How to Have a Successful Yard Sale

If you were to take a quick drive up and down your neighborhood roads on any given weekend, chances are you’d drive by at least half a dozen yard sales. Maybe you’ve even stopped at a few yard sales to browse – and there’s a good chance that you’ve even considered holding one yourself.

Having a yard sale is a great way to declutter your house and get rid of the things that you just don’t want or need anymore. But, not all yard sales are created equal. Some are very successful, while others are not. So what makes the difference?

How to Have A Successful Yard Sale

Having a successful yard sale is more than just putting your old CDs out on a table and slapping a price on them. If you want to learn more about how to get the most out of your time and effort (and junk), read on for some helpful tips on how to have a successful yard sale.

1. Plan Ahead

One of the biggest mistakes people make is deciding to host a garage sale at seemingly the last minute. What you end up with is a disorganized, poorly advertised mess, on a Saturday when the weather is not optimal. By planning in advance and paying attention to your local 5-day forecast, you can put together a well-organized yard sale on a day when more people will be out and about.

2. Advertise

Make sure to advertise your yard sale in advance. Depending on your area, there are several ways to do this. The easiest way is to simply buy some yard sale signs at your local home improvement store and put them in strategic locations. A community message board is also a useful place to advertise a yard sale. Finally, a notice in your local paper is sure to bring out those hard-core yard sale shoppers that seem to be making the rounds every weekend.

3. Research Your Pricing

How much (or how little) you charge for an item is very important, but a lot of people don’t really know or consider how to price garage sale items. Remember, people are coming to your sale for deals more than anything else, so pricing your items “competitively” compared to your local stores will do you no good. That doesn’t mean you have to price everything cheap, though. It really depends on your goal. If your main objective is just to get rid of things you don’t need

That doesn’t mean you have to price everything cheap, though. It really depends on your goal: if your main objective is just to get rid of things you don’t need anymore, then price them to sell. If you’re hoping to make a little bit of money in the process then it’s okay to put a little more value on the items. If people can get the same things new at the store for relatively the same amount, though, then don’t expect to sell.

Of course, if you have some rare items on display, it’s okay to price those accordingly.

4. Have Change

Before the day of the sale, get a good stash of $5s and $1s from the bank. There’s no telling what bills the customers are going to have, and being able to help them out by making change is just good business sense.

5. Consider Mobile Payment

If you have the ability, consider accepting cards by using a mobile card reader like Square. True, the company will charge you a small fee for each transaction – usually in the form of a percentage – but it will make it easier for some customers. This is especially useful for the customer who wants that hard-to-find piece but didn’t bring enough money. With a mobile card reader, you can still make that sale.

6. Have a “Free” Box

Parents of young children are frequent visitors to yard sales because they’re a great place to find toys and clothes for their kids. But those kids can also make browsing difficult. Have a small collection of little toys for them to play with, and even keep afterward – like the cheap ones you get in a Happy Meal, for instance. Make sure that these toys are ones that you’re hoping to get rid of but no one will probably buy. This will keep the kids entertained and happy, and also give the parents time to shop.

7. Have a “Community” Yard Sale

If you’re really into the idea of a yard sale, but don’t think you have enough time, energy or items to pull it off all on your own, consider joining forces with several neighbors to create a community yard sale. These larger sales are almost always much more successful because the larger inventory draws more visitors. In addition, having others to split the work with is never a bad thing. Advertising one of these a couple of days – or even weeks –in advance is almost guaranteed to bring the crowds.

Moving Services

If you’re in need of a reliable moving company after your yard sale, contact On the Go Moving for more information on how we can make your move smooth and stress-free. We provide moving, packing, and storage for residents across Bellevue, Seattle, Redmond, and elsewhere.

We hope these tips help; good luck!