
Don’t forget to start early! Having a great money making sale is a lot of work and you need to take the time to plan and prepare. If you have a lot of stuff, it would be wise to start preparing a few weeks in advance. I just finished my sale and sold $1000! I have more garage sale tips and free printables at my site: http://www.thehouseholdplanner.com/tcobathome.
Thanks for sharing save money tips
Thanks for all of the advice. I have realized recently that I really do need to have a yard sale and just get rid of a lot of my things I don’t need. Someone else could certainly use them.
Hal
Thanks for your great money saving advices…..
You can try posting on http://www.yardsaledb.com to advertise your sale so more people can know about your sale!
Great Job, Thanks for Sharing these tips…..