Having a Garage Sale is a great way to both reduce clutter and make some extra money. After holding many garage sales of my own as well as organizing ones for our whole block I've learned there are five main things that to consider to ensure a more profitable sale.
1. Choosing A Date
Your garage sale will do the best if you hold it on the weekend closest to (or on) the 1st and/or the 15th of the month. The reason is that the 1st and 15th are days that many people are paid. Your buyers will have more money in their pockets and are more likely to purchase something.
2. Organize Your Sale For Easy Browsing and Buying
Go over every item you plan to sale, making sure it is clean, works and has all the pieces. As you find an item, clean and test it (if applicable), mark the price and set with like items: bed and bath - kitchen - books and media - toys etc.
This will help when setting up as you will want to keep all like items together. If you have sporting equipment you want to keep the all together as it will also keep buyers that are looking for those items there longer. If you have the pieces all over, they may miss something they would have bought. Keep all electronics near an outlet so they can be easily tested.
Have a few tables where everything is the same cost or within the same range such as $5 or $1-$3 or best offer over $5. This seems to draw people over, remember to group similar items together.
Find a way to hang nicer clothing such as a portable wardrobe or hang a clothing line. Make sure everything is clearly marked with the correct size and separate them by both size and gender. To make pricing easier set up a nice sign by (or above) the clothing listing the prices: men's shirts $1, all jeans $3, women's skirts $2, sleepers $1, ladies dresses as marked.
Make sure your buyers can walk around all of your tables, with enough room for strollers to get by. Place items so they are facing both sides so people on each side of the table will have things to look through. Walk around and offer to answer questions or hold items up at the check out table.
3. Set The Stage For Buy, Buy, Buy
People are likely to stay longer if the mood is light (upbeat music playing) and there are many options available. Have a cooler of pop and water available for sale as well as some kid friendly snacks like packages of goldfish and animal crackers. Some areas do not allow selling of food and drinks and if you are in one of those areas, simply offer a free cold drink with every purchase over $5 or some other draw. If it is hot, they will want those drinks!
Remember the kids! Have grab bags (use lunch sacks) for $1 with little toys in them. Mark them Girl/Boy/Toddler etc. and watch them sell! We had a bunch of extra old baseball card with 1 valued at $20, 1 at $10 and 3 at $5 each and put together 30 groups of 10 cards for $3 a piece with the good cards listed. They sold super fast! Put out a couple of blankets on the lawn to hold the toys and stuffed animals. Small ones will gravitate to that area, find the toy the just have to have, and most parents will buy it.
4. Advertise, Advertise, Advertise
Start advertising by Wednesday for a Saturday sale in newspapers, using both your local weekly newspaper as well as the daily large one.
Use the internet! Post your sale a week before and again on Wednesday and Friday on free internet sites such as Craig's list, changing the items each time. Post your sale on local and bargain hunter boards. Email friends, they may even add to your stash!
Get out flyers at least a week ahead - post them at supermarkets, colleges, your children's lessons, Laundromats, church: anywhere there is a bulletin board that allows you to post! Make BIG, precise posters all the same size, the color mentioned in your ad (see below) and make sure they are visible. Bright pink or yellow works well. Post them on every street from the main intersection to your sale.
Look at you inventory and see what will draw in the buyers and advertise those items by category in general advertising and specific items in more specialized advertising. For example if you have a great deal of baby and toddler items you could mention those in your local newspaper add as "TONS of baby clothes and accessories" and people looking for that would still drop by. But, if you can get a flyer up at say, your child's pre-school or where they take lessons (dance, gym, karate) or the local MOPS meeting place, you could hit that market stronger with more details such as: Large collection of infant clothing from newborn to 1 year, toddler dresses and clothing sets from Gymboree: all in great condition. New condition toys - Thomas the train items, Fisher price sets, board books and crib toys" Know your audience and advertise to them.
ALL advertisements need to have the same specific information: the date and times (7am is the best starting time) and the location with a help such as "look for the bright red balloons on the mailbox" or follow the big pink sings from the intersection.
5. Be Prepared
You can take all the above steps and get up on the morning of the sale to find it is raining or you don't have any ones. Always have a back up weather plan: have some type of cover available. Can you move it into the garage or put up a couple of shelters? Hopefully, it won't get to that but having a fall back plan can be your best friend when needed!
As you organize each area, go over every possibility. Will they want to test that radio (make sure there are batteries available for testing), will they want to know the size of that dresser(have a tape measure ready) and will they want to see the lamp on (have a bulb in and a outlet available): you want to be on top of things.
Extra Tips -
Have someone to stay with the money (or wear a fanny pack) and take large bills out often.
Don't take checks but offer to hold the items while they run to an ATM (know the closest two) to get cash.
Price things in 50-cent increments to make adding faster and easier.
Have enough bags and boxes to hold purchases with newspaper to wrap fragile items.
Being prepared before and during your garge sale means less stress for you as well as a more profitable sale. Which of course makes all the planning worthwhile!